THE DRAGONS

The Chinese love dragons. They believe that the dragon is powerful and wise and brings good luck. There are many temples built to honor the dragons in China. Chinese dragons are snake-like, wingless animals with four legs and five claws on each leg. According to stories, Chinese dragons have a magic pearl which gives them the power to fly and go into heaven. The Chinese believe that dragons control water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. Korean dragons are the most kind-hearted of all the dragons. A Korean dragon is a snake-like, wingless animal with a long beard. A Korean dragon has four legs with four claws on each leg. In Korean stories, dragons are water animals, which control water and farming. Japanese dragons are large, wingless, snake-like animals with three claws on each foot. Japanese believe that dragons are water animals that control rainfall and water. According to Japanese stories, dragons were first born in Japan. Dragons are very popular in Japan and are used a lot in art, music and architecture. Indian dragons are wingless animals that are half-snake and half-human. Indian dragons are called Nagas and are said to live in an underground kingdom. In Indian stories, Nagas are found in rivers, lakes and seas and they are believed to be guardians of great treasures. The Filipino Dragon is called Bakunawa, which means “moon-eater”. According to an ancient story in Philippines, Bakunawa is a snake-like dragon with whiskers, two pairs of wings, a red tongue, and a mouth as big as a lake. In the story, the Bakunawa lived in the sea and would rise out of the water into the sky and eat the moon. Thus, the Filipino dragons were believed to be the cause of eclipses. The flag of Wales has a red dragon in a green and white field. The flag tells the story of the red dragon which saved Wales from the icy white dragon but died after the fight. The Welsh flag was made to honor the red dragon and remember him forever.