Dragon Kings

“The portrait of the Dragon King or Yong-wang, as depicted in so-called mudang paintings is far from a hellish demon. However, sometimes he appears elderly and scowling whereas in other renditions he is a handsome regal figure…. “…Human beings are not supposed to view the dragon’s entire body, as it would be too awesome, so part of the dragon is to be hidden by clouds or waves. “In Eastern thought the dragon begins the cycle of the year’s seasons; he is the spirit of change; he represents the east, or the beginning of earth’s day; he coils in the unfathomed depths of the seas; he unfurls himself in the storm clouds; he washes his mane in the black waters of seething whirlpools; his claws are seen in the lightning’s forks in the sky; his scales can be imagined as one views the glistening bark of a rain-swept pine tree. The dragon is never far away.” Paekche Legend of the Dragon King “An interesting tale remains stating that when the T’ang army of China was trying to conquer Paekche in 660 A.D., strategy made it necessary for the invaders to come up the Kum River with their fleet to reach the capital city named Puyo, but the Dragon King opposed them. For seven days a dragon prevented the T’ang armies sent by China’s Empress Wu from making any progress upriver. Finally a high officer consulted a local shaman as to how to overcome this river’s dragon. She accepted a bribe and told the Chinese officer that the local river dragon did have one weakness: he could not digest a white horse. “The Chinese found a white horse and put it in front of the river dragon, who was now hungry from opposing the invading fleet. The dragon ate the horse and became so weakenedthat he couldn’t defend the capital city of Puyo. Thus the Paekche kingdom fell, because it was betrayed by a mudang who knew the vulnerable side of the local river dragon.” Covell, Alan Carter. Folk Art and Magic: Shamanism in Korea. Seoul: Hollym Corporation, 1986 (58-60). Note: The Dragon King is depicted as a man, with regal, yet casual bearing, who rides on the dragon’s back. Now, who could this be? 😉

edied 12/11/08 to add:

While looking up something else on nagas, I came across this shocker. Italics mine…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_King

The four Dragon Kings (龍王; pinyin: Lóng Wáng) are, in Chinese mythology, the divine rulers of the four seas (each sea corresponds to one of the cardinal directions). Although Dragon Kings appear in their true forms as dragons, they have the ability to shapeshift into human form. The Dragon Kings live in crystalpalaces, guarded by shrimp soldiers and crab generals.

Besides ruling over the aquatic life, the Dragon Kings also manipulate clouds and rain. When enraged, they can flood cities. According to The Short Stories on the Tang People (唐人傳奇 Tangren Chuanqi), the Qian Tang Dragon King did just that when he found out his niece had been abused by her husband. Qian Tang also ate the abusive husband.