Why is it that dragons were in many ways opposite to each other in Eastern and Western traditions? In the West, dragons were these antagonistic creatures, sometimes representing primordial chaos. In the East, they’re divine creatures, either associated with the gods or being gods themselves. What are they? Why are they so different between cultures?
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For the same reason that, when missionaries first brought Christianity to the Inuit, they were asked how to get to Hell. Because, for a people born of snow and ice, an eternal realm of fire actually sounded like some place they would like to be.
Serpents, and by extension, dragons, are both bane and boon to humans. In some areas of the world, they are seen as nothing but venomous bringers of death, but in others, they have healing properties, and symbolize wisdom, and rebirth.
The heavy influence of Christianity in the West, with its boogeyman being often portrayed as a serpent, and/or a dragon, is mainly responsible for the dragon being seen as a creature of evil, but even Greek mythology depicts many instances of serpents and dragons being sent against its various heroes, such as the infamous Hydra, for example, However, it was also, paradoxically, seen as a symbol of nobility and power, and was sometimes used as a military standard for Roman troops.
The Eastern dragons closely parallel the Greek ones, being more serpentine than the later European variety, which didn’t evolve in folklore until the Middle Ages.
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In my system
(This is just my personal gnosis)
Dragons were bringers of wisdom from the mother earth (like children of Gaia)
The were teachers and guardians of knowledge (true treasure) this knowledge was of how to find your magical self or “Kundalini” .
That energy you channel through your spine and chakras.
The spiritual you.
The pagan serpent being the oldest for endo European version, given wings as a sign of divinity
But over time they were demonized and became more satan like due to abrahamic faiths (ever heard of St Patrick)
However these christian motiffs if a saint slaying the devil is a relatively new concept and they were originally guides and teachers in most parts of the world
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Genuinely love some of the answers you give dude haha
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