Dragons are born of the imagination of man, and though no creature quite like it has ever actually crept upon this Earth, dragons are real in the minds and hearts of those who live in this world.
No one will ever know how the “Dragon” came into being. Perhaps while gazing on the bones of dinosaurs, the human race concocted a tale of giant reptilian beings that once walked our planet. Perhaps we invented the creature as an amalgamation of our greatest fears. In this world, there are two main lines of dragons- European Dragons and Asian Dragons- the difference lies only in how we approach our enemies- will we defeat them or will we become them?
In the western world, European Dragons are the most common image. The wyrm of Europe is usually winged and dwells in dark caves and guards treasure. They breathe fire, they are greedy and evil, and they are old. Over three-thousand years ago the epic tale of Beowulf features a fire-breathing dragon very similar to the dragons we see depicted today. St. George slew a dragon, a dragon is features on the Welch and Maltan flags, and then there is J.R.R. Tolkien, who brought us Smaug, the dragon that would inspire every serpent of the 20th and 21st centuries. In Europe, dragons are dark and evil beings. They eat men and horde their riches.
In the Chinese zodiac dragons are proud, noble, and generous. They are the only creature in the zodiac who cannot be found in the real world. In fact, eastern dragons are a mix of every other creature of the Zodiac. They have the whiskers of the rat, the horns of an ox, the claws and teeth of a tiger, the belly of a rabbit, the body of a snake, the legs of a horse, the beard of a goat, the brain of a monkey, the crest of a rooster, the ears of a dog, and the snout of a pig. January 23rd 2012 will mark the beginning of the “Year of the Dragon” Since Dragons are seen as powerful, there are more babies born in the year of the dragon than any other year.In the eastern world , however, dragons are not evil and greedy. In Chinese mythology, dragons control the weather. They are a symbol of power, strength, and good luck. People compared to dragons are people who are excellent and high achievers.
The Asian dragon is whiskered and is usually wingless. They have four legs and three to five toes (depending on the culture). In Asia, the Dragon is depicted on the Bhutan flag.
Some anthropologists, namely David E. Jones, believe that it is no coincidence that dragons resemble many creatures. If you look back into the roots of our ancestors (the line of mammals), we were hunted by birds of prey, reptiles, snakes, and great cats, (such as the tiger). Perhaps somewhere, in the caverns our brains, we fear still fear these creatures and we meld our ancestral predators together into one super-predator.
Jones suggests that to different cultures this predator represents itself in different ways. People in the East try to become this great beast, while people in the west try to conquer it. Though our cultures divide how we view our greatest enemy, we must treat it with an awesome respect.
Yes, the dragon is a legend, but no other legendary creature is as famous or fabled or as real to us. The dragon is both our greatest fear and our greatest aspiration. We fear it and we love it. We hate it and we want to become it. The dragon is both man’s greatest enemy and man’s greatest invention.
The year of the dragon is less than a year away. When it arrives it will mark my five month anniversary of living in China. Perhaps it is with good fortune that I move to China at the dawn of the dragon, or perhaps it is with great threat. But, however the new year greets me- and whether I am seeking to destroy the dragon or become it- it is sure to be great year for a great nation, the nation of China.
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