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2012 龍 or 竜
YEAR OF THE DRAGON
1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012
Patron Buddhist Deity = Fugen Bosatsu
May Favorable Winds
Fill Your Sails
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Merry Christmas & Happy New Year 2012
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THE DRAGON. In Asia, the dragon appeared in Chinese myth and artwork well before the introduction of Buddhism to China in the 1st & 2nd centuries CE. Japan's dragon lore comes predominantly from China. Images of the creature are found throughout Asia, where it was adopted as a protector of Buddhism, a symbol of imperial power, the guardian of the east, the controller of rain and tempests, and a magical shape shifter able to assume human form and mate with people. In contrast to Europe's malevolent dragon, the Asian dragon is considered benevolent, just, and the bringer of wealth. Learn more at the A-to-Z Photo Dictionary of Japanese Buddhism.
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THE CARP WHO BECAME A DRAGON.
The carp (Jp. = Koi 鯉) transforming into a dragon is a common artistic theme in China and Japan. This theme is based on an old Chinese legend (Jp. = Koi-no-Takinobori 鯉の滝登り) wherein carp swim, against all odds, up a waterfall known as the "Dragon Gate" at the headwaters of China's mighty Yellow River. The gods are very impressed by the feat, and reward the few successful carp by turning them into powerful dragons. The story symbolizes the virtues of courage, effort, and perseverance, which correspond to the nearly impossible struggle of humans to attain enlightenment in the “muddy” material world. In modern Japan, temples and shrines commonly stock their garden ponds with carp, which grow to enormous sizes in a variety of colors. The sacred lotus is also found in great number in these ponds. The beautiful flower of the lotus symbolizes purity out of impurity, for it grows from the muck at the bottom of the pond. This is a metaphor for the gargantuan struggle of humanity to "attain enlightenment" while still planted in the "filth" of the material world, while still consumed by desire, ambition, and illusion.
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