The Dragons
Mythical creatures, represented as either world-destroyers and enemies of humanity or revered and worshipped as gods, dragons appear in numerous mythological and legendary stories across diverse cultures and epochs. Their symbolic meanings have varied widely depending on the cultural context of each myth. European dragons (fire-breathing, venomous, predatory) were generally viewed as scourges, sources of calamity, famine, and violent death. Asian dragons, on the other hand, were powerful and benevolent beings, bringing life-giving rain. A common feature across descriptions is their serpent-like form; dragons’ symbolism stems from ancient views on serpents. In pre-Christian antiquity, serpents were not feared but revered, as Greeks saw their annual skin shedding as a symbol of nature’s self-renewal, embodying immortality (the sacred snakes of Aesculapius, the python of Delphi). In the Bible (Genesis 3), the serpent in the story of original sin (paralleled in the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh) is identified with evil. In the Apocalypse (12:3-17), the dragon, or “ancient serpent,” is cast out of heaven by Michael and his angels after a battle against God.
Medieval European dragons have their origins in the classical myths of Echidna and her monstrous offspring. Echidna, a winged female deity with a serpentine body, mated with Typhon, producing a progeny of monsters: Cerberus, Orthus, the Nemean Lion, the Sphinx, the Lernaean Hydra, and the Chimera. The medieval dragon, depicted with the head and legs of a lion, bat wings, and a serpentine body, directly descends from Echidna’s monstrous progeny. In Eastern civilizations, untouched by Christianity, the dragon retained its positive symbolism from ancient serpent myths. In China (and Japan, where dragons are portrayed without wings), it is a celestial symbol of rain and, for farmers, of life and unending renewal; it became the symbol of the emperor and his family, with Taoism counting it among the deified forces of nature.
All dragons appear to be tied to elemental, chaotic powers, nearly exclusively destructive. The dragon race thus represents a dangerous opposition to humanity. Perhaps hoping to gain some of the power of these extraordinary beings, humans adopted dragon imagery as battle amulets: Persian soldiers charged into battle with monstrous figures meant to terrify the enemy. The Romans painted red dragons on their battle standards, naming them "dracones" (dragons) and displayed a dragon-shaped kite that hissed fiercely with the wind. Both Celtic and Teutonic tribes adopted the dragon as their symbol; among the Anglo-Saxons, the violent death of an enemy leader was seen as the killing of a dragon. Even in pre-Columbian Mexico, a dragon appeared as a feathered serpent, representing the natural force god Quetzalcoatl.
Dragons in Various Mythologies
Babylon
The Babylonians wrote that before light was separated from darkness and time began, the god Marduk found and destroyed Tiamat, a dragon and enemy of order. He split her body in two: one part formed the heavens, and the other, the earth. In the sky, he created a grand home for the gods, setting stars and the moon as guardians of time. With the blood of one of Tiamat’s offspring, he created humans to serve the gods.
Egypt
In Egypt, the presence of the dragon was associated with every change; even the cycle of day and night, depicted as the journey of Ra, the Sun god, involved a dragon. At dawn, Ra would board his boat and sail across the sky from east to west, aided by a crew of gods and spirits of the dead. Each evening, he traveled through the underworld, where the dragon Apophis would attempt to destroy him, only to be defeated by Seth, the god of storms. Every dawn saw Apophis defeated, his body reconstructed daily as the celestial conflict resumed.
Greece
At the beginning of time, Typhon, the last of the Titans, emerged from Asia Minor intending to destroy the gods. He was so tall he towered over the mountains, had one hundred dragon heads, each with fiery eyes and vast, fire-breathing mouths. Zeus, alone among the gods, stood against Typhon. Their battle stretched from Greece to Syria, eventually ending when Zeus hurled an island at Typhon, creating Sicily, with Mount Etna marking Typhon’s final resting place.
Norway
In ancient Norwegian belief, an immense tree called Yggdrasil stretched from heaven to the depths of the underworld. A fierce dragon named Nidhoggr gnawed at its roots, threatening to destroy creation's order. Defenders, including three divine figures called the Norns, tended to the tree. Two deer grazed on its leaves, while a goat provided mead for mortal heroes. Among the creatures in its branches, an eagle was the most formidable foe of these dreadful monsters.
China
In a time without beginning or end, Tian Ti, the celestial emperor, punished humanity with a flood for their growing wickedness. Fields and homes were submerged, and humanity faced extinction. A young god, Yu, pleaded for permission to save them. Moved by pity, Tian Ti agreed and summoned a giant black turtle bearing enchanted earth, which absorbed water to create new land. Then, a green-scaled dragon joined Yu, the turtle, and the god in shaping mountains and plains. Under Yu’s command, the dragon created rivers that restored fertility to the land.
