DRAGONS

The mythical dragon lives eternally in nearly every culture. These large, mysterious creatures and the legends that surround them can be found in the stories and fables of cultural folklore.

The ways in which a culture describes its dragons can be very revealing. The word itself conjures up an image of ... well, the image that comes to mind when you hear the word "dragon" depends on your cultural heritage.

WESTERN DRAGONS

Western cultures, raised on the stories and fables created in Europe and the Americas, describe dragons as vile, evil creatures;  large-bodied, fire-breathing, flying reptiles. To kill such a creature was seen as a great achievement and "dragon slayers" were highly admired and respected.

Pagans once looked upon dragons as beneficial creatures. Religious missionaries arrived however, and actively suppressed all non-Christian religious beliefs. They claimed that dragons were the personification of evil and bolstered their claim by inventing the tale of Saint George and the Dragon.

According to this legend, a dragon had been terrifying a small town and taking human sacrifices. A local hero named George challenged the dragon and slew it in the name of Christianity. His brave deed converted the entire town to Christianity. The Western dragon thus became a focus for evil.

ORIENTAL DRAGONS

Dragons have been an integral part of Korean, Chinese and Japanese culture since the beginnings of recorded history. While some dragons are considered evil, most are considered good and the dragon remains a powerful creature to be respected, even revered.

For thousands of years Oriental dragons have been portrayed as kind and intelligent creatures. According to the old Chinese Book of Rites, dragons rank highest among all scaly creatures and are one of the four benevolent spiritual animals. They are rarely seen as fire-breathers. Although Asian dragons do not usually have wings, they still fly and are often depicted in clouds or ascending from the heavens. A fully-matured adult dragon becomes ying-lung, a winged dragon known as China's Adult Imperial Dragon.

Asian dragons are four-legged, serpentine creatures said to be created from 9 distinct animal types found on earth. According to Wang Fu, who lived during the Han dynasty, the Chinese dragon is drawn using the:

Most dragons are shown with a lion-type mane around their neck, on their chin and on each elbow. Their wide-mouthed head is adorned with two long whiskers spreading out from their snout. They are commonly shown as either blue, black, white, red, or yellow in color.

The male dragon holds a large, luminous pearl - representing power and wisdom - in its mouth, hidden under its chin or throat by folds of skin, or tightly in its claws. Male dragons also carry a war club in their tail. Female dragons (yes, they exist) are shown holding a fan in their tail.

Although most Westerners find it virtually impossible to distinguish among them, there are three separate dragon species in Asia, each coming from a different part of the world:  the Chinese, the Korean or Indonesian and the Japanese dragons. You'll always know which dragon species you are looking at by counting its toes.

It's that simple. Five-toed dragons are Chinese, four-toed dragons are Korean or Indonesian and three-toed dragons are Japanese. To understand why this is so, let's look at each of the three dragon families.

CHINESE DRAGONS

In China, the dragon is called Lung, and there are four types:

• T'ien-Lung - Celestial Dragon, protector of the places of the Gods;
• Ti-Lung - Earth Dragon, controller of Earth's rivers and waters;
• Shen-Lung - Spiritual Dragon, controller of the wind and rain;  and
• Fu-ts'ang Lung - Underworld Dragon, guardian of precious metals and gems.

In addition, separate dragons control the rivers of the North, South, East and West. The commander of all the River Dragons is the great Chien-Tang, a 900 foot-long blood-red giant with a fiery mane.

According to Chinese legend, dragons originated in China and have always had five toes. Being gregarious by nature, they wandered the earth. The farther West they wandered from China, the more toes they grew, making it ever more difficult to travel. The farther East they wandered from China however, the more toes they lost. Thus, when dragons reached Korea, they had only four toes. By the time they reached Japan, they had but three. This explains why the Chinese dragon never reached Europe or the Americas (their dragon came much later), since by that time it would have been unable to walk at all.

The Chinese five-clawed dragon is believed to be the most superior among the colored dragons;  a symbol of power. The symbol of the yellow "Imperial Dragon" - partly a preserver and partly a destroyer - came to represent the Emperor early in China's history.

The Yellow Dragon took on greater importance during the Manchu Dynasty, when it was used to describe or define virtually everything related to the Emperor. It became law in China that only the Emperor could wear a five-clawed dragon on his robes or illustrate anything he owned, or mark any pathway or place only the Emperor could travel. Any individual caught wearing or displaying the symbol of the 5-clawed dragon was executed.

Born as a water snake, the dragon lives through a 3,000 year-long metamorphosis. Because of its early association with water, especially rain, Chinese peasants worshiped the dragon so that it would bring rain. In winter, the dragon descends from the heavens to reside in the ocean. In summer, the dragon ventures back to the heavens, bringing needed rain to the land. Sometimes this brings floods, but drought is far worse because crops can't grow without water.

Throughout history dragons have been closely linked to the weather. It is said that some of Asia's worst flooding occurred because some mortal had upset a dragon. Although Chinese dragons appear at favorable moments to presage periods of prosperity, if they are offended or disturbed they could gather up all the water from a district in baskets and create a drought. They can also cause a solar eclipse. To soothe the dragons, Chinese fly dragon kites, especially during New Year parades.

KOREAN DRAGONS

Just as the Chinese and Japanese lay claim to being the birthplace dragons, Korean legends and fables speak of its origin in Korea. The four-clawed Korean dragon is a gregarious creature by nature and loves to wander the earth. The farther it wanders West or South from Korea however, the more toes it grows, making it ever more difficult to travel. The farther it wanders North or East from Korea, the more toes it loses. Thus, when it reached China it had five toes. By the time it reached Japan, it had but three. This too explains why the Korean dragon never arrived in Europe or the Americas ... it simply couldn't walk that far.

JAPANESE DRAGONS

The Japanese dragon's legendary past is much like that of its Chinese and Korean relatives. Born in Japan, the curious, adventuresome dragon wandered the earth. Unfortunately when it wandered South or East from Japan, it lost toes. If it traveled North or West it grew toes. Thus, the Korean dragon had four toes, while the Chinese dragon had five. Japan's dragons never reached much further than central Asia, since by that time they could no longer walk.

Japanese dragons frequently appear in Buddhist temples, where they are used for decoration and as fountain heads for purification before worship. When used in combination with the phoenix, the dragon symbolizes prosperity and a long life. It also appears in combination with the tiger to represent heaven and earth, the spirit of Yin and Yang. While Japanese dragons are respected creatures, they are not held in such high regard as those in China. There are evil Japanese dragons, like the fabled dragon of Koshi, an eight headed beast with eight tails.

As you can see, China, Korea and Japan each explain the origins of the dragon in a way that allows each to claim credit for its origins without conflict. So, the next time you see a dragon portrayed in Asian art, whether a painting, a silk screen, dinnerware, or decorative furniture, look closely at the dragon's claws. They will always tell you where it was born.