"Books are my friends, my companions. They make me laugh and cry and find meaning in life." - Christopher Paolini

Author: Smith Lindsay (Page 1 of 2)

Hi, my name is Lindsay Smith. I am an animal behavior major and I am on the pre-vet track. I love to read, write, draw, and learn more about history. I am a little weird and crazy but isn't that a good thing? Normal can be boring.

Chinese

I’m really excited and sad about this post. The excitement is from being able to look into the Chinese history of dragons. The sadness is because this will be my post for this blog. Let’s get started!

Background Information

There are a few different legends that tell how dragons came to be. The first one talks about how the ancient people’s totem worshipping practices could have formed the shape of the dragon. Different body parts of different animals helped form the shape. The second one tells the tale of Yandi who is an emperor in the Chinese pre-dynastic times. He was born from his mother’s ability of telepathy and his father was a dragon. Yandi allied with another emperor named Huang Di and his father. Together the three of them conquered China’s enemies of the time and united China. Yandi due to this is seen as an ancestor which means the Chinese civilization is descendants of a dragon.

Symbolism

Everything male – In traditional Chinese society, men were considered to be physically strong and powerful and were often influential in community matters. Dragons were employed as representations of this relative dominance in traditional society. Masculine traits, thus, were considered physical manifestations of the mythological dragon.

Nobleness – According to Chinese astrology, those born in the Year of the Dragon are more prosperous and noble than others. For example, 1988, 2000, and 2012 are considered dragon years (see our full article on Chinese Zodiac Animals). Many Chinese people consider those born during dragon years to be strong-willed, decisive, and self-confident.

Agricultural life – According to Chinese mythology, dragons control the weather and the seasons. Though most dragons are wingless, male dragons possess the power to fly to the heavens and bring rain, while female dragons control earthly waters like rivers, lakes, seas, and wells.

Good fortune – Some people also believe dragons symbolize fortune and good luck. Thus, people often engrave dragons on utensils and personal items to attract the best life has to offer.

Kindness – In China, dragons are symbols of kindness and warmth. (Remember, the Chinese dragon doesn’t breathe fire as its European counterparts do.) However, there are some exceptions, as we will see below.”

Information copied from this source: https://studycli.org/chinese-culture/chinese-dragons/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8SaaNlkNW4
Color Symbolism
There are different meanings for different colors

Red Dragon

  • Good fortune
  • Happiness
  • Often seen at weddings

Yellow Dragon

  • Good fortune
  • Power
  • Controls time and seasons
  • Symbolizes the Chinese empire and emperor
  • Warmth
  • Wisdom
  • Wealth

White Dragon

  • Purity
  • Death
  • Mourning

Black Dragon

  • Vengeance
  • Catastrophes
    • Storms
  • See featured image above

List of The 8 Different Types

  • Underworld
  • Horned
  • Coiling
  • Spiritual
  • Winged
  • Celestial
  • Treasure
  • Dragon King
To learn more about the 8 types go to this source: https://studycli.org/chinese-culture/chinese-dragons/

Here is a youtube video that you can watch to get some deeper knowledge about Chinese dragons.

My Thoughts

It was really amazing to learn about the diversity of dragons in this culture. I knew that dragons play an important role in Chinese culture but I didn’t realize just how important until I really delved into research. I wanted to include a video because I knew I gave a lot of information and I thought watching this video will help break it up. I hope you the reader enjoyed this journey as much as I did and that you learned as much as I did.

Sources that I used:

https://studycli.org/chinese-culture/chinese-dragons/ (Source of the first image)

https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/article-chinese-dragons.htm

https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-dragon-facts.htm

Japanese

I wanted to save the two most common cultures that are thought of when most people think of dragons, Japanese and Chinese. I chose to do these two left because I wanted to explore the more different cultures that I personally haven’t heard more about. So now I’m a little excited to look into these two cultures. I am going to do this blog post about the Japanese aspects and my last blog post will be about the Chinese ones.

Background Information

There are four divine creatures in Japanese mythology and these creatures are one of them. Japanese dragons are usually associated with being connected to the sea. They have three toes like the one in the image above. It is believed that the further dragons traveled away from Japan the more toes they grew. Their bodies are serpent-like and they fly less than other dragons. The abilities include being able to shapeshift into a human being. Japanese dragons are often seen battling with other gods and often help make heroes. They represent strength, wisdom, and success.

The source YABAI Writers included a list of what different body parts of dragons represent in this culture and I really wanted to share it with you the readers.

  • Ouroboros – symbolizes the cycle of life
  • A Sleeping Dragon – symbolizes a hidden power or strength that comes out when needed
  • A Gothic Dragon – symbolizes the primal instincts of man, i.e. fearlessness
  • A Tribal Dragon – symbolizes a deep connection with the culture of the tribe where the design originated from
  • A Rising Dragon – symbolizes progress and ascension
  • A Yin-Yang Dragon – symbolizes the proper balance of forces
  • A Dragon and Snake – symbolizes the conflicting ideas of superstition and science
  • A Dragon and Tiger – symbolizes the importance of having brains over brawns
  • A Dragon Claw – symbolizes fearlessness and power
  • A Dragon Skull – symbolizes that a difficulty has been conquered
  • A Dragon and Moon – symbolizes the connection of the sub-consciousness and nature
  • A Flaming Dragon – symbolizes passion, power, and sexual desires

– Source: http://yabai.com/p/2516

Watatsumi /Ryu Jin

I wanted to talk about one specific dragon like I have done in previous posts so I chose the dragon that interested me the most. The dragon I have chosen has different names which are Watatsumi, Ryu Jin, and Ryo Wo. He is considered the king of the dragons who lives in the sea and is the god of water. The physical appearance of Ryu Jin was a human body with a crown that has a serpent wrapped around it. Ryu Jin’s palace located under the sea is called Ryugo-jo and made of crystal and coral. He is the protector and guardian of the Shinto religion, which is Japan’s traditional religion. Ryu Jin is known for his wisdom and nobility. If someone was to fall into the sea Ryu Jin would save them and bring them to his kingdom to live there.

I wanted to include a short story that was included in one of my sources. I think that this story shows Ryu Jin’s wisdom.

"One story in the Kojiki tells of how a man named Hoori lost his brother’s fish hook in the sea and, while searching for it, met Otohime, a daughter of Watatsumi. Hoori and the dragon goddess soon got married and lived in Ryugo-jo.
After three years, Hoori started feeling homesick and wanted to live on land, again, but was afraid of facing his brother without his fish hook. Watatsumi confronted Hoori about what was bothering him and upon hearing his concerns, the water god summoned all the fishes of the sea to ask if any of them had seen the fish hook.
Fortuitously, one of the fishes did come across the fish hook and had it stuck in its throat. It was obtained, washed, and given to Hoori.
Watatsumi then instructed Hoori to take Otohime back with him up to the lands using a wani, another mythical dragon best described to be a sea monster/creature."
 - YABAI Writers 
Source: http://yabai.com/p/2516
Sources that I used:

http://yabai.com/p/2516 (the link for the photo as well)

Philippines

I was so lost on what to research for this blog. I spent some time trying to think about what dragon do I want to look into or what folklore. So after some time, I decided to look up “dragons around the world” which resulted in me finding this website written by Brown Geeks. It showed me a list of 9 dragons where I was instantly connected to the Philippines’ tale about Bakunawa.

Bakunawa

Bakunawa is described as a serpent-like body, gills, a red tongue, whiskers, and a mouth the size of a lake. The color of his body changes depending on what story is told. He can be either red, dark blue, or white. As seen in the photo above. He is said to live in the depths of the ocean. There is a second “player” in his tale named Bathala. Bathala is believed as the god of all the gods and the creator of all things. In this story, they are mortal enemies.

Bathala created 7 moons and put them in the sky. Bakunawa saw them from the depths of the ocean which was dark and the light coming from the moons drew them to him. He jumped into the sky and ate one of the moons. Every 100 years he would jump out of the ocean and ate one of the moons. Whenever he ate one of the moons eclipses and earthquakes occurred. He ate them all until there was just one left. This caused Bathala to be beyond angry with him.The ancient Filipinos were tired of Bakunawa’s actions and didn’t want him to eat the last moon that would cause even more darkness and earthquakes. They knew that he was afraid of loud noises so when Bakunawa grabbed the final moon they grabbed pans and started banging on them and yelling. The noises scared Bakunawa he let go of the moon and went back into the ocean. Every 100 years the tradition is still carried out. The people bring out pans, drums, and they yell so Bakunawa doesn’t take the moon away.

My thoughts

It was really interesting to learn about a tradition somewhere else in the world. It must be a fun night to have. I would love any purpose to bang on pots and drums and scream into the night. It’s really interesting to think that different generations have played a role in this tradition while others have not but know the legend.

Links that I used:

https://mythus.fandom.com/wiki/Bakunawa

https://thebrowngeeks.com/9-amazing-dragons-from-around-the-world/ (this is also the link to the photo)

Egypt

My dog Ally and I were laying down together doing some research when we came across Akhekhu. Akhekhu is a dragon in Egyptian mythology. He has a body of a serpent with four legs. He is often depicted to be associated with the deity Seth. Seth is the god of the desert, earthquakes, eclipses, thunderstorms, and foreign lands. He is also the god that helps guide those to the afterlife. He is the Egyptian version of the Greek god Hades. One of the reasons why Akhekhu is associated with Seth is because Akhekhu could be found in the desert.

The legend of Akhekhu was brought to Europe where they made their own legend of him. Instead of having a serpentine body it was of an antelope and a head of a bird but still had some aspects of a serpent. Akhekhu in European folklore also has 3 uraei. The image that is incorporated in this post fits that description.

I find it interesting in how legends are influenced in different countries. There was still similarities but there was also some main differences. Yet images that I kept seeing is of the European description. Which is curious because that’s not even the original form of Akhekhu. I think that this may be because Europe has had a great influence throughout time. Perhaps that because of their travels it is more common than the Egyptian one.

There is something else that I noticed when doing the research. This is yet another god that is related to thunderstorms. In the posts that I wrote about Greek and India the gods were related to thunderstorms. Maybe this is just a coincidence but maybe there is a deeper meaning that I have yet to discover.

Links to the sources that I used:

https://dragons.fandom.com/wiki/Akhekh (this is also the link of the photo)

http://www.blackdrago.com/fame/akhekhu.htm

https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-seth#:~:text=Seth%20(Set)%2C%20son%20of,pharaohs%2C%20particularly%20Ramses%20the%20Great.

In the Clouds

While driving home from work today I was thinking about what I would want to research for tonight. Then I looked at the clouds and thought maybe it’s just my mindset right now but that cloud really looks like a dragon breathing fire. The pictures I took figure my driving buddy Dolphin who I got at a carnival.

This cloud gave me the idea to write about some of my thoughts on what I’ve learned so far and my thoughts on dragons in general. I want to talk about how some of my views may have changed, stayed the same, or started anew. What I mean by that is I have some new views that I didn’t have before.

Before I started this blog my first thoughts when it came to dragons included “I want one” and “how beautiful they are”. I knew that they have had an influence on many different things such as mythology, Chinese zodiac sign, and folklore, etc. I still have those same thoughts but I appreciate them more than before if that is even possible. Finding out just how they play an influence and the different stories that are told just makes them even more fascinating.

When going through the stories that are told about them I started noticing how they may be different but there are more similarities than I thought. For example, Vritra and Indra vs Jormungandr and Thor the storyline is different but the characters within the stories are very very similar. Both of the dragon figures play a role with water and the two gods have a power related to thunder and storms. I didn’t even plan on doing them back to back plus I only discovered these stories when doing research. I was really amazed by how similar they are. I was expecting there to overlaps but for reason, I wasn’t really expecting it to occur between Norse and Indian mythology. I can’t wait to see what other common characteristics I’ll discover.

Another similarity that I have noticed is they are usually seen as evil creatures that are slayed by some hero. Which is another thing that I expected but I had some hope that I would find at least one that was at least a gentle creature that wasn’t evil. I still have some of that hope because I never know what to fully expect.

Home Video GIF

This is my dog Lulu who passed away this year. She was 11 years old and was a Pomeranian mix but mixed with what I do not know. We just knew she had to be a mix because she is a lot bigger than what a regular Pomeranian is. This video shows how silly and adorable she was. Lulu loved to be underneath my covers to either sleep or just do what she’s doing in that video. I called her my crazy old woman.

When I was looking for a video to fit for this assignment I wasn’t sure what exactly I wanted to post. I saw old videos of my sisters and a lot of Lulu. So when this video appeared I knew it was the one plus it allows me to talk about her. It shows the side of her that will always be cherished by my heart.

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India

There was not much that I could find when doing the research for this blog post. So this may be shorter than the other ones that have already been published. The sources I manage to find were more focused on the hero of the story than the bad guy. The two main characters of this story are Indra and Vritra.

Indra is compared to the Greek god Zesus and the Norse god Odin the terms of being referred as the king of the gods. He is the god of thunderbolts and is a warrior that defeats asuras. Asuras are anti-gods which I thought of as gods that have evil intentions. Indra’s most famous defeat is of Vritra.

Vritra is asuras and his anatomy and physical aspects are snake-like. He caused droughts because he would hoard rains, rivers, and in general all of the water. In order to defeat Vritra Indra was powered by soma which gives the drinker immortality. He broke Vritra’s jaw in two fully killing the asura.

https://in.pinterest.com/pin/291537775856335724/

When learning about these two figures in Indian mythology I kept thinking about the similarities between them and the story I talked about in my Norse blog post. Both the heroes of the story are gods related to thunder and the villains are related to water. The villains are serpent-like and are defeated by the gods. It makes me think about how many other mythology tales could be similar.

Links to the sources that were used:

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indra#ref942544

Norse

I would say that my interest in Norse mythology began when I first saw the marvel movie Thor. I do not want to give away any spoilers for those who have not seen it yet so I won’t reveal the exact moment in the movie that peaked my interest. I haven’t been able to do much research on the subject matter before so I saw this as a good opportunity to do so.

Background

There are two words that the Vikings are said to have used to describe dragons which were dreki and ormr. I will be using dreki for the rest of this blog post. The Vikings themselves were also known as Norsemen and were around from A.D. 800 to about the 11th century. Vikings would raid coastal towns and had many different gods. Due to the fact that they had many gods made those in Europe during this time see them as “animals”. Some of their gods include Thor, Loki, Odin, and Freyr, etc. There are 3 dreki that are named in Norse Mythology; Jormungandr, Fafnir, and Nidhogg. I will be providing photos of each of these dreki.

Jormungandr

Jormungandr’s father is Loki and the mother is Angrbroda. Odin cast Jormungandr into the sea and this is where he grew to the size to encompass Midgard with his whole body. He had his tail in his mouth and if he released it then Ragnorak would occur. Out of all the gods in Norse mythology, he is most connected with Thor. There are three events of this. I will mainly talk about 1 of those incidents that I believe had the most impact.

These two powerful beings were prophecied to meet and this meeting would be the start of Ragnorak. Ragnorak is the destruction of the world and will be restored again. Like I said before it would begin the moment Jormungandr releases his tail from his mouth. Thor battled him but was only able to take 9 steps before he was poisoned by Jormungandr. Thor did kill him in those 9 steps. The death of these two beings resulted in the end of Ragnorak.

Links to the resources that were used:

https://www.vikingsbrand.co/blogs/norse-news/norse-viking-dragons

https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/vikings-history

https://www.centreofexcellence.com/norse-gods-goddesses/#:~:text=The%20Norse%20gods%20belong%20to,as%20their%20most%20notable%20members.

Native American

Piasa Bird

I was talking to a coworker this week about what I should do for this blog. At first I was thinking about European dragons but then I started to talk to him about what I have done so far. When that happened I realized I’ve been kinda looking into dragon myths that date back and some nationalities that are a part of who I am. I am not Greek but I do have Irish in me. So I started thinking about what other nationalities I have. My first thought was Native American granted it may be a very very small portion.

When I brought up Native American with the same coworker he said that he could ask his mother who is 100% Native American. She asked him to tell me to look into the Piasa Bird. I told him tell your mother is a wonderful woman.

Now after some back story I’ll go into the Piasa Bird.

This Piasa Bird painting is located in Alton which is located in Illinois. It was seen by Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet who was a fur trader in 1873. They were going down the Mississippi River when they spotted a painting similar to this. Beverly Bauser included a passage from Father Jacques Marquette’ journal:

“As we were descending the river, we saw high rocks with hideous monsters painted on them, and upon which the bravest Indian dare not look. They are as large as a calf, with head and horns like a goat, their eyes are red, beard like a tiger’s and a face like a man’s. Their tails are so long that they pass over their bodies and between their legs under their bodies, ending like a fish’s tail. They are painted red, green and black, and so well drawn that I could not believe they were drawn by the Indians, and for what purpose they were drawn seems to me a mystery.”

Father jacques Marquette

There are many different stories that have been published about the Piasa Bird. This is due to John Russell who published two different versions of the legend. The first version was published in 1863 titled “The Piasa: An Indian Tradition of Illinois”. The second version was in 1847 for the Illinois Journal of Springfield.

The second version was the Piasa Bird was slaughtered by Alpeora. I will include the passage from the first version that Beverly Bauser also included on their webpage.

“No part of the United States, not even the highlands of the Hudson, can vie, in wild and romantic scenery, with the bluffs of Illinois on the Mississippi, between the mouths of the Missouri and Illinois rivers. On one side of the river, often at the water’s edge, a perpendicular wall of rock rises to the height of some hundred feet. Generally, on the opposite shore is a level bottom or prairie of several miles in extent, extending to a similar bluff that runs parallel with the river. One of these ranges commences at Alton, and extends for many miles along the left bank of the Mississippi. In descending the river to Alton, the traveler will observe, between that town and the mouth of the Illinois, a narrow ravine through which a small stream discharges its waters into the Mississippi. This stream is the Piasa. Its name is Indian, and signifies, in the Illini, ‘The bird which devours men.’ Near the mouth of this stream, on the smooth and perpendicular face of the bluff, at an elevation which no human art can reach, is cut the figure of an enormous bird, with its wings extended. The animal which the figure represents was called by the Indians, ‘the Piasa.’ From this is derived the name of the stream…

Many thousand moons before the arrival of the pale faces, when the great Magalonyx and Mastodon, whose bones are now dug up, were still living in the land of green prairies, there existed a bird of such dimensions that he could easily carry off in his talons a full-grown deer. Having obtained a taste for human flesh, from that time he would prey on nothing else. He was artful as he was powerful, and would dart suddenly and unexpectedly upon an Indian, bear him off into one of the caves of the bluff, and devour him. Hundreds of warriors attempted for years to destroy him, but without success. Whole villages were nearly depopulated, and consternation spread through all the tribes of the Illini. Such was the state of affairs when Ouatoga, the great chief of the Illini, whose fame extended beyond the Great Lakes, separating himself from the rest of his tribe, fasted in solitude for the space of a whole moon, and prayed to the great spirit, the Master of Life, that he would protect his children from the Piasa.

On the last night of the fast, the Great Spirit appeared to Ouatoga in a dream, and directed him to select twenty of his bravest warriors, each armed with a bow and poisoned arrows, and conceal them in a designated spot. Near the place of concealment, another warrior was to stand in open view, as a victim for the Piasa, which they must shoot the instant he pounced upon his prey. When the chief awoke in the morning, he thanked the Great Spirit, and returning to his tribe, told them his vision. The warriors were quickly selected and placed in ambush as directed. Ouatoga offered himself as the victim. He was willing to die for his people.

Placing himself in open view on the bluffs, he soon saw the Piasa perched on the cliff, eying his prey. The chief drew up his manly form to his utmost height, and planting his feet firmly upon the earth, he began to chant the death-song of an Indian warrior. The moment after, the Piasa arose into the air, and swift as the thunder-bolt, darted down on his victim. Scarcely had the horrid creature reached his prey before every bow was sprung and every arrow was sent quivering to the feather into his body.

The Piasa uttered a fearful scream, that sounded far over the opposite side of the river, and expired. Ouatoga was unharmed. Not an arrow, not even the talons of the bird had touched him. The Master of Life, in admiration of Ouatoga’s deed, had held over him an invisible shield. There was the wildest rejoicing among the Illini, and the brave chief was carried in triumph to the council house, where it was solemnly agreed that, in memory of the great event in their nation’s history, the image of the Piasa should be engraved on the bluff.”

Professor John Russell from “The Piasa: An Indian Tradition of Illionois

Here are the links that I found my information on and in case you wanted to learn more about it:

https://madison.illinoisgenweb.org/native_american/piasa_bird.html

http://www.altonweb.com/history/piasabird/

Greek

https://dragon-vibe.com/blogs/dragon-blog/dragons-in-greek-mythology

I decided to look into Greek mythology because it is another subject that I am interested in. I’ve always been fascinated by the stories about the different gods and monsters. My god and goddess I have to say are Hades and Artemis. Hades because honestly just due to Cerberus and Artemis because of what she represents. She is the goddess of hunting, wild nature, and chastity. I got a little off-topic.

In Greek mythology, there was no definite physical definition of a dragon. It was not what we typically think of when we think of a dragon. It was more described as serpent-like. There are four different types of these “dragons”. The four types are dracones, cetea, chimaera, and dracaenae. I will briefly talk about these four different types and offer one example for each one. I will then talk about two specific creatures that are the reason for most of these creatures.

Dracones

The creatures that were considered this type had several heads, serpent-like bodies, poison, and rows upon rows of sharp teeth. These creatures were usually guardians of treasures.

One creature that many may recognize goes by the name is a hydra. A hydra has 9 heads and for every head that was decapitated 2 more would grow. Its task was to guard the springs of Lerna. The hydra was eventually slain by Heracles.

Cetea

These were more sea creatures and those associated with princesses. The Greeks believed the cetea lived in the oceans. The princesses were usually sacrifices to these sea creatures.

Ethiopian cetus is once such creature that was sent to destroy a kingdom by Poseidon, god of the seas. The King of the land tried to sacrifice his daughter but she was recused by Perseus who slain the beast.

Chimaera

The chimaera does breathe fire like a dragon. Its body was a mixture of a lion, serpent, and goat. An example of this type of creature is the Khimaira. The Khimaira has 3 heads, the foreparts of a lion, the hind parts of a goat, a goat’s head on its back, and the tail were the head of a serpent. It was killed by Bellerophon by throwing a spear into her throat causing her to suffocate due to melting the metal.

https://dragon-vibe.com/blogs/dragon-blog/dragons-in-greek-mythology

I added an image because I know it may be hard to imagine.

Dracaenae

The body of a nymph and the lower body parts of a drakon or sea monster. There are two main dracaenae that play roles in Greek mythology. Their names are Ceto and Echidna. Ceto is a marine goddess that has the bottom of a sea monster. She gave birth to Echidna. Echidna married Typhon and their children are some well known monsters, such as the Hydra and Khimaira that were previously mentioned.

Typhon and Echidna

Typhon’s parents are Gaia and Tartarus due to this he was both god and a monster. His reason for birth was to destroy Zeus, the king of the gods. He was able to inhale and breathe fire. Typhon was so giant that his head touched the stars and his eyes were red. He had about 100 heads that are said to be of different creatures or snakes that made different noises. His torso was human and the legs were 100 serpent vipers. There were hundreds of different wings and his hands were the same as his legs.

As previously mentioned he married Echidna. They are known as the father and mother of all monsters. Some of their other children include the Sphinx, Cerberus, and the Lion of Nemea.

I hope that you guys found this as interesting as I did. Let me know what you guys think! I have included the links where I found the information in this blog post.

https://dragon-vibe.com/blogs/dragon-blog/dragons-in-greek-mythology

https://www.theoi.com/greek-mythology/dragons.html


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