History: Dragon

1 almost every culture, in almost every place, there are stories of dragons, most of them too old to know it's origin. Dragons, the gigantic, fast, strong and wise lizards as told in myths. Beasts so fierce that would destroy all near them. Some of them could fly, some with various heads, some could breath fire, all being Dragons. 2 The Dragons population grew, they were so much and with so many differences among them that they were divided into various categories. This does not mean that some were better than others; It was a more efficient way to study them. In fact this division, was not the only one... Some divided Dragons into 5 categories based on their location and appearance (draconis teutonica, draconis galli, draconis albionensis, draconis bipedes, draconis cappadociae and draconis sinoensis), some based on the elements (draco flamma, draco glacies, draco terra among others), and some based on their colours. 3 In some cultures (such as Chinese) is also mentioned about celestial heaven Dragons. The oriental Dragons, most of them from the ancient China. There are nine major types of Chinese dragons, attributed to the nine Dragon sons that were worshiped and made into idols. Supposedly this nice, were the sons of the four Dragon kings, Ao Shun, Ao Ch'in, Au Jun and Ao Kuang. The nine type of horned Dragon, the winged Dragon, the celestial Dragon ( which generates wind and rain for the benefit of mankind), the dragon of hidden treasures (which keeps guard over concealed wealth), the coiling Dragon ( which lives in water ), and the yellow Dragon ( which once emerged from water and presented the legendary Emperor Fu Shi with the elements of writing). These Dragons, share the same way of living. They are never changed from one place, staying in their own territory. 4 Most of the Chinese Dragons have different lengths, some legends told about the great Chien-Tang, witch was a red Dragon, his back was fire and his eyes shined as the sun, this wonderful creature, from tail to head was more than 984 feet long. For the chinese people, Dragons were described visually as a composite of parts from nine animals: The horns of a deer; The head of a camel; The eyes of a devil; The neck of a snake; The abdomen of a large cockle; The scales of a carp; The claws of an eagle'The paws of a tiger; And the ears of an ox. The Chinese word for Dragon is spelled out in roman characters as either Lung or Long. In China, the Dragon was credited with having great powers that allowed them to make rain and to control floods (by striking the river with its tail, causing it to open and thus divert the floodwaters) also Dragons are credited for transportation of humans to the celestial realms after death. In China, Dragons are symbols of the natural world, adaptability, and transformation. When two dragons are placed together but turned away, they symbolize eternity via the famous Yin-Yang. 5 and Dragons and so forth...Dragons, the oldest living creature, have been here through the human history. There had been many legends and manuscripts about these wonderful creatures. 6 One of the most famous literature about Dragons is Beowulf, the medieval story of a brave Knight and a Fire Dragon. This story of Beowulf and the Dragon was written in old English, Beowulf survives in only one manuscript copied around 1000 A.D. This manuscrip is now at the British Library, London. 7 From the Christians we also got about Saint George and the Dragon.There was a town near the are of Cappadocia, where a Dragon lived. The town people often made sacrifices of their sheep to calm the Dragon; until the sheep ran out and by a lottery the princess of the town was chosen to be the next sacrifice for the Dragon. George took pity on the princess fate and slayed the Dragon. Also there are myths that the dragon which Saint George prevailed over was none other than Dadianus. The ancient texts which related the story of Saint George's miracles, tortue and deaths frequently call Dadianus a serpent or Dragon. Some ancient writers then either over looked the fact that Dadianus was a man, or decided that his treatment of St. George was so infamous that only a picture of the traditional dragon would represent him accurately. As far as the damsel is concerned, it is believed that she represents Queen or Princess Alexandra. She was Dadianus's wife and was also a agan until being converted to Christianity by George. 8 According to Christian legend, when Jehove created life, he also created the great Dragon Leviathan. On Doomsday, God will destroy Leviathan meaning the end of the Earth. Leviathan seems to refer to the Draco Consetellation. There is a suggestion, that the earliest origin of the signs of the zodiac was God's instruction on the gospel in the heavens. If this is correct, then the Dragon leviathan is again the symbol of man's pride and rebelliousness against God. The name leviathan occurs 6 times in the Old Testament.(Psalms 74: 13-14) 9 The Concept of Dragons in Celtic mythology comes directly from the Holy Crocodile, Messeh, from the ancient Egyptians. The Pharaohs were anointed with crocodile fat, and attained the strength of Meseh. The image of Meseh evolved to become a Dragon, which became the emblem of Kingship.( The world Messeh comes from 'Messiah' that means to anoint ). Also Messeh, the holy crocodile, evolved into what we know as Sobek in Egypt (crocodile god, son of Neith) and Suchos in Greek. - Copyright Cryn Dragonsight