CH 5 (7/7) - Heraldic Dragons

The final segment of the fifth chapter of historian Frederick William Hackwood's study of dragonlore.

Part six of the fifth chapter of historian Frederick William Hackwood's study of dragonlore.

FULL ILLUSTRATED TEXT
http://www.justgenealogy.plus.com/fwhdd05.htm

That there existed a huge winged lizard, or flying serpent, who was regarded as the enemy of mankind, seems to have been a universal belief from the very beginning of things. The fable of this monster has been welded on to history in all manner of ways from the remotest antiquity. Generally there was only one enemy capable of overcoming it - the eagle, which never failed to attack, to vanquish, and then devour it. Travellers' tales often gave corroboration to the belief, Winged serpents inhabited Arabia, said Herodotus. An old Dutch voyager found fearsome flying snakes in Java. Other ancient geographers located them in India. And so on. Dragons are as widely distributed as the belief in them.

In China the belief in dragons has thoroughly woven itself into the whole life of the nation ; its religion, its mythologies, its popular stories, teem with dragons. The dragon is peculiarly the emblem of imperial power, its five-clawed figure being embroidered on the emperor's official robes and blazoned on his banners. The figure is depicted stretched at full length, or curled up with two legs pointing forwards and two backwards ; sometimes it holds a pearl in one hand, and is surrounded by clouds and fire. Here is found no confusion between dragon and serpent ; in Chinese drawings a clear distinction is always made.

The Japanese dragon, equally ubiquitous in the art of that country, is probably derived from the Chinese dragon, but invariably it is represented with three claws, whereas its prototype has either five or four. Japanese literature is full of dragon stories ; while the decorative art of the country, especially in bronzes and carvings, teems with fantastical figures of the ever-popular dragon device. There is also a Corean dragon which has apparently been borrowed from the Chinese.

A very learned monograph on The Dragon in China and Japan appeared recently from the pen of N. De Vissier (Amsterdam, 1913), in which we are informed that Buddha is worshipped by "eight classes" of beings, ranging from men to "nagas," and including goblins, demons, giants, ghosts, the inhabitants of hell, and lastly by the said nagas - an Oriental name which seems to cover the identity of that universal character, the dragon.

The nagas are described as four-legged dragons who dwell in the Loka (world) under the Trikuta Rocks that support Meru. They are supposed to be divided into castes ; and when insulted express their resentment by sending drought, bad crops, disease, pestilence, and other disasters upon mankind. There is an immense amount of Buddhist lore concerning nagas, and it is interesting to note that "the eight dragon kings" were devout and reverent worshippers of Buddha to whom a Shinto temple was dedicated.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Dragons
• Eagles
• Emperors
• China
• Chinese
• Japanese
• Korean
• Nagas
• Buddha
• Buddhism
• Shinto
• Emblems
• Representations
• Art
• Books
• Learn
• English