Asian Dragon Symbolism
Dragon is one of the most commonly accepted imaginary creatures which has been an significant part of the East Asian way of life. The invention of this beautiful creature comes originally from China. The body of dragon is scaly like any other serpent but it also has four legs with big foot and five claws on each claw.
Like China Europeans too have their dragons but they have different physical attributes and also in their meaning as European dragon has negative implications.
The Chinese dragon on the other hand has assumedadopted both roles of good and evil throughout Chinese history. But more than anything else the symbol of the dragon represents auspicious power according to ancient folklore and art from China.
The Chinese dragon takes on various qualities which the Chinese people have credited to it. It is rarely known that the Chinese dragon is the male symbol representing yang. Then again it is taken as a symbol to bring rain and water where the people are doing agriculture for a living.
The Chinese dragon also has a female counterpart who is not featured very often. The female side of the Chinese dragon is known as the phoenix. Many westerners assume the Chinese dragon to be the official symbol for the country of China. However this is untrue to the fact.
It is true that the Chinese dragon symbol was used to symbolize the emperor of China in the good old days. In fact throughout the Yuan Dynasty no civilian was even allowed to associate themselves with the symbol of the dragon. The Qing Dynasty however brought the Chinese dragon symbol back into action as it started appearing on the national flag during those times.
In the recent years Chinese people have become conscious of the consequence of the Chinese Dragon symbol on western society and they are trying desperately to do away with the Dragon symbol. It is felt that the west takes Dragon symbol to be a symbol of war. To rectify this Chinese have come up with the idea of giant panda symbol which now they use as official symbol.
Chinese Dragon plays an important role in giving ethnic identity to Chinese people even today when some of them feel that they are the descendants of the Dragon and they truly have devotion in the powerful symbol. The identification of a nation with an animal is a trend which started in 1970s when the Mongols felt that they have characteristics of wolf and Tibetans felt that they are descendants of monkeys.
The Chinese dragon symbol still holds a special position in modern Chinese society. More than anything else however it is used mainly for decorative purposes. From advertisement campaigns to T-shirts, posters and tattoos the symbol of the dragon can be seen throughout the streets of China.
Like China Europeans too have their dragons but they have different physical attributes and also in their meaning as European dragon has negative implications.
The Chinese dragon on the other hand has assumedadopted both roles of good and evil throughout Chinese history. But more than anything else the symbol of the dragon represents auspicious power according to ancient folklore and art from China.
The Chinese dragon takes on various qualities which the Chinese people have credited to it. It is rarely known that the Chinese dragon is the male symbol representing yang. Then again it is taken as a symbol to bring rain and water where the people are doing agriculture for a living.
The Chinese dragon also has a female counterpart who is not featured very often. The female side of the Chinese dragon is known as the phoenix. Many westerners assume the Chinese dragon to be the official symbol for the country of China. However this is untrue to the fact.
It is true that the Chinese dragon symbol was used to symbolize the emperor of China in the good old days. In fact throughout the Yuan Dynasty no civilian was even allowed to associate themselves with the symbol of the dragon. The Qing Dynasty however brought the Chinese dragon symbol back into action as it started appearing on the national flag during those times.
In the recent years Chinese people have become conscious of the consequence of the Chinese Dragon symbol on western society and they are trying desperately to do away with the Dragon symbol. It is felt that the west takes Dragon symbol to be a symbol of war. To rectify this Chinese have come up with the idea of giant panda symbol which now they use as official symbol.
Chinese Dragon plays an important role in giving ethnic identity to Chinese people even today when some of them feel that they are the descendants of the Dragon and they truly have devotion in the powerful symbol. The identification of a nation with an animal is a trend which started in 1970s when the Mongols felt that they have characteristics of wolf and Tibetans felt that they are descendants of monkeys.
The Chinese dragon symbol still holds a special position in modern Chinese society. More than anything else however it is used mainly for decorative purposes. From advertisement campaigns to T-shirts, posters and tattoos the symbol of the dragon can be seen throughout the streets of China.
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Chinese red dragon symbols are becoming increasingly popular in Western countries as a tattoo choice. If you are interested in ancient Chinese characters follow the links herein for more info.
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