The avatar dragon is the original practitioner of firebending, capable of breathing fire. The species demonstrated the true way of firebending to the Sun Warriors’ civilization, a precursor to the modern-day Fire Nation and Wan, the first Avatar. As such, dragons are highly respected by both the Sun Warriors and the Fire Nation,
History Of The Avatar Dragon
In the year 9,832 BG, after Wan was banished from his village atop a fire lion turtle, he began his life among the spirits in the Spirit Wilds. He had been allowed to keep the power over fire from the creature. During his two-year stay, he came across a white avatar dragon, who performed intricate movements while flying through the sky. Mimicking these movements, Wan became the first known human to perform the Dancing Dragon.
Thousands of years after this encounter, between 12 BG and 0 AG, Aang and Kuzon scoured Fire Nation mountaintops in the hopes of finding the elusive avatar dragon species. Instead, they ended up saving an avatar dragon egg from poachers and giving it back to its mother.
During his time as Fire Lord, Sozin began hunting dragons as the ultimate sport throughout the Fire Nation. Anyone who managed to slay an avatar dragon earned the honorary title of “Dragon,”; and their talents as firebenders would become legendary. However, near the end of the Hundred Year War, dragons were thought to be extinct due to General Iroh’s claim that he had killed the final one.
However, while searching for the last civilization of the Sun Warriors, Aang and Zuko discovered that two dragons, Ran and Shaw, were still alive, deducing that Iroh had lied to protect the species. The duo was made to promise that they would never reveal anything about the so-thought lost civilization and the dragons.
By 171 AG, a new dragon, Druk, a descendant of Ran and Shaw, had been born and later became Zuko’s mount. However, dragons were still a scarce sight, and very few people were still aware of their existence, as an average person was shocked to view a dragon firsthand.
Anatomy Of The Avatar Dragon
The avatar dragon is a large, horned reptile with a long, scaly body that ends in a thin tail. Its head is large compared to the rest of its body, and its bearded face is dominated by a wide, flat nose, golden, cat-like eyes, and long whiskers.
It also appears that there seem to be several subspecies of dragons. There are both winged and non-winged dragons, their size and number differing; depending on dragon species.
Some have two large wings that enable them to fly over great distances, while others, like the green dragon, have an extra, smaller pair of wings. However, regardless of the presence of wings, the dragons are capable of flight, as seen with the white dragon that resided in the Spirit Wilds during the era of Raava.
Notable Dragons
- Druk
- Fang
- Green dragon
- Ran and Shaw
- Sozin’s blue dragon (unnamed)
- White dragon
Behavior
Dragons are intelligent creatures capable of communicating with humans. Although generally living in solitude, a dragon can form a tight bond with a human, even to the point where it will protect its human partner from death. In addition, dragons are known to show affection by licking people.
Significance of The Red and Blue Avatar Dragon
The red and blue dragons in Zuko’s nightmare gave him advice.
The symbolism of the red and blue dragons has appeared several times throughout Team Avatar’s adventures. Commonly, the red dragon represents honor and goodness, while the blue dragon represents seduction and evil.
While living in Ba Sing Se, Zuko dreamed that he was the Fire Lord and lacked his scar. Two dragons, one red and one blue, gave him advice. The blue dragon spoke with the voice of Azula, while the red dragon spoke with the voice of Iroh.
The blue dragon sought to harm Zuko, encouraging him to “sleep forever,” whereas the red dragon told him to “escape.” This dream was eventually brought to life; when Azula and Iroh gave Zuko different advice in the Crystal Catacombs of Ba Sing Se. Zuko decided to fight by Azula’s side, later regretting his decision.
Sozin’s Blue Avatar Dragon
The red and blue dragons represented the conflict between Avatar Roku and Fire Lord Sozin, with Roku’s dragon was red and Sozin’s blue. Roku and Sozin were initially friends, but they grew distant over time. Both dragons were present on Roku’s island when Sozin betrayed Roku and left his old friend to die in the volcanic eruption. Sozin escaped on his blue dragon while Fang swooped in so he could die with Roku.
Ran of the original firebending masters is a red dragon, and one is a blue dragon. Though no distinction of personality or name was made between them; the red one paired with Zuko and the blue one with Aang as they do the “Dancing Dragon” form.
However, when Aang and Zuko finished displaying the “Dancing Dragon” form and prepared to face the dragons’ judgment, Aang faced the red dragon and Zuko the blue one. The dragons deemed them worthy and showed Aang and Zuko the original meaning of firebending
Trivia On Dragons In Avatar
- In Chinese culture, different colored dragons are associated with different locations ; as blue dragons reside in bodies of water while red dragons are associated with the south.
- Ran and Shaw encircle each other in a similar way to Tui and La. This symbolizes the taijitu, commonly known as the yin and yang symbol, which is usually black and white.
- There was a golden dragon statue in the Fire Nation’s throne room during Sozin’s reign.
- While the dragons of the Avatar World are depicted with wings, the white dragon with which Wan trained during the era of Raava did not possess any,[3] and neither did the red and blue dragon from Zuko’s dream.
- In the unrelated franchise comic “New Recruits”, Hiroshi has a pet rock-dragon named Genji that complements his earthbending.
Connection To Chinese Culture
Dragons in the World of Avatar draw inspiration from several different cultures. Aesthetically, they are heavily influenced by traditional Chinese depictions of dragons: long serpentine body, whiskers, fin-like ears, wild-looking eyes, canine snout, and the position and proportions of the horns and legs; one of the nine different types of Chinese dragons, also possess wings.
However, influences from other Asian cultures are also present, such as the dragons having four toes, which is typically a Korean trait.
In Chinese and other East Asian mythologies, dragons are traditionally portrayed as a chimerical mix of lizards, camels, goats, and bats. Still, their image seems refined in adaptation for the animation to the Western audience.
The ability to breathe fire and the presence of wings are characteristics more common in European dragons. Still, they are included in the dragons of the Avatar world as they are typical aspects of the western idea of dragons.
These features were also included to enhance the dragons’ connection to firebending, as Asian dragons are more closely associated with water than any other element, taking, for example, Yinglong, the only winged Chinese dragon.