Physical Characteristics

• The Chinese dragon is a long serpentine creature with four legs, but it does not have wings like its European counterpart. Often, the dragons are described as having aspects of other animals such as having deer antlers, carp scales, tiger eyes and eagle claws.
  
  

Powers

• Dragons in Chinese folklore are viewed as godlike figures since they controlled the weather with particular focus on the annual rains and floods. This was very important since Chinese society depended on the dragon to let the rains fall so that crops could grow.
  
  

Personality

• The Chinese dragon is generally seen as friendly, benevolent and wise. However, the Chinese dragon could also be vain and easy to take insult when people disagreed with or offended it. As a result, the dragon might cause difficulty by stopping the rains or causing other natural disasters to exert hardship on people.
  
  

Why Chinese Dragons Are Revered

• Since dragons were thought to control the weather and people depended on the agricultural cycle for their survival, the dragon became a creature that was revered by all people since the ability to grow food through the rains depended on keeping the dragon happy and making sure it was not offended.
  
  

Dragons in Contemporary Chinese Culture

• Even though dragons are mythological creatures, the Chinese still pay tribute to the dragon, and images of the dragon can be seen in Chinese art and architecture. Events honoring the dragon can also be seen today during the celebration of the Dragon Dance. The Dragon Dance was originally used as a ceremonial dance to please the "Dragon King" to help bring rain to the fields. Nowadays, the Dragon Dance has become a popular form of entertainment but which illustrates the importance of the dragon to the Chinese.