Autumn Dragon
DT are doing another user entries section. Anyone who would like to contribute just needs draw and email a picture of a dragon somehow relating to Autumn, Fireworks or Halloween to us and we will post it on the section. For details go to this thread
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Long before our ability to write have our imaginations strived to explain the unexplainable. Throughout history we have tried to understand alien concepts and unknown phenomenon. The dragon is one of the most magnificent and mysterious of our explainations. In the early days the aboriginies of Australia linked the serpent to the rainbow. Perhaps this was the first ever dragon. It is certainly very different to what modern culture would view as a dragon.
But in looking back in time we can realise that the dragon has been very misunderstood time and time again. In early myths the dragon was often a benevolent creature who would teach us or keep us safe. Then when the times called for it these same dragons were scorned and killed.
I believe that many of the religions changed due to the change in society. For instance Tiamat, the cosmic dragon, the creator of our world, may have been worshiped at one point. But in a male dominated society there was no room for a powerful and chaotic female and so Marduk was said to have killed her.
We can see this evolution of Myths repeat itself over time. For instance when Christianity was spread in britain, the whole reputation of the celtic dragon was changed. No longer were they the guardians of men or the noble beasts that they once were. They became demons and creatures of the devil. As many of the celtic dragons were female this may well be another symbol of the headstrong woman being shown her place in the society of the times.
It is easy to see the western dragon evolve as they start out as gods or creatures of evil and slowly over time we see them change to creatures acting only on insticnt to kill and eat us. Later they became guardians and teachers. Again they changed in modern times to develope their own personalities and traits. Being thought of as both wise and wicked depending on the individuals imagination and of course the media. They have been displayed as huge beasts, displaying greed and rage such as Smaug from the book,by Jrr Tolkien, The Hobbit. They have been depicted as fierce and arrogant but very noble in books such as the Tawny man series by author Robin Hobbs. However they have also been shown as friendly and wise such as in the film Dragonheart. Who knows how the dragons will evolve in the future.
Another significant change has been the dragons physical attributes. They started out their life as mere serpents, albeit with magical powers or great in size. Through out time they grew legs and wings and their bodies became more substantial. Some of the myths include these creatures breathing fire which seems to have stuck in our imaginations. Nower days there are several different species belonging to the draconian race. An example is the Wyvern which does not breath fire and has no front legs. Some would be forgiven for confusing the Wyvern with a dragon and infact they would be right. In history there have been several instances where a creature similar to todays wyvern has been described as a dragon. A painting of the famous St George slaying the supposed dragon by Uccello is infact a wyvern due to having only one pair of legs. (see below)
I personally believe because of the huge variety of dragons, it was inevitable that they would break away from one another into sub catagories such as the fire drake, the Wyvern and of course the Occidental (western) dragon. Therefore to call a Wyvern by any other name is incorrect. Perhaps many years ago people would have called it such, but now the name has changed like all other aspects of the dragon.
The Eastern dragon has a different history to its western kin. They started out as half dragon half horse in physique but they too have evolved. Now they have long serpentine bodies with a large mane. They have no wings or small wings (for show) and yet they fly through the clouds as well as any Occidental dragon.
Their temperment however has not changed nearly so much as their western counterparts. They started life as benevolent creatures to be respected and worshiped and little in that has changed. They did however become more war like when the emperors of China adopted them as their symbol.
To conclude, the dragon is a true testimony to our minds ability to create and evolve the extraodinary. From the fantasy dragons in the games you play and the books you read to the dragons in the myths of old, each one is brilliant and deep in their own way.
