DRAGONS!

By Deb Russell

"This of course is the way to talk to dragons, if you don't want to reveal your proper name (which is wise), and don't want to infuriate them by a flat refusal (which is also very wise). No dragon can resist the fascination of riddling talk and of wasting time to trying to understand it." (The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien )

So what exactly is a Dragon?
Dragon \'drag-en\ 1. a huge serpent 2. a fabulous animal usually represented as a monstrous winged and scaly serpent or saurian with a crested head and enormous claws.

Dragons have long been an important symbol in many cultures. The dragon has been viewed throughout time as being both wise and evil, possessing a magical quality. In fact, some dragons were considered to be able to control the natural elements and being blamed for natural disasters. They were the primary source of rain, viewed as essential to life or could cause dangerous floods if they were not satisfied. The modern day dragon is viewed as being intent on destruction, sitting atop its pile of gold as portrayed in the works of Tolkien.

When the dragon traveled north and east it was said that it lost its toes which may be the reason why the dragon is not such a dominating symbol in European and American cultures although there does exist such dragon symbolism.

The Western dragon has four legs, winged (mostly), and fire-breathing. These dragons are mostly greedy and gold loving. Some dragons, called dragonlets, were small in stature, but were no less deadly. "St. George and the Dragon", "Tristan and the Fire Dragon", "Rustam and the Dragon", and "The Dragonet of Mt. Pilatus" are all infamous mythical stories relating to the dragon.

Serpent Dragons are believed to be the first "dragons" that motivated the beginnings of later myths, legends, and stories. They are big, limbless, and wing-less. They are snake-like and live in oceans and other bodies of water. They were often noted for having multiple heads, like the hydra. Hydra was a terrible dragon that lived in the marshes of Lerna. The beast had numerous heads with the added horror that if a head was cut off; two would instantly grow back in its place. Hercules and his nephew, Iolaus, decided to hunt down Hydra and kill it. Hercules would cut off a head and Ioleus immediately burned the wound to prevent the heads from growing back. The central head of the monster was immortal, but Hercules overcame this obstacle by burying it under a rock.

Taking much from the Greek and Arabian legends, the Christians were responsible for turning the Dragon into the image we generally associate with it, that of the fire-breathing monster. The Christians used the image of the Serpent, or Dragon, to represent evil, and commonly Satan himself

The Eastern dragon is also the Oriental dragon. Eastern dragons can be from Korea, Japan, or China. There are slight but subtle differences between them. Many different animals contribute to the dragon's body. For instance, the dragon has the body of a snake, belly of a frog, scales of a carp, head of a camel, horns of a giant stag, the eyes of a hare, ears like a bull, a neck like an iguana, paws like a tiger, and claws like an eagle.

Chinese dragons have five toes. The Chinese believe that all eastern dragons originated from China. They believed that when the dragons flew away, they began to lose toes. The farther and farther the dragons flew, the more toes they lost. Legend has it that Chinese dragons lived under the surface of the Earth and only visited the world in the second month of the Chinese calendar to cause rain and thunder. Dragons were used to mark stairways and decorate ancient monuments, buildings and martial arts kwoons (dojos).

Korean dragons have 4 toes and are used in temples and higher-standard buildings for symbolic and protection purposes.

Japanese dragons have 3 toes and are often seen in Buddhist temples to ward off evil spirits. Dragon heads can be seen on fountains, which are used for purification rituals before worshipping Buddha.

The Vietnamese dragon can live in the sky, the water, or underground. It is immortal and does not reproduce. The "Giao Long", which are half lizard half snakes automatically become dragons after a thousand years. The dragon is a symbol of power and nobility to the Vietnamese. A five-clawed dragon was found on the official dress of the emperor.

The celestial dragon (called t'ien lung) is a protector of heaven and guardian of gods. The spiritual dragon (the shen-lung) brings rain. The ti-lung was the dragon of the land and rivers. There is also the treasure dragon (fu-ts-ang lung) which holds jewels and metals. Some dragons are pictured with a pearl under their chin or held in its claws which represents "the pearl of wisdom". Some believe this is an egg which the dragon carries this way to keep it safe until its ready to hatch; but most people hold that it is a unique gem which somehow encapsulates the dragon's immense wisdom and hence has magical powers. The true symbolism attached to the pearl may be the dragon as "The keeper of the Tao" - meaning the round and perfectly balanced Yin and Yang symbol.

Dragons are a primal yang force used to ward off evil spirits. Wearing a dragon is considered good luck, and many Chinese people wear dragon charms for this reason. Dragons were emblazoned on the garments of ancient Chinese generals. The Emperor alone had nine dragons on his brocade. The dragon was also a symbol of the emperor whose wisdom and divine power assured the well being of his subjects. Many legends draw connections between the dragon and the emperor. Some emperors claimed to have descended from the dragon. When an Emperor died it was said that he had ascended to heaven on the back of a dragon.

From the Han dynasty and on (206 BC - 220 AD) dragons took a symbolic meaning based on their color. Chinese Dragons were entirely one color.

The blue dragon was the symbol of the Emperor, the East, and the dawning of spring as well as the fifth element of the Chinese zodiac.

The white dragon stood for the West and death. White is the Chinese color of mourning, so these dragons were a sign of death, which to the Chinese was merely another aspect of nature.

The red dragon was a symbol of the West and the black dragon was a symbol of the North. Both were known to be ferocious beasts whose battles in the sky were the cause of storms.

The yellow or gold dragon was a solitary creature, very enigmatic and the most revered. Silver dragons are good and said to be the most respected dragons by all of mankind. They rank as the largest of all dragons.

The silver dragon myth is that they have the ability to morph themselves into the form of human or elf and can speak in human tongues. Silver dragons ward off evil and have two breath weapons. They can fire off a spray of frost or paralyzing gas. Their greatest strength is their magical ability to bring balance and harmony to situations especially in combat and training of the arts.

There are many legends concerning the beginnings of the martial arts. According to oriental legend, mythical creatures called tengo, practiced martial arts and then taught it to worthy humans. Another myth is that Zen Buddhists were responsible for the spread of the martial arts. The monks watched the movement of the animals in order to create many of the movements based in the martial arts. Although there are many more, there are five basic animals in the animal fighting styles. The five animals are the leopard (fast & lazy, multiple striker), the snake (flexible, speed and pressure points with deadly strikes), the tiger (lazy & attacks when provoked in one strike), the crane (balance, draws opponent within their space and uses their balance against them), and the dragon (powerful & overconfident). The dragon has all the traits of the other four animals but instinctively avoids all the other animals' weak points. The tiger is symbolic of the physical world while the dragon signifies the mental or spiritual world. Together they represent a harmony between the two or the yin and yang. Dragons feared tigers, perhaps due to the fact that they were the "opposites" of each other.

The characteristics of the dragon all add up to the number nine in which the Chinese believe to be a very lucky number. Nine represents yang in the Chinese disciplines, and is considered the 'good' side of nature.
According to legend, the dragon had nine sons, each having a very strong personality. The Chinese dragon is made up of nine entities. It has the head of a camel, the eyes of a demon, the ears of a cow, the horns of a stag, the neck of a snake, the belly of a clam. Its claws are that of an eagle, the soles of his feet are that of a tiger and the scales that cover its body are those of a carp. All Chinese dragons are said to have one hundred and seventeen scales total. Eighty-one of these scales are "yang", or the active, dominant, moving force. The other thirty-six scales are said to be of "yin", or the passive, recessive, accepting force. This is said to keep the dragon in balance.

A traditional long-term belief in Hong Kong is that nine dragons live in the waters of Kowloon, protecting the cities and keeping the people from harm. In Chinese history, it has been said that when a natural disaster occurred, a Chinese dragon was offended but the majority of dragons in Chinese culture are seen as strong and fierce protectors.

The Chinese New Year's Day or the Chinese Spring Festival as it is better known, takes place in January or February, depending on the lunar calendar. Many Chinese dragons are paraded in costume along the streets. The dragon in traditional Chinese New Year's Day parades is believed to repel evil spirits that would spoil the New Year.

The Year of the Dragon takes place every twelve years. Present-day Oriental astrologers claim that children born during dragon years enjoy health, wealth, and long life. (1904 - Wood Dragon 1916 - Fire Dragon 1928 - Earth Dragon 1940 - Metal dragon 1952 - Water dragon 1964 - Wood Dragon 1976 - Fire Dragon 1988 - Earth Dragon 2000 - Metal Dragon 2012 - Water Dragon)

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