Thursday, April 7, 2011

Asian New Year Dragon And Its Effects On The West

By John Chan


We will hereby see the characteristics of the Chinese symbol that make them honorable and their association with the important event of Chinese New Year.

The images of the Chinese dragon and the occasion of Chinese New Year have been two eventful components of the Chinese Tradition. For thousands of years now they have still withheld the same importance for themselves and unique presence even till date. Moreover, interestingly they are deeply intertwined with each other.

The image of the dragon is instantly identified with the Chinese culture. It is from this very culture that the west has discovered the image of the dragon through martial arts flicks and other Chinese art work. For the Chinese the figure of the dragon is a highly revered mythical beast that is admired for its uniqueness, beauty and auspicious powers.

With due respect to the Chinese heritage, firstly we must recognize the fact that the Chinese New Year does not match with the Western celebrations of the New Year. The cause behind this is that the western world follows the Gregorian solar calendar and the Chinese have always followed the lunar calendar. Thereby, the cycle of the moon decides the date on which Chinese New Year event is celebrated and this is completely on a different day from the Western New Year.

New Year is a unusual time in China. It is a time when the festive spirit is soaring and there are all kinds of celebrations going on. As has been the old tradition of the country they have animal signs associated with the change of time. There are twelve animals that are repeated after every twelve years. So the year of the dragon returns with all its might and power after every twelve years.

The dragon sign is considered to be a symbolism of great power. Moreover, the image of a dragon is always considered as a symbol of mystical power and anger. The anger of a dragon is always mysteriously justified and hence it signifies the correction of any mistake. So in this case, the angry dragon image is not evil but it plays a role of inspiration.

The Chinese say that the streets overpower you. If you are out on the streets and you see an evil you, it is up to you whether you have the might to stop it. If you can't, then effort has to be made to stop it with your tongue. If that too fails, at least in your heart you should know that the act is evil and there is a low-lying faith in you.

What the image of a dragon does is to eradicate the wrong doers. It does not represent wrong deeds but works in counter-action. The best option is to avoid doing evil and engaging in doing right things. Hence the Chinese New Year symbol of the dragon is nothing but a revolution to bring about peace in a festive and spiritual way.




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