The Dragon and Creation:

Reclaiming the Sacred in Our Lives by Susanne Iles

The dragon plays an integral role in the creation mythologies of many world cultures. As
the messenger between Heaven and Earth, the dragon helps form the framework for our
temporal and spiritual existence. By way of example, the ancient symbol of the dragon
Uroboros swallowing its tail, illustrates the cosmogenic circle of the alpha and the omega
- the beginning and end, creation and re-creation.

Most humans have lost sight of the magical cycles of nature and creation, of the ability to
create and of thought made manifest. Modern society has attempted to separate this
mystical energy from its traditional sacred and ethical roots; thus cursing mankind with a
sense of profound isolation and detachment. No longer do we feel a part of that which is
sacred.

By rediscovering the magic of the dragon we can begin to find our common origins and
recreate the link between Heaven and Earth. Passion, reverence and enchantment for this
world and each other can be reclaimed by reconciling the spiritual and earthly realms,
moving us closer to our own creation of a world of tolerance and shared wisdom.

Our ancestors' convergence of their spiritual and physical existence was tantamount to
survival. Their creation beliefs helped maintain respect for life and its lessons and gave
the Unknown form through poetic oral traditions, art, music and ritual.

To illustrate the mythic origins of creation and the dragon’s role, the legends of Tiamat,
Quetzalcoatl, Itzpapalotl, Nü-Kua, Aido Hwedo and the Rainbow Serpent, will reveal the
magic of the dragon, the beliefs of our ancestors and the path to our own creation.

Tiamat

The dragon Tiamat is regarded as the mystery of Chaos, primal

and uncontrollable, passionate in her unchecked creative energy.
She is the frightening Unknown of "formless primordial
matter"1 sacrificially recreated as the very beauty of Earth itself.

In Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is the creatrix of the celestial

and earthly realms as a result of her violent demise. She is the primordial mother of all
and the personification of the saltwater ocean2 - chaos embodied in the form of the
ancient Divine feminine. Her union with Apsu, the personification of fresh water, created
the first gods Lachmu and Lachamu (ie. silt) who, in turn, created a race of deities.

The "Enuma Elish" is an epic poem of creation written around 2000 B.C. The legend is
inscribed on seven clay tablets and is approximately 1000 lines. It is said to be a chant to
welcome the Babylonian New Year.3 The story unfolds with Apsu growing increasingly
upset at the antics of their unruly children. Apsu decides to kill them, much to Tiamat’s
despair, but his plan is revealed and the deity named Ea kills him in his sleep. In a rage
over the death of her husband, Tiamat vows to kill her descendants and creates an army
of monsters in her grief. She assigns the god Kingu as her consort and convinces him to
lead her army into battle.

The young gods became frightened and realized they were no match for the powerful
Tiamat. They persuaded the god Marduk to champion them by promising him many
things, including making him their supreme god and ruler of the universe.

Marduk kills his ancestor Tiamat by filling her with the winds and striking her vulnerable
body, splitting her "like a shellfish in two parts."4 With her upper half he constructed the
arc of the sky; with her lower limbs he created the Earth. Her arched tail became the
wheel of Heaven, from her water came the clouds and her tears became the source of the
Euphrates and Tigris rivers. Kingu also perished at the hand of Marduk, his blood and
bones becoming the first humans.

The Tiamat myth personifies man’s fear of the Unknown and the primal knowledge
chaos can quickly turn to destruction. Early man was aware destruction and creation go
hand and hand, but with the sacrifice of the Ego it has the capacity to become
transformed into something poetic, beautiful and sustaining. Although man’s physical
form is created from the blood and bones of Kingu to remind us of our common and
humble origins, we carry within us the breath of transformative spirit. Just as Tiamat’s
body became the life sustaining wellspring, our primal passions can be forged into
positive creative energy if we so choose.

Quetzalcoatl

"....I shall leave my song-image on Earth. My heart shall live, it will come back..."5

Quetzalcoatl is another dragon-being who, through self-sacrifice,

organized the cosmos and formed a world nourishing both man’s
physical and spiritual life. He created the fifth cycle of mankind
by using the ancestor’s ashes and bones to give their bodies
form. Knowing humans must be connected to Heaven and the
essence of the Divine for their survival, he used his own blood to
animate them and thus became humanity’s protector.

Also known as the "Feathered Serpent," Quetzalcoatl is the ancient cultural hero among
the Aztec, the Toltec and other Middle American peoples. Legends attribute him with
being the son of the virgin goddess Coatlicue and is often described as having light hair
and skin. As the father of culture, Quetzalcoatl introduced agriculture (ie. the growing of
maize), the calendar, monotheism, music and dance, arts and crafts.6 Varying stories
show him to be a gentle deity who requested the end of human sacrifice, accepting
butterflies and serpents instead. In his dragon form he ruled the wind, the rain and the
fertility of the Earth, the cycles of human sustenance. As a celestial and terrestrial being
he was man’s magical connection to the mysteries of Heaven and the sacred earthly
realm.

When he was driven away by war he promised to return to his people one day. Some
accounts have him leaving in a dragon boat or on a raft of serpents. Some believe he
sacrificed his human body and flew off into the sky to become the bright planet we know
as Venus.7 By sacrificing himself and empowering mankind, Quetzalcoatl left behind a
legacy of knowledge, culture, and the secrets of creation and rebirth, gifting man with the
potential for greater enlightenment.

Itzpapalotl

"Death, be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
For those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death; nor yet canst thou kill me.
From Rest and Sleep, which but thy picture be,
Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow..."8

We are introduced to death in the guise of the dragon Itzpapalotl. She is

the ancient Chichimec representation of Mother Earth in her mortuary
phase symbolizing the world’s cyclical changes - the rhythms of the seasons and
agriculture. Also known as "Obsidian Knife Butterfly,"9 a goddess of creation and
transformation, Itzpapalotl is shown wearing butterfly wings to indicate her shamanic and
transformational powers. Her appearance as a dragon with butterfly wings symbolizes the
human fear of death, yet provides hope for a gentle sleep, transformation and rebirth. The
emerging butterfly represents the human soul and its journey heavenward. Her hands and
feet are depicted alternately as jaguar10 or eagle claws, as she grips the corners of the sky
with her hands. Her fierce countenance expresses the darker aspects of nature found in
drought, floods, storms, disease or death. Another face of Itzpapalotl is one of great
beauty showing her gift of kindness through release of suffering, transformation of the
soul and the fostering of new growth in spring.

Itzpapalotl teaches us although natural law in all its beauty and destruction must prevail,
it is not final. We are taught death can be overcome and our spirit transformed into a life
everlasting.

Nü-Kua

In the beginning, according to Chinese mythology, there was a cosmic egg filled with the
darkness of chaos. A giant named P’an Ku was formed in the chaos and he slept, while
developing, for eighteen thousand years. When he awakened he broke the egg and the
darkness poured out, as well as the light which had been hidden by the chaos. The dark
pieces fell and created the Earth, while the bright fragments joined together and floated
up creating the heavens. Fearing chaos would return if the brightness above fell into the
darkness below, P’an Ku made it his mission to keep the sky and Earth apart until he was
certain the world was safe.11

Tens of thousands of years passed until P’an Ku was sure his

task was complete, with everything in place as it should be. He
sunk down to the Earth in exhaustion and died. His expired
breath became wind and clouds. His body and limbs formed the
mountains and hills, while the blood flowed as streams and
rivers. The hair took root as vegetation and his teeth fell to the Earth as precious jewels.
By bringing order to chaos and sacrificing himself in the process, the giant P’an Ku
created the foundation for all life.12

The dragon goddess Nü-Kua (also referenced as Nu Kua, Nu-Kua) emerged from the
heavens to see the remains of P’an Ku. Described as a beautiful creature, half-woman
half-dragon, she roamed the Earth and marvelled at its beauty. Lamenting the world had
no one but herself to enjoy it and its offerings, she decided to create humans so P’an Ku’s
sacrifice was not in vain. Scooping up clay she lovingly made scores of men and women
and lined them up in front of her. As perfect as her creations were, they were inanimate.
Her heart reached out and she picked them up. One by one she breathed her Divine breath
into their bodies, whispering the secrets of love and creation into their ears inspiring them
to populate the Earth and create on their own.13

Nü-Kua is also credited with teaching people art and passion, in addition to the
importance of irrigation and agriculture. Her male consort Fu Xi, who was also half-
dragon, later taught the skills of hunting, fishing and tending of flocks. He was a teacher
of music and is credited with introducing the eight diagrams from which the I Ching was
developed.14

Upon realizing we have been animated by the Divine breath and given the gift of
creation, we are empowered to evolve spiritually while still maintaining respect for the
body of P’an Ku, our earthly home.

Aido Hwedo

Human "...consciousness has lifted the transcendent ever higher and

farther away from actual life. The bridgeable chasm has become a
cosmic void."15 It is our duty to recreate the bridge if we are to evolve.
In West Africa the tribal peoples were aware of this rift and
incorporated the dragon, Aido Hwedo, into their creation myths as the
co-creator of the physical world.

Before the Earth was formed the genderless Creator God, named Nana-
Buluku by the Fon people of Dahomey, created a companion dragon
called Aido Hwedo who was both male and female.16 It was a dragon able to move with
ease between Heaven and Earth who carried the Creator in its mouth. They travelled
together into the physical realms to create the world as we know it. Each night when
Aido Hwedo and the Creator rested, the dragon’s dung piled high making mountains
filled with hidden treasure, nourishing the Earth so plants and great trees could grow. As
the dragon writhed back and forth across the face of the Earth, it carved twisting valleys
and coursing waterways. With the Creator’s direction (ie. the Word) and the dragon’s
actions, the Earth was formed through hard work and spirit, the very essence of co-
operation and co-creation.

When the work was finished the world was bountiful, but heavily laden with trees and
large animals, mountains and villages. The Creator feared the Earth would collapse under
its own weight. Aido Hwedo offered to support the world by coiling under it in a circular
fashion, its tail in its great mouth. The Creator knew Aido Hwedo detested the heat and
created a great cosmic ocean for it to sleep in. Red monkeys who lived in the sea were
directed to attend to Aido Hwedo’s needs by feeding the dragon iron bars whenever
hunger came. In this myth it was important for the monkeys to keep the dragon eternally
fed, otherwise it would start to eat its own tail and the world would surely be destroyed.

Like the red monkey’s with the iron bars, we must remember our responsibility to
nourish the link which bridges our transcendent and physical natures. When spirit and
action meet our world can begin to heal and sustain itself.

The Rainbow Serpent

The Australian Aboriginal people believe the universe has two aspects - the physical
world in which we live and another connected world from which it is derived called the
Dreamtime.17

One of the most important dragons of creation mythology is the

Australian Rainbow Serpent, its symbol being the rainbow
bridging Heaven and Earth. Given the Dreamtime is connected to
our world, the creation story of the Ancestors and their mythical
past is simultaneously the creation of the present and our
future.18 According to Aboriginal cosmology the link must be
maintained if our future is to be made manifest.

There are as many legends of the Rainbow Serpent as there are tribes of people, but the
common elements can be found as follows.

The All-Mighty Creator formed the Earth and the heavens. However, at the time of
creation the Earth in the Dreamtime was flat, colourless and desolate. The Rainbow
Serpent descended from the sky and moved over the face of the Earth creating deep
valleys and rivers, nourishing the planet and giving it form. Some legends tell the story of
the Rainbow Serpent populating the world with plants, humans and animals.19 Other
versions tell of the great serpent calling out to all the living creatures of the planet to
come out of hiding and enjoy the land. The wise serpent taught them the laws of
community, structure, ethics and respect.

By embracing our mythical past and remembering the wisdom of our ancestors we can
re-create the sacred trust between Heaven and Earth to ensure a future for humankind.

Conclusion

Creation is not a solitary act, nor is one of stillness.

Dragon legends support our understanding of creation forged by our ancestors and their
beliefs. Lessons of self-sacrifice and transformation can be found in many of the dragon
myths, including the legends of Tiamat and Quetzalcoatl. In addition, Quetzalcoatl shared
his wisdom to empower humankind. The dragon Nü-Kua gifted us with the delights of
love and passion, making the act of creation joyful. Both Aido Hwedo and the Rainbow
Serpent remind us our past, present and future are interconnected and interdependent. All
of these legends of the dragon found in worldwide creation mythology substantiate the
strength and foundation of our very way of being, now and in the future.

By rediscovering the magic of the dragon we can bridge the widening gap between
Heaven and Earth, embrace the beliefs of our ancestors and forge the path to our own
creation and wholeness - not isolation and detachment. By choosing to open the lines of
communication and communion, like the dragon once did, we gift ourselves with the
capacity to create our own destiny and reclaim the sacred in our lives.

End Notes

1.The Concise Oxford Dictionary, 7th ed. (1982), s.v. "Chaos"

2.The Encyclopedia Mythica, "Tiamat,"

http://www.pantheon.org/mythica/articles/t/tiamat.html (27 January 2000).

3. Judy Allen and Jeanne Griffiths, Book of the Dragon (London: Orbis Publishing Ltd.,
1979) 19.

4. Alex Morgan, Alex Morgan’s Web Page, "Enuma Elish: A Babylonian Creation
Story," http://www.alexmorgan.com/elish.html (27 January 2000)

5. Gordon Brotherston, "Image of the New World: The American Continent Portrayed in
Native Texts," (London: Thames and Hudson, 1979), quoted in David Maybury-
Lewis, Millenium: Tribal Wisdom and the Modern World (New York: The Viking Press,
1992) 173.

6. Katherine Guardado and David Shindle, Quetzalcoatl: The Man, The Myth, The
Legend, "Cultural Hero" http://weber.ucsd.edu/~anthclub/que.htm (27 January 2000)

7. Joseph Campbell, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton
University Press, 1949) 358

8. John Donne, "Death Be Not Proud, "The Albatross Book of Living Verse, Louis
Untermeyer ed., (London: Collins Publishers, 1933) v. 1, lines 1-6, 154

9. The Encyclopedia Mythica, "Itzpapalotl,"

http://www.patheon.org/mythica/articles/i/itzpapalotl.html (27 Janurary 2000)

10. Maria de los Angeles Ojeda Diaz, The Goddess of the Borgia Group Codexes: The
Archetypes of the Postclassic Woman, "Itzpapalotl," http://www.arts-
history.mx/diosas/cap5b-2.html#itzpapalotl (27 January 2000)

11. Man-Ho Kwok, The Feng Sui Kit: The Chinese Way to Health, Wealth and
Happiness, at Home and at Work, (Boston: Charles E. Tuttle Co. Inc., 1995) 7
12. Kwok, 7

13. Anastasia Saraonov, Anastasia’s Eclectic Alcove, "P’an Ku & Nü-Kua,"

http://members.aol.com/stasya/china.html (27 January 2000)

14. Ch'u Chai and Winber Chai, eds. I Ching: Book of Changes, translated by James
Legge (New York: University Books, Inc., 1964) ii

15. James Hillman, The Soul’s Code: In Search of Character and Calling, (New York:
Random House, 1996) 110

16. Robert T. Mason, The Serpent As Divinity, "The Devine Serpent in Myth and
Legend," http://www.geocities.com/Delphi/5789/serpent.htm (27 January 2000)

17. David Maybury-Lewis, Mellenium: Tribal Wisdom and the Modern World, (New
York: The Viking Press, 1992) 197

18. Maybury-Lewis, 200

19. Aboriginal Culture Center, The Dreamtime, "The Rainbow Serpent,"

http://www.dreamtimepacific.com.au/cs-dreamtime.htm (27 Janurary 2000)

Bibliography

Aboriginal Culture Center, The Dreamtime, "The Rainbow Serpent,"

http://www.dreamtimepacific.com.au/cs-dreamtime.htm (27 Janurary 2000).

Allen, Judy and Griffiths, Jeanne. Book of the Dragon. London: Orbis Publishing Ltd.,
1979.

Arden, Harvey. Dreamkeepers. New York: Harper Collins, 1994.

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero With a Thousand Faces. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University
Press, 1949.

Campbell, Joseph. The Masks of God: Creative Mythology. New York: The Viking Press,
1968.

Campbell, Joseph. The Masks of God: Primitive Mythology. New York: The Viking
Press, 1959.

Campbell, Joseph. Myths to Live By. New York: The Viking Press, 1988.

Campbell, Joseph and Moyers, Bill. The Power of Myth. Betty Sue Flowers, ed. New
York: Doubleday, 1988.
Chai, Ch'u and Chai, Winberg, eds. I Ching: Book of Changes. Translated by James
Legge. New York: University Books, Inc., 1964.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary, 7th ed. (1982), s.v. "Chaos."

Diaz, Maria de los Angeles Ojeda, The Goddess of the Borgia Group Codexes: The
Archetypes of the Postclassic Woman, "Itzpapalotl," http://www.arts-
history.mx/diosas/cap5b-2.html#itzpapalotl (27 January 2000).

Donne, John. "Death Be Not Proud," The Albatross Book of Living Verse, Louis
Untermeyer ed., London: Collins Publishers, 1933.

Eliade, Mircea. Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy. New York: Princeton

University Press, 1964.

The Encyclopedia Mythica, "Itzpapalotl," http://www.patheon.org/mythica

/articles/i/itzpapalotl.html (27 Janurary 2000).

The Encyclopedia Mythica, "Tiamat," http://www.pantheon.org/mythica

/articles/t/tiamat.html (27 January 2000).

Freidel, David; Schele, Linda and Parker, Joy. Maya Cosmos: Three Thousand Years on
the Shaman’s Path. New York: William Morrow and Co. Ltd., 1993.

Guardado, Katherine and Shindle, David. Quetzalcoatl: The Man, The Myth, The
Legend, "Cultural Hero," http://weber.ucsd.edu/~anthclub/que.htm (27 January 2000).

Harpur, Tom. God Help Us. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1992.

Hayes, Barbara and Ingpen, Robert. Folk Tales and Fables of the World. Buderim,
Australia: David Bateman Ltd., 1987.

Hillman, James. The Soul’s Code: In Search of Character and Calling. New York:
Random House, 1996.

Hoult, Janet. Dragons: Their Historical Symbolism. Glastonbury, Somerset: Gothic

Image Publications, 1987.

Kwok, Man-Ho. The Feng Shui Kit: The Chinese Way to Health, Wealth and Happiness
at Home and at Work. Boston: Charles E. Tuttle Co. Inc., 1995.

Lewis, James R. The Dream Encyclopedia. Detroit: Visible Ink Press, 1995.

Mason, Robert T. The Serpent As Divinity. "The Devine Serpent in Myth and Legend,"
http://www.geocities.com/Delphi/5789/serpent.htm (27 January 2000).

Mastin, Colleayn O. The Magic of Mythical Creatures. Kamloops, BC: Grasshopper

Books, 1997.
Maybury-Lewis, David. Millenium: Tribal Wisdom and the Modern World. New York:
The Viking Press, 1992.

Morgan, Alex. Alex Morgan’s Web Page. "Enuma Elish: A Babylonian Creation Story,"
http://www.alexmorgan.com/elish.html (27 January 2000).

Newman, Paul. The Hill of the Dragon: An Enquiry Into the Nature of Dragon Legends.
New Jersey: Rowman and Littlefield, 1979.

Parrinder, Geoffrey. African Mythology. New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1986.

Saraonov, Anastasia. Anastasia’s Eclectic Alcove. "P’an Ku & Nü-Kua,"

http://members.aol.com/stasya/china.html (27 January 2000).

Time-Life Books. The Book of Beginnings. Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books, 1986.

Wilber, Ken. A Brief History of Everything. Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 1996.