Enter the Dragon

The dragon is a mythological creature that incorporates elements of many other animals — serpent, horse, eagle, stag, fish, carp, camel and crocodile, to name a few. Sometimes the dragon is said to breathe fire. This amalgamated creature appears in the legends of many cultures around the world. In the West, the dragon was an object of scorn, representing the primordial adversary that the righteous must overcome — e.g. Saint Michael and Saint George are both depicted slaying dragons. But in the East, the dragon is a subject of great reverence and a symbol of Chinese Imperial power. Dragons are believed to control weather. This exploration will focus on aspects of the Eastern interpretation of the dragon and a few of his frequent companions.

The Dragon and The Tiger: An Odd Couple?

Because the dragon and tiger were believed to govern the elemental forces of wind and rain, they were revered as rulers of the cosmos and the natural world. The pairing of two powerful and ferocious creatures may seem odd, but this combination is actually one of exquisite balance, embodying the yin-yang principle. The dragon represents yang energy (male, light, action); and the tiger represents the yin forces of the universe (female, darkness, stillness). Everything in the universe results from the interaction of yin and yang.

Yang elements include the sun, lightning, fire, rain (active, moving water). Yin elements include the moon, water (lakes and ponds), and the earth.

The pair of images below illustrates this harmony between tiger (yin) and dragon (yang). The tiger is grounded on the earth looking toward the sky, where the Dragon is partially hovering above a stormy sea, partially obscured by clouds. According to an old Chinese proverb, “Dragons bring the clouds, while tigers call forth the wind.” Their symbolic pairing was believed to bring about the blessings of rain and peace.

Importantly, these creatures serve two related, but distinct, functions. The tiger repels evil, while the dragon attracts good fortune. This makes sense when you think about yin energy as a passive force; it’s defensive and apotropaic. Yang energy, by contrast, is active and attractive; it brings good fortune to you. Both are necessary. And, as the tai chi symbol itself makes clear — both yin and yang contain an element of one another. Nothing is all one or the other.

The tai chi symbol

Maruyama Okyo, Tiger and Dragon: Dragon, 1781, two-panel folding screen; ink, color paint, and gold on paper, from the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts

Images of tigers and dragons are common elements in Zen temples in Japan.

This “Souvenir” silk scarf from the Korean War, 1951 Christmas, 724th Transportation Railway Operations Battalion, Service Laundry, Pusan KOREA depicts the time-tested pairing of tiger and dragon along with the names of cities in Korea. House of Good Fortune Collection

Woodblock print, 1835, Japan. A tiger looks up at a dragon next to a waterfall. © The Trustees of the British Museum

The Dragon and the Phoenix: Not Just a Dish at Chinese Restaurants*

The dragon is also commonly paired with another mythical creature — the phoenix (sometimes described as a cross between an eagle and a pheasant). A symbol of immortality, the phoenix is a bird that is said to evade death every thousand or so years by creating a nest of wood and resins (frankincense and myrrh, actually) that would burn up when exposed to the sun’s rays. The cremated bird would then regenerate and rise from the ashes to live again for another thousand years. Like the tiger, the phoenix represents yin, or female, energy, and the combination of the dragon and the phoenix is frequently used as a decorative motif to symbolize marital harmony.

*In (Americanized) Chinese cuisine, this dish usually refers to shrimp (or some other creature from the sea) and poultry (typically chicken). It is a variation on the original dish: Dragon, Tiger, Phoenix.

Cut-Out - Phoenix and Dragon Above Pagoda, 20th century, from the Collection of the Mingei International Museum

Dish with Dragon and Phoenix, late 16th–early 17th century, China, from the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The five-clawed dragon, a symbol of the emperor, is paired here with the phoenix, often associated with the empress.

Dragons: Fire or Water?

The title of this post comes from a famous action film starring the martial artist Bruce Lee. Lee was born in the Year of the Dragon (1940) and famously advised his followers to “be water.”

But…. Aren’t dragons associated with fire and the sun? Don’t they breathe fire? Isn’t it a contradiction for a dragon to “be water”?

Like most things, the answer is “it’s complicated.” Let’s leave aside the fact that specific dragons are classified as either fire, water, earth, wood or gold in the Chinese Zodiac (depending on the birth year) and talk more generally about the energy associated with water. Astute readers may have noticed that water can be either yin or yang — depending on whether it is active or passive. Moving water like rain, waterfalls, stormy seas, waves, rivers, etc. is active yang energy. Still water — like water in a pond or a lake — embodies the passive yin principle. Always keep in mind that there is always a little yin in the yang and a little yang in the yin.

So let’s take a look at what Bruce Lee actually said:

“Be like water making its way through cracks. (active)

Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. (active)

If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves. (arguably passive)

Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. (passive)

If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. (passive)

Now, water can flow or it can crash. (active)

Be water, my friend.”

―Bruce Lee

In this passage, Lee demonstrates both the yin and yang aspects of water, with slightly more emphasis on the yang. Lee knew that you needed both the yin and the yang — water’s ability to flow, crash and penetrate cracks is derived from its ability to adapt to any shape. Its yang is derived from its yin. The two are in balance, like the dragon and the tiger.

The House has great reverence for fellow Dragon Bruce Lee and carries a lucky coin of protection bearing Bruce Lee’s image.

Recommended Further Reading:

Animals in Japanese Folklore, National Gallery of Art