The Dragon King's Sons: A Chinese Tale of Mythical Legends
2024 is the year of the dragon. The Chinese Dragon is a legendary creature. All legendary stories about Chinese dragons originate from the sky. In Chinese, the sky is synonymous with heaven. The image of the dragon is blurred, misty, mystic, noble, and untouchable. The dragon becomes the symbol of power from heaven. The Chinese emperor was considered the son of heaven. An emperor has the authority to send commands to dragons. A Chinese story mentioned an emperor killed a dragon in his dream. After 581 AD, Chinese emperors began to wear imperial robes with dragon symbols. During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 AD), the dragon can be seen everywhere on the roofs, doors, pillars, bridges, and utensils in the Forbidden City. The most powerful dragon is the five-clawed dragon. It appears only on the yellow imperial robe. As a result, the dragon is considered one of the most auspicious animals in China.
Chinese Dragon King has Nine Sons & the legendary story
Chinese didn't know too much about the Nine Dragons until the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD). There is more than one version of the Nine Dragons story, with one version as follows.
The Dragon King in the heavens sent its nine sons to help the first emperor conquer China. After completing their mission, the nine dragons were preparing to return to heaven. However, the emperor wanted them to stay and played a trick on the most powerful dragon, the 6th dragon. The emperor asked the 6th son to carry a magic stele with a carved inscription capable of suppressing any ghost, spirit, or evil creature. The 6th dragon couldn't move under the magic stele, and his brothers refused to leave without him. As a result, the nine dragons refused to work for the emperor any longer. They decided to no longer show their dragon identities and turned themselves into evil creatures. Since then, the nine dragons have remained in China.
- The 1st son loves music. It becomes a decoration for a musical instrument.
- The 2nd son loves fighting. It's a good decoration for the handles of weapons.
- The 3rd son loves adventure and keeping guard. It's a symbol of safety and peace.
- The 4th son loves howling. The symbol can be found on big bells, signifying his affinity for sound.
- The 5th son loves quietness, fire, and smoke. Its image is often found in temples.
- The 6th son loves to carry heavy stuff. It is a symbol of longevity and good luck.
- The 7th son loves to seek justice. Its symbol is around the law's court or jail.
- The 8th son loves literature. It's a symbol of knowledge or education.
- The 9th son loves water. It's a symbol to prevent fire disasters.
Dragon Philosophy, I-Ching and Chinese Astrology