In Chinese tales, dragons, called “loongs”, are not as scary as the dragons in Western stories. Chinese loongs are symbols of good luck and wisdom. They play a big role in China’s history and culture.
There’s an ancient story from over 2,000 years ago about Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Western Han Dynasty. Before he was born, his mother had a dream about a loong, which meant he was going to be a great leader. Emperors in China loved loongs so much that they decorated everything with them — their clothes, thrones (宝座), and even their beds!
People believed that loongs controlled the weather, especially rain. So, if there was a drought or too much rain, they would ask the loong for better weather. They also thought that if loongs were angry, they could cause huge storms or floods.
In ancient times, in order to tell the time, people divided one day into twelve 2-hour periods, and chose one animal to represent each period. The animals were chosen based on their active times during the day. For the loong, it’s between 7 am and 9 am, often when it’s foggy, which is why people thought of loongs riding on clouds.
In Chinese paper cutting, you might see a loong riding on clouds or two loongs with a pearl (珍珠), showing the balance of yin and yang. In Chinese calligraphy, the loong symbolizes beautiful writing.
Many parents hope their children will be as strong and smart as a loong. There’s a popular saying, “望子成龙”, which means parents hope their children will be successful. People born in the Year of Loong are seen as natural leaders, energetic, and full of creative ideas.
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