Dragon (Asian) Tattoo Meaning
Benevolent power, good fortune, wisdom, and mastery of the elements.
The dragon of the East is nothing like the dragon of the West. It hoards no treasure and demands no sacrifice; it brings the rain and guards the waters, a creature of wisdom and good fortune wound through clouds and rivers. To the cultures along the Pacific it was the most auspicious of all beings — the emblem of emperors, the soul of storms, and, in one case, the literal ancestor of a people.
The Chinese dragon, Lóng, is the most auspicious creature in the tradition — a being of water and sky that brings the rain the farmers need, embodies the harmonious force of nature, and stands above all for imperial power. The emperor was the dragon: he sat on the Dragon Throne, his face was the 'dragon face,' and the five-clawed dragon was reserved for him alone.
The Dragon Kings, the Longwang, rule the four seas and the rivers and lakes, and command the rain — in drought, it was to them the prayers went. The dragon is so woven into Chinese identity that people still call themselves 'descendants of the dragon.' The carp that swims upstream and leaps the Dragon Gate becomes a dragon itself — the symbol of transformation through perseverance — and the dragon dance still winds through the streets at the Lunar New Year, calling down good fortune.
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