Zhulong 烛龙 (zhú lóng)

Watercolor and Alcohol Markers, 2020
Wen Ting Dong 董文婷

Zhulong is a gigantic beast that has the face, or in some legends, the upper body of a human and a huge bright red snake-like body thousands of miles long. Its name means candle dragon, even though he’s technically not classified as a dragon but instead the ancestor of all dragons. Zhulong was one of the gods that created the universe, and his powers are endless. He lives far away in the freezing north, having no need to eat and sleep. One of his eyes is the sun and the other the moon, so when he opens his eyes daylight will come, and when he closes them night will fall. This power to control day and night gave him another name Zhuying (烛阴, the yin dragon), with yin meaning dark and shadow, hinting at his ability to cast away all darkness. Zhuyin also controls the seasons, when he blows air it will be winter, and when he huffs air it will be summer.

Fun Fact - The legend of Zhuying today is thought to be the ancient people’s explanation for natural phenomenons of volcanic lava flows or the northern light in the Arctic.