Quick Facts on Asian Dragons

"Dragon Motif" | T.C. Chiu

1. Potent and prominent symbol of royalty and good luck.

2. Their breath is called "divine energy".

3. Believed to rule the earth.

The four rulers:

· Celestial Dragon [t'ien-lung]

· Spiritual Dragon [shen-lung]

· Earth Dragon [ti-lung ]

· Underworld Dragon [fu-ts'ang lung]

4. Traditional Oriental dragon has 117 carp scales.

5. Bones and teeth were valued for their treatment of spirit disorders.

6. An Oriental dragon takes 3000 years to become a mature, real dragon.

7. All people in ancient China, including the Emperor, prostrated themselves before the image of a dragon.

8. The main difference between Eastern dragons: Chinese dragons have five claws, Japanese dragons three, and Korean dragons four.

9. The Japanese dragon Ryu, is a descendant of a primitive three-toed variety of Chinese dragon.

10. Yong is the most powerful Korean dragon. It protects the sky.