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The first appearance of dragons in
Western mythology was the Norse "worm,"
a large scaled creature that was able
to breathe fire and regenerate itself
if vivisected. It didn't have the
arms, legs, or wings of later dragon
stories, but was often pictured as
an enormous snake. Because these multihued
dragons were often seen streaking
across the sky, many of these worm
dragons sightings have been attributed
to the natural ball lightening phenomena
that occurs during some thunderstorms.
In the Bible, the serpent is the creature
most often used to symbolize evil,
so it makes sense that these early
serpent-like dragons were incorporated
into the legends of early Christianity.
Dragon lore became parables of the
triumph of Christianity over Paganism
in early church lore.
One of the most famous stories of
St. Peter (although the story originates
in the 12th century, long after his
death) was that of him slaying a dragon.
Legend has it, that during Peter's
travels in Libya, a terrible dragon
was terrorizing a small village, which
had offered up a princess to appease
the beast. St. Peter fought the dragon
and saved the princess from her fate.
During the battle, Peter was able
to take respite under an enchanted
orange tree that the dragon's poison
could not touch. The orange tree in
the story is also very symbolically
similar to Tree Of Life lore from
the pagan tradition and Garden of
Eden lore from the early bible.
Many other legends of saints include
the slaying of dragons. St. Sampson
(the Archbishop Of Dol) is told to
have led a dragon out of his cave
and over a cliff to his death. St.
Philip is credited with the slaying
of a dragon in Hierapolis in Phygia.
St. Martha fell a dragon known as
Tarasque at Aix, while St. Romain
performed the same feat with the dragon
known as La Gargouille.
St. Florent, St. Cado, St. Paul, St.
Keyne, St. Michael, St. George, St.
Clement, St. Margaret, Pope Sylvester,
and St. Serf have all been documented
as having slain dragons. Two gentler
legends find saints Petroc and Carantoc
leading dragons off to unpopulated
areas, assuring the safety of the
villages these dragons had originally
overtook.
Dragons are replete in other early
Western literature. Spencer's epic
poem, The Faerie Queen, features a
dragon slain by the Redcrosse knight.
Scholars believe that the dragon in
this story has a two-fold symbolism.
Besides representing Satan himself
(in the form of the dragon-like beast
from Revelations), as well as the
corruption of the Catholic church
as seen from the point of view of
a 16th century Protestant.
The dragon also plays a vital role
in Arthurian legend. While actual
Arthurian dragon slaying tales are
minimal, dragons are invoked for symbolic
reasons in relation to key Arthurian
figures. Arthur himself, along with
his father Uther, was often referred
to as the "head dragon" (using the
more archaic term Pendragon). In this
instance, dragons represent conflict,
discord, and dissention. King Vortigen's
prophecy from Merlin uses the symbology
of dragons to announce his imminent
fall from power. Merlin tells Vortigen
that his tower rests on two warring
dragons, creating an unstable foundation
for his future leadership.
For Tristan and Lancelot, the most
famous dragon-slaying medieval Knights
of the Round Table, dragons represent
an all-consuming passion that lead
to their downfall. Tristan is thought
to have slain a dragon shortly before
meeting Isuelt, who heals him from
the wounds he obtained during battle.
The love potion they drank together
was listed as dragon blood in many
accounts of the famous story. Lancelot's
dragon slaying is done in order to
save Elaine, whom Lancelot has a torrid
affair with, thinking she is Guinevere.
Again, many of the accounts of this
tale attribute Lancelot's affair to
the mind-altering affects of a dragon-blood
potion.
While dragons are often used to symbolize
evil itself (or the embodiment of
evil in the form of the Devil), dragons
also represented many of the byproducts
of evil, including rage, power, passion,
and strife. Ironically, these powerful
images are in direct contrast to the
role of the dragon in Eastern mythology,
where the dragon invokes an almost
Christ-like form as a benevolent creature
that represents the son of heaven.
About the Author
Faith Harpera is a contributing writer
for sites such as Online
Discount Mart.
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