ゼウスはカドモスとハルモニアの娘セメレーに恋をして、彼女と関係を持つようになった。その後、セメレーが妊娠したときにヘーラーは夫の浮気を発見し、セメレーに真の姿のゼウスと寝るように説得した。ゼウスがセメレーに真の姿を見せたとき、その雷と稲妻はセメレーを焼き殺してしまった<ref>Hyginus, ''Fabulae'' [https://topostext.org/work/206#179 179].</ref><ref group="私注">タラニスの人身御供の儀式で生贄を焼き殺すことを彷彿とさせる。</ref>。ゼウスは胎児を自分の太ももに縫い付けて救い、胎児はディオニューソスとして生まれることになる<ref>Apollodorus, [https://topostext.org/work/150#3.4.3 3.43].</ref>。
オルフィックの『狂詩曲』(紀元前1世紀/紀元後1世紀)では<ref>Meisner, pp. [https://books.google.com/books?id=ethjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1 1], [https://books.google.com/books?id=ethjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA5 5]</ref>、ゼウスは母レーアーと結婚することを望んでいた[132]。
In the [[Orphism (religion)|Orphic]] "Rhapsodic Theogony" (first century BC/AD),<ref>Meisner, pp. [https://books.google.com/books?id=ethjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1 1], [https://books.google.com/books?id=ethjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA5 5]</ref> Zeus wanted to marry his mother [[Rhea (mythology)|Rhea]]. After Rhea refused to marry him, Zeus turned into a snake and raped her. Rhea became pregnant and gave birth to [[Persephone]]. Zeus in the form of a snake would mate with his daughter Persephone, which resulted in the birth of [[Dionysus]].<ref name=":0">West 1983, pp. 73–74; Meisner, [https://books.google.com/books?id=ethjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA134 p. 134]; Orphic frr. [https://archive.org/details/orphicorumfragme00orphuoft/page/16/mode/2up?view=theater 58] [= [[Athenagoras of Athens|Athenagoras]], ''[[Athenagoras of Athens#Legatio Pro Christianis|Legatio Pro Christianis]]'' 20.2] [https://archive.org/details/orphicorumfragme00orphuoft/page/192/mode/2up?view=theater 153] Kern.</ref>
Zeus granted [[Callirrhoe (daughter of Achelous)|Callirrhoe's]] prayer that her sons by [[Alcmaeon (mythology)|Alcmaeon]], [[Acarnan]] and [[Amphoterus (son of Alcmaeon)|Amphoterus]], grow quickly so that they might be able to avenge the death of their father by the hands of [[Phegeus (king of Psophis)|Phegeus]] and his two sons.<ref>[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], [https://topostext.org/work/150#3.7.6 3.76].</ref>