{"id":3570,"date":"2010-05-01T01:10:08","date_gmt":"2010-05-01T06:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/content\/?p=3630"},"modified":"2010-04-23T04:18:34","modified_gmt":"2010-04-23T09:18:34","slug":"myths-and-legends-journeys-through-time-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2010\/05\/01\/myths-and-legends-journeys-through-time-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Myths and Legends: Journeys Through Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dragons<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"dragon\"<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

“She stops at the edge of the forest, standing as deep within the cover provided by the foliage as she dares to. Squinting slightly against the bright midday sun, she slowly scans the sky, starting at the horizon and sweeping her eyes back and forth until she sees the green leaves. Satisfied for a moment that it’s safe to step out in the open, the young maiden pulls her cloak more tightly around her shoulders and steps beyond the tree line. Suddenly as if waiting for her to appear in view, a huge winged shadow passes over her. The maiden stops in her steps, eying the tree line but knowing she won’t make it in time. Sighing softly she does her best to quell her fear as the owner of the shadow makes a loop back towards her. The sunlight glints off of it’s body making it almost impossible to look at. As the figure nears closer to her the maiden sighs with relief upon catching sight of it’s rich, warm bronze color. Although uncommon, there are stories of bronze dragons having approached people in their natural for. They usually like to take on the form of a harmless, unnoticeable creature and observe humans unhindered. As dragon lands the young maiden holds her ground taking the opportunity to study this magnificent creature. She admires the wings, which stretch out to a span of about thirty-five feet. She also notes that it’s scales are a deep bronze color, just barely showing a hint of the yellow green tint that bronze dragons are born with. Moving slowly as to not provoke an attack,\u00a0 she makes her way towards the dragon, a little elated at her first dragon sighting and the chance of talking to it…”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Dragons…the mythological creature that most people would love to have as a pet, get the <\/span><\/p>\n

chance to meet, discover it’s treasure trove or be the brave knight who slays the fearsome <\/span><\/p>\n

monster so that they may rescue the pretty maiden. So…what are dragons exactly? When you <\/span><\/p>\n

think of a dragon, do you think of a long, snake like body with four claws, powerful wings <\/span><\/p>\n

horns, spikes, frills and feathers perhaps? Such dragons likes these are most commonly found <\/span><\/p>\n

in Oriental mythology, Chinese dragons being the most well known for their snake like <\/span><\/p>\n

bodies, powerful claws and horns or colorful frills. Chinese dragons are most often regarded <\/span><\/p>\n

symbols of authority, rulers of water, believed to have control over weather and as symbols <\/span><\/p>\n

of strength and power.\u00a0 Certain dragons such as the 5,4, and 3 clawed dragons being assigned <\/span><\/p>\n

to the Emperor of China, Zhuzho or fedual lord, and Daifu or high officials in government <\/span><\/p>\n

respectively. The Chinese dragon is also seen as the male side of the yin and yang aspect <\/span><\/p>\n

of Chinese culture. In Japanese mythology, the dragon is depicted much the same way<\/span><\/p>\n

as those of Chinese myth, the only differences being that Japanese dragons have three claws<\/span><\/p>\n

instead of up to five, and are more commonly associated with bodies of water or anything to<\/span><\/p>\n

do with water.\u00a0 On the other hand if the image of a strong body, long tail, razor sharp claws,<\/span><\/p>\n

long neck, large powerful wings, a snake like tongue and the ability to breathe fire come to <\/span><\/p>\n

mind, then you’re looking at a European dragon. If Oriental dragons are representations of<\/span><\/p>\n

benevolence, weather, rulers of water, symbols of authority, then European dragons are at <\/span><\/p>\n

the other end of the spectrum. European or ‘Western’ dragons as they’re known are most <\/span><\/p>\n

often cast as an evil or malevolent creature. Also..instead of being creatures of water, they<\/span><\/p>\n

are considered creatures of earth, despite their having wings, they are believed to live in <\/span><\/p>\n

caves or underground lairs.\u00a0 Western dragons are the most recognized dragon and most <\/span><\/p>\n

widely represented dragon. Everything from movies such as Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, <\/span><\/p>\n

in which the evil sorceress Maleficent turns into a dragon at the end, to television<\/span><\/p>\n

shows depicting them as real true creatures. In Greek mythology, one of the giants the last <\/span><\/p>\n

borne of the Titan Gaia, Typhos is shown to be a dragon. Or a dragon like creature. It is he <\/span><\/p>\n

who is responsible along with his wife Echidna for creatures such as Cerebus, the Hydra, <\/span><\/p>\n

Sphinx and Nemean Lion. Also due to his battle with Zues and subsequent imprisonment<\/span><\/p>\n

under Mount Edna, Typhos is believed to be the cause of all volcanic eruptions. Dragons<\/span><\/p>\n

go so far as to even be part of a popular table top role paying game known as none other<\/span><\/p>\n

than Dungeons and Dragons. Dungeons and Dragons was created in the 1970s by Gary Gygax<\/span><\/p>\n

and Dave Ameson. The first publication of the game was in 1974 and over 30 years later it’s<\/span><\/p>\n

still going strong. In many of the monster manuals, dragons are one of the most fearsome and<\/span><\/p>\n

hardest creatures an adventurer comes across. DnD as it’s called goes so far as to give dragons<\/span><\/p>\n

alignments, evil, good or neutral and describe different dragons such as metallic dragons,<\/span><\/p>\n

which are good, gem dragons which are good but can cause trouble and chromatic dragons <\/span><\/p>\n

which are just plain evil. DnD also goes so far as to describe each dragon’s habitat, diet, <\/span><\/p>\n

fighting style, and any powers they gain as they age. As with everything in life, the time<\/span><\/p>\n

of dragons did come to an end. Saint George is credited with killing the last dragon, a dragon<\/span><\/p>\n

named Ascalon in what is now known as Ashkelon, Israel. In killing Ascalon, Saint George<\/span><\/p>\n

rescued a princess and saved a town from having to continually sacrifice their sheep or their<\/span><\/p>\n

maidens. There are many more myths and legends out there about dragons but as with fairies<\/span><\/p>\n

to tell them all would take a very long time. Perhaps if you’re lucky enough you might just<\/span><\/p>\n

catch the attention of one and learn from them.<\/span><\/p>\n

http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Typhon<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.nationmaster.com\/encyclopedia\/Chinese-titles<\/span><\/span><\/a> (for translation of Chinese titles)<\/span><\/p>\n

http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chinese_dragon<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Saint_George_and_the_Dragon<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual Game Accessory published by Tactical Studios Rule Inc. in 1993.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dragons “She stops at the edge of the forest, standing as deep within the cover provided by the foliage as she dares to. Squinting slightly against the bright midday sun, she slowly scans the sky, starting at the horizon and sweeping her eyes back and forth until she sees the green leaves. Satisfied for a moment that it’s safe to step out in the open, the young maiden pulls her cloak more tightly around her shoulders and steps beyond the tree line. Suddenly as if waiting for her to appear in view, a huge winged shadow passes over her. The maiden stops in her steps, eying the tree line but knowing she won’t make it in time. Sighing softly she does her best to quell her fear as the owner of the shadow makes a loop back towards her. The sunlight glints off of it’s body making it almost impossible to look at. As the figure nears closer to her the maiden sighs with relief upon catching sight of it’s rich, warm bronze color. Although uncommon, there are stories of bronze dragons having approached people in their natural for. They usually like to take on the form of a harmless, unnoticeable creature and observe humans unhindered. As dragon lands the young maiden holds her ground taking the opportunity to study this magnificent creature. She admires the wings, which stretch out to a span of about thirty-five feet. She also notes that it’s scales are a deep bronze color, just barely showing a hint of the yellow green tint that bronze dragons are born with. Moving slowly as to not provoke an attack,\u00a0 she makes her way towards the dragon, a little elated at her first dragon sighting and the chance of talking to it…” Dragons…the mythological creature that most people would love to have as a pet, get the chance to meet, discover it’s treasure trove or be the brave knight who slays the fearsome monster so that they may rescue the pretty maiden. So…what are dragons exactly? When you think of a dragon, do you think of a long, snake like body with four claws, powerful wings horns, spikes, frills and feathers perhaps? Such dragons likes these are most commonly found in Oriental mythology, Chinese dragons being the most well known for their snake like bodies, powerful claws and horns or colorful frills. Chinese dragons are most often regarded symbols of authority, rulers of water, believed to have control over weather and as symbols of strength and power.\u00a0 Certain dragons such as the 5,4, and 3 clawed dragons being assigned to the Emperor of China, Zhuzho or fedual lord, and Daifu or high officials in government respectively. The Chinese dragon is also seen as the male side of the yin and yang aspect of Chinese culture. In Japanese mythology, the dragon is depicted much the same way as those of Chinese myth, the only differences being that Japanese dragons have three claws instead of up to five, and are more commonly associated with bodies of water or anything to do with water.\u00a0 On the other hand if the image of a strong body, long tail, razor sharp claws, long neck, large powerful wings, a snake like tongue and the ability to breathe fire come to mind, then you’re looking at a European dragon. If Oriental dragons are representations of benevolence, weather, rulers of water, symbols of authority, then European dragons are at the other end of the spectrum. European or ‘Western’ dragons as they’re known are most often cast as an evil or malevolent creature. Also..instead of being creatures of water, they are considered creatures of earth, despite their having wings, they are believed to live in caves or underground lairs.\u00a0 Western dragons are the most recognized dragon and most widely represented dragon. Everything from movies such as Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, in which the evil sorceress Maleficent turns into a dragon at the end, to television shows depicting them as real true creatures. In Greek mythology, one of the giants the last borne of the Titan Gaia, Typhos is shown to be a dragon. Or a dragon like creature. It is he who is responsible along with his wife Echidna for creatures such as Cerebus, the Hydra, Sphinx and Nemean Lion. Also due to his battle with Zues and subsequent imprisonment under Mount Edna, Typhos is believed to be the cause of all volcanic eruptions. Dragons go so far as to even be part of a popular table top role paying game known as none other than Dungeons and Dragons. Dungeons and Dragons was created in the 1970s by Gary Gygax and Dave Ameson. The first publication of the game was in 1974 and over 30 years later it’s still going strong. In many of the monster manuals, dragons are one of the most fearsome and hardest creatures an adventurer comes across. DnD as it’s called goes so far as to give dragons alignments, evil, good or neutral and describe different dragons such as metallic dragons, which are good, gem dragons which are good but can cause trouble and chromatic dragons which are just plain evil. DnD also goes so far as to describe each dragon’s habitat, diet, fighting style, and any powers they gain as they age. As with everything in life, the time of dragons did come to an end. Saint George is credited with killing the last dragon, a dragon named Ascalon in what is now known as Ashkelon, Israel. In killing Ascalon, Saint George rescued a princess and saved a town from having to continually sacrifice their sheep or their maidens. There are many more myths and legends out there about dragons but as with fairies to tell them all would take a very long time. Perhaps if you’re lucky enough you might just catch the attention of one and learn from them. http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Typhon http:\/\/www.nationmaster.com\/encyclopedia\/Chinese-titles (for translation of Chinese titles) http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chinese_dragon http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Saint_George_and_the_Dragon Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual Game Accessory published by Tactical Studios Rule Inc. in 1993.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":94,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":2,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3570","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/94"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3570"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3570\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3512,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3570\/revisions\/3512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}