Dragon Magick

It was used as an emblem for divinity for divinity and royalty in Babylon, Egypt, China, Japan, Greece, and Rome. The Chinese Manchu dynasty, the Phoenicians, and the Saxons all showed it as enthroned, a symbol
of the power of the ruler. The Chinese dragon symbolizes the masculine yang power, very high spiritual power, and the emperor himself. This connection with imperial power carried over into England and Wales.

The dragon was known as the King of Larger Serpents to medieval writers.

Dragons and bulls in the Western world were fought by such Sun heroes as Mithras, Siegfried, Hercules, Jason. Horus, and Apollo.

In Hindu myth, Vitra, the Dragon of the Waters, was killed by Indra so the waters could be released upon the Earth. The dragon was also the emblem of Aruna and Soma.

There were two major categories of physical appearances of dragon: those of the East and those of the West.

The Oriental or Chinese dragon looked terrible and fierce, but was a symbol of prosperity, rain, wisdom, and hidden secrets. Oriental dragons did not have wings, but were shaped more like huge serpents with four legs. The early Chinese worshipped the dragon, and at one time had its image on nation flags. Using the symbol of the five-toed imperial dragon was reserved for emperors. The guardian of the mansions of the gods was the Chinese Celestial Dragon, Ti’s Lung; he also prevented the deities from falling out of their heavenly realm. Oriental heroes did not hunt the dragon, as did Western heroes. The Oriental dragons were said to leave their mountain caves or watery homes in the Spring to bring the fertilizing rains.

Both the Chinese and Japanese believe that dragons can turn themselves into birds. The three-clawed dragon of Japan symbolized the Mikado, the imperial and spiritual power. Most Japanese dragons were said to live in lakes and springs.

Ancient Western writers wrote all kinds of terrifying things about the Western dragons. These creatures were built like enormous lizards with wings; their bodies were thicker that those of Oriental dragons. Their throats and back legs were like those of an eagle, the grasping front legs like those of a reptile, and a tail that ended in an arrow-point. Western dragons were considered to be enemies of humans, and heroes were always hunting them down and killing them. Under the circumstances, it’s no wonder that Western dragons stopped trying to get along with humans. They liked to live in dark caves, a few of them in water. they breathed fire, and their breath was supposed to spread plagues.

The dragon in alchemy had a number of meanings. If several dragons were shown fighting each other, it meant separating out the Elements, or psychic disintegration. A dragon biting its tail symbolized cyclic processes and time; this particular dragon was known to the Gnostics as Ouroboros. A winged dragon represents a volatile Element, while the wingless dragon stood for a fixed Element.

In spiritual definitions, the dragon represents the supernatural, infinity itself, and the spiritual powers of change and transformation.

MAGICKAL ATTRIBUTES: Protection, instruction in the spiritual, Element magick. Using the spiritual to transform life. Protection. Adding extra power to magick.

CHANT: Dragons strong and dragons bright,
Dragons full of wisdom old,
Teach me the spiritual light.
Let me walk with knowledge bold.
Dragon fire, lift me higher!