Eastern Dragons

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Dragons of the Eastern parts of the world are traditionally creatures of Air and Water, revered as demigods for their ability to bring the rains. They are often considered the rulers and Kings of moving bodies of water and water-based weather effects.

Eastern Dragons in Brief

Chinese, Korean and Japanese dragons are all interrelated and share some characteristics, such as colors, methods of flight and delineation of gender. These dragons even share a "hierarchy of toes" of sorts, too!

Dragon Legends: The Hierarchy of Toes

As one might expect, the fables of China, Korea and Japan each claim a historical origin of the dragons that pervade their ancient and modern culture. One of the principal differences in dragon symbolism between the three countries is that Chinese dragons, especially Imperial ones, have five toes while Korean dragons generally have four toes and Japanese dragons only three toes.

• The Chinese believe that all eastern dragons originated in China and as they flew east, further from their homeland, they began to lose toes.

• The Koreans believe that all eastern dragons originated in Korea and that as they flew west into China they gained toes, but as they flew east into Japan they lost toes.

• The Japanese believe that all eastern dragons originated in Japan and that as they flew west into Korea and further into China they began to gain toes.

There are some variations on this theme. For example, the Chinese Imperial regimen once proclaimed the five-toed dragon symbol to be an official symbol of office; so many "common" Chinese dragons have been depicted with only four toes. In a similar vein in Korea, the official dragon symbol of the king possessed seven toes, perhaps declaring its superiority over the other Eastern Dragons.

Colors

• Black dragons are symbols of the North, children of a thousand year old black-gold dragon.
• White dragons are symbols of the South, children of a thousand year old white-gold dragon.
• Red dragons are symbols of the West, children of a thousand year old red-gold dragon.
• Blue dragons are symbols of the East, children of an eight hundred year old blue-gold dragon.

• Yellow dragons are not associated with a cardinal direction and instead represent the Golden Sun and hence were connected to the Chinese Emperor. These dragons were said to appear at "the perfect moment."

Black and Red dragons both cause storms by battling in the air. White and Blue dragons are symbolic of death and the coming spring, respectively. Yellow dragons are revered above all the others.

Flight

Most Eastern dragons are bereft of wings, instead flying by their inherent magical abilities. Dragons are described as having a chi'ih-muh - a lump on their head, which was said to be the source of their magical flight capabilities. Some dragons did not have this lump and would instead carry a po-shan - a wand or baton which would allow them to fly.

Gender

Male dragons are traditionally depicted holding a war club in their tails, while female dragons hold a sensu - a fan - in their tails.

Eastern Dragons in Detail

Chinese and Japanese dragons have many specific roles in popular culture and hence have many types and names. Before discussing these however, a brief mention of Indian dragons is necessary.

Indian Dragons

Of all the Eastern and Asian dragons, the Nagas - serpents or snakes - of India are widely regarded as the most influential, helping to shape the role and position of the dragon in Chinese culture. For this reason, the Nagas are often thought of as the fathers of the Chinese dragons.

A Naga appears as a serpentine creature with five or seven heads shrouded by a hood, or as a half man, half serpent hybrid and generally represents primal evil personified.

Chinese Dragons

There are many generic types of Chinese dragon, and many specific honorific titles. Collected here are some of the major ones:

• Lung is the generic name for a Chinese dragon

• Tien Lung - the Celestial Dragon - Guarded the gates of heaven or supported the palaces of the gods on their backs.
• Shen Lung - the Spiritual Dragon - Controlled the rain as well as the clouds and wind and could cause storms if angered.
• Fu-tsang Lung - the Guardian of Hidden Treasures - Kept the jewels and precious metals of the world.
• Ying Lung - the Winged Dragon - Developed wings over a period of 4,000 years.

The Azure Dragon also appears in the Chinese constellations and in this role, represents the East and the spring.

Japanese Dragons

Many of the concepts of Japanese dragons permeate from China, including the four principal dragons. There are also other dragons in Japanese culture representing other aspects:

• Tatsu is the generic name for a Japanese dragon

• Sui Riu - the Dragon King - Controlled the rain.
• Hai Riyo - the "Dragon-Bird" - An evolved form of the dragon, one of the highest states a dragon can reach.
• Fuku Riu - the Luck Dragon - Said to bring good luck.
• Han Riu - the Earth-Bound - Connected to this mortal coil, it can never reach heaven.

Bibliography

http://members.tripod.com/~Griffin109/east.html
http://www.blackdrago.com/easterndragons.htm
http://seraphimstudios.com/personal/rpowers/sproject/eastern.html
http://sommerland.org/ondragons/races/races_eastern2.html
http://users.aber.ac.uk/cjy5/nfchinese.htm