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Dragons have something mysterious and magical to them. From an anthropology standpoint, they have no reason to appear in many cultures which never had anything to do with dinosaurs and their fossils, or reptiles at all, such as the Inuits (Eskimos). Yet, Inuits have Dragons. And as we will discover hereafter, Dragons do appear, in their essentially reptilian form, in all other mythologies worldwide. We're accepting, for the following articles, to consider some cases of serpents exactly as Dragons, as their symbologies are deeply connected.
The Sumerian Enki (god of creation, wisdom, magick, freshwater, and Earth) and Inanna (or Ishtar, goddess of Love and war) were also sometimes depicted holding twin serpents.
In Greek mythology, we find Dragons tied again to trees, in a garden which in many ways relates to that of Eden, and elements of creation. Also, indirectly, they are associated to other creatures such as hounds, with Cerberus namely, who has a Dragon tail.
The etymology of "Dragon" is partly rooted in its Greek meaning, "that which can see". Again it is the mark of the power associated with Dragons.
Another interesting draconic perception from Celtic culture is that of the Druids, illustrated through the "Eye of the Dragon" symbol - half a star tetrahedron, representing, among other things, the Holy Grail. Notice the association : The Holy Grail carries and bestows life and healing in many traditions. Notice also, from our references regarding druidism, that Dragons are mythologically tied to the elements of nature and creation as well, such as through their association with ley lines. Additionally, the Druids referred to themselves as "Adders" - serpents.
The Horned Serpent was also a very common symbol among the Celts, most frequently associated with the Horned God Cernunnos. In this context, it represented Life, Nature, renewal and rebirth, wisdom, divine masculinity, and the sacred sexual mysteries of kundalini.
A variety of more recent mythologies across Europe depict Dragons in a way very similar to dinosaurs and known reptilians. In many legends, they are guardians of a certain wisdom, a treasure, often noble, sometimes evil. This varies, between the Celts picturing them as representatives of the divine, the Norse picturing them much more negatively (though sometimes as guardians of special treasures), and the Bible, in which the image of dragons evolved from positive to negative, due to biased and incorrect translations of earlier texts.
The Scythians, regarded by some to be a "Race of Dragons', stated their ancestress to be half maiden, half serpent. The dragon imagery associated with Scythian horsemen was later found in very similar form in the Arthurian mythos - with King Arthur himself bearing the Pendragon title, and his warriors carrying dragon banners, according to tradition.
Also of interest here is the diversification of Dragons, by direction (north, south..) or element, with dragons of the air, of the lakes, of the lands... This theme also appears in other mythologies such as those of oriental Dragons. European Dragons are often depicted with wings. Alchemical texts also depict many dragons, both winged and without wings.
Aztecs again depict similar creatures as artisans of life, with Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent God impersonating solar creative force and the planet Venus. Other cultures of Latin America have adored draconian figures as similar symbols, like the Mayan Kukulcan, another feathered serpent and a direct predecessor of Quetzalcoatl. In all Pre-Columbian traditions, the serpent is a key figure, and Mayan mythology describes serpents as being the vehicles by which celestial bodies, such as the sun and stars, cross the heavens. They were also considered a symbol of rebirth and renewal. The Aztec Mother of the Gods, Coatlicue, goddess of Life, fire, and fertility was depicted with a twin-serpent head.
One of the most remarkable Mayan serpents, the vision serpent, is said to be at the core of the world, and "in the center axis atop the World Tree".
Awanyu is an important deity among the Native Americans of the Pueblo culture, which includes the Tewa and the Hopi. Awanyu is depicted as a horned or plumed serpent in a style very reminiscent of the Quetzalcoatl of the Mayans and Aztecs. His imagery is associated with the zig-zag of lightning and the curves of flowing water (such as canyon rivers).
The Horned Serpent was also venerated, in various forms, by the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Creek tribes, just to name a few.
And the mythology of the Mayans is surprisingly close, in that regard, to Egyptian hieroglyphs. With the traditional sun disc and wadjet (and/or Uraeus serpent) on the head of many of their Gods, the Egyptians made the same association between serpents, life, and solar and divine essence. Even Ra the sun god himself, bore a cobra upon his head. Another less known order in Egypt would adopt serpents as a key symbol - the djedhis of Egypt, warrior priests known as the "serpents of wisdom". Allegedly, they had practices similar to current chi-kung or yoga.
Among the rare cultures which contributed to the demonization of Dragons, Biblical and Norse mythology are prominent. Persians and some Vedic poems also contributed to this demonization to a degree. However, even in these mythologies, the association between a serpent of life and a tree central to the world is found.
Returning to the Bible and related works:
"In Jewish religious texts, the first mention of a dragon-like creature is in the Biblical works of Job (26:13), and Isaiah (27:1) where it is called Nachash Bare'ach, or a 'Pole Serpent'. This is identified in the Midrash Rabba to Genesis 1:21 as Leviathan from the word Taninim." [2] This Pole Serpent is the constellation Draco which revolves around the north celestial pole in the sky, while the Taninim was the "great sea monster".
Additional early references to serpents exist in the Torah itself: In Genesis, the serpent in the Garden of Eden is referred to as Nachash / Nechesh, which is rendered as "serpent," but also comes from the root "to shine". Hence, the serpent in the Garden is the "shining one". Only after the Fall was it made to crawl upon its belly in the dirt, so originally it must have been glorified in the Tree.
Exodus features the story of Aaron's rod/staff and the Egyptian magicians who turned their staves into serpents. The Book of Numbers recounts the story of the brazen serpent that was lifted up amongst the people to heal their illness during their passage through the desert. Jesus Christ himself referred to this passage when saying: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." -John 3:15. In the Book of Revelation, the Dragon became the enemy of Archangel Michael: "And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven."
Despite this, the etymology of the name "Lucifer" appears to mean "bringer of light" or "Light-bearer" and refers to his former duties as an Angel. In that perspective, his appearance as a snake on the Tree of Knowledge, with his gift to Eve, could be a symbol which "degraded" along with the condition and status of women in occidental societies during medieval times, and which originally referred instead to a gift of life. Some hypotheses suggest that that particular snake gave Eve the gift of giving birth.
Among the Norse, Jormundgandr the Midgard Serpent encircled the earth itself like a gigantic Ouroboros, and the world is said to end when he releases his tail from his mouth. The dragon Nidhogg is said to gnaw on the roots of the World Tree, Yggdrasil. The dragon Fafnir guarded a vast treasure and was regarded as a symbol of greed.
However, serpents were also acknowledged as a source of creative inspiration:
"In the Prose Edda, there is a story about how Odin in the guise of Bolverk stole the mead of poetry from the Giant Suttung. He did this by conning the serfs of Baugi, Suttung's brother, into slitting each other's throats with scythes. He then told Baugi that he could do the work of the serfs, but only if Baugi could do him a favor at a later date. Having no choice, because his crops would otherwise go unharvested, Baugi agreed, and Odin did the work of all of the serfs. When it came time to pay up, Odin had Baugi drill a hole into the mountain where Suttung kept the mead of poetry. When Baugi was done, Odin turned in to a serpent and slithered into the mountain through the hole Braugi had drilled where he came across Gunnlod, Suttung's daughter, who was guarding the mead. He seduced her for three nights, stole the mead of poetry, and gave a portion of it to man. Poetry, in Norse thought, was linked with magic." [3]
Finally, Norse texts also reflect this association, consistent across mythologies, of a tree, the Tree of Life or Yggdrasil, and Odin as Ygg, one of his many names. [4] Odin, the Norse Christ who sacrificed himself upon the Tree, was also acknowledged for his role in the creation of humanity within the myth of Ask and Embla, the Norse Adam and Eve.
Somehow, even the darkest depictions of Dragons and Serpents remain tied to an underlying theme of "messengers of life", creation, inspiration, and healing.
In general, the following traits are associated with Dragons across all these mythologies.
They often are healers and act in harmony with nature, to sustain the development of life. One possible interpretation of the common traits among Dragons and their existence in so many mythologies is found in astral travel and other inexplicable experiences, reported by many yet difficult to prove. As totems or spirit guides, Dragons allegedly embody the above characteristics, and often demonstrate specific ties to a "spiritual element" and a set of abilities, such as communication abilities for air (a symbol of truth), creative energy for fire, etc. They may exist as normal persons in their physical form, yet be active guides on that parallel level of perception, as the figure so many have attempted to represent through the ages. And encounters in spirit form might be the reason their mythology is consistent and ingrained in so many cultures.
As for the very frequent association of Serpents, life, and a tree, from Mayans to Semites to Hindus, it may be an allegory of the experience known as the "Kundalini awakening". See our article about the Tree of Life for more details - the "trunk" could be seen as the spine (and spinal cord) which enables this (measured and proved) phenomenon. A Kundalini awakening is, in Hindu mythology just as in the Norse allegory we described earlier, depicted as a life-changing experience by mystics, increasing their abilities and awareness and resulting in a personal experience of the transcendental or divine.
In any event, Dragons remain, and will remain, a fascinating animal.
Sophia and the Dragon - Lord of Fire and Time