What's So Special About Dragons?
By Pang Jin

Ming Dynasty dragon ceiling design in the Forbidden City.

     Dragons appear throughout China. They are carved upon buildings, painted on vases, used in dances, featured in Chinese movies and operas, and even conversation.  But how is it these exotic creatures have become so closely intertwined with Chinese culture? Experts are still not certain, and thousands of theories abound.

Origins

     Dragons possess the best features of all the zodiac animals - the deer's beautiful antlers that symbolize health and longevity, fish tails that symbolize agility and zeal, powerful tigers' eyes, lions' noses that symbolize wealth, horses' teeth that represent hard work, oxen's ears, donkeys' mouth, snakes' bodies, and eagles' claws.

     Some say dragons are either descendants of a wild gulf crocodile named Jiao or of snakes because of their snake-like bodies. Others argue that dragons were either formed out of rising and twisting clouds, unpredictable lightning, fish, or sea tides. Most believe, though, that the dragon sprang from the curiosity andfear ancients felt towards reptile such as crocodiles and snakes and natural weather phenomena such as lightning and thunder showers. The earliest dragon records date back to the late Paleolithic Period and the early Neolithic Age.  Back then, people believed all creatures had souls, and most tribes had their own totem.

The dragon in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) mural shows features of different creatures..

     The dragon is said to have separated earth from heaven, made all creatures on the earth and have helped mankind reproduce.

     According to one Chinese fairy tale, the first dragon's name was Fuxi. Fuxi had a dragon's body and man's head.  He wanted to become the forefather of mankind but could not find a woman who was able to bare him a son. So, he married his sister, Nuwa, who then gave birth to the first group of men and women on earth.

     In the stone carvings of the Han Dynasty, there are pictures of Fuxi and Nuwa embracing each other, either with mascots in their hands or with their two tails twisting together.

       Fighting occurred after the birth of mankind. When the fighting became fierce, the land fell into pieces. The well-known Yellow Emperor also had a dragon's body and a man's head and so some story tellers call him the Yellow Dragon. The Yellow Emperor's brother, Emperor Yan, had the same mother but a different father.  He also had the body of a dragon. Some say the Chinese people are descendants of the Yellow Emperor and Emperor Yan and are thus descendants of dragons.

Stone carvings of Fuxi and Nuwa from the Eastern Dynasty (25-220).

Symbols

     There are both good and bad dragons. It is said that Nuwa killed a black dragon on the Central Plain who always brought disasters to the local people.  Yu the Great slew a stupid dragon in the Wuxia Gorge who had created a water channel in the wrong area. But some dragons in Chinese folk tales are imagined to help kind and poor people, drive away evil, and appear when on e is in trouble - sort of like Superman in the United States.

     Dragons are considered water gods because many of their zodiac animal features need water to survive. Dragons are responsible for administering water affairs and are said to exist in seas, lakes, rivers, and springs. Whenever floods or droughts occurred, people used to pray to dragons and offer sacrifices of pigs and goats.  Many dragon king temples still exit in China today.

Qing Dynasty imperial robe with embroidered dragon patterns.

     Dragons also symbolize imperial power. Admiring their ancestors, later Chinese emperors would compare themselves with the powerful creatures and sometimes dress up like them.  Since dragons are in charge of water both in heaven and earth, they would report the conditions of the earth to the celestial god, and then pass on orders to civilians.  The emperor is said to be the imperial dragon, the son of the celestial god. His duty is to receive orders from heaven and to administer the earth.

     Many Chinese emperors associated themselves with dragons.  Emperor Qinshihuang of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) was called the ancestral dragon.  Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty is said to be the son of his mother Liu Ao and the flood dragon. Emperor Jingdi of the Han Dynasty once dreamed of a red pig turning into a red dragon; afterwards, his son Emperor Wudi was born.  When Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty was born, two dragons were said to have been seen playing in the pool in Wugong County.

     Since the emperors were considered dragons, special terms were created to describe their activities. Regime conflicts were called "dragon fighting," the beginning of a new imperial regime was called "dragon's rising," and a crown prince was called "a dragon in concealment."  Once a prince succeeded to the throne, he was called " a dragon in flight."

The jasper Dragon crafted 5000 years ago, shows the embryonid form of the dragon.

     As the symbol of imperial power, the dragon often bears a ferocious expression with bare fangs and brandished claws.  Living under the tyranny of imperial rule for so long, some people became very passive - they obeyed rules, avoided conflict, and kept away from imperial power.

     Thus, when we see dragons carved or painted in imperial palaces, although they are beautifully decorated in bright colors, they always seem to keep a distance from the people.

Dragon Dances

     During important holidays and festivals, there are always dragon dances.
The dragons are made of different materials including bamboo, wood, straw, rattan, cloth, and paper. Sometimes, patterns of lotus flowers and butterflies are put together to make the "Hundred-leaves Dragon." People run, jump, and sing with the dragons as a prayer for good harvest and luck as well as an amusement activity.  Working in the fields, Chinese farmers seldom had an opportunity to relax and let themselves go.  During the dragon dance, they were free to perform all kind of movements. Also the dances posed a good opportunity for young fellows to show off their abilities to girls.

Dragon's Head Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas.

     Through the dragon dance people show their disrespect for imperial power by pushing down its head, twisting its body, and grasping its tail. The dance climaxes when on-lookers either throw firecrackers at the dragon, or stuff its body with gunpowder and light it up. Fire spews from its mouth and tail, and the creature crumbles.

     Today, the dragon has lost a bit of mystique and has walked into the lives of the ordinary people, making us feel closer to it.                                                                                                                              - Pang Jin

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AsianConnections.com thanks China Today Magazine and Chinese dragon expert author PANG JIN for permission to reprint this article. All photos are courtesy of China Today, except "Dragon's Head" photographed by AC Team, part of a full length Chinese dragon currently being exhibited during the 2000 Millennium New Year's celebration in the lobby of the Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada.

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