Version 1.2a, December 1999, by Baxil (version
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Do these
four words describe you or someone you know? If so, chances are good
that you're curious about what that statement really means.
Many
people wonder about the psychological basis for draconity. Perhaps
you're concerned about the spiritual implications of calling oneself a
dragon. Or what sort of community resources are available.
In this
document, I would like to try to address all these concerns in a
straightforward and informative way. Whether you're coming to terms
with your own draconity, or concerned about a friend or relative who
is, I hope you find this useful.
If you have a question
(specific or general) that is not answered in this FAQ, please refer to the
"Contact/Copyright Information" section at the bottom
of the document. All sincere inquiries are welcome.
Dragons are mythic creatures
(see "What do dragons mean to you?" below) found
in the legends and stories of almost every civilization. There are two major
types: Western dragons, which are associated with reptiles, and are often
seen as guards of great treasure or tests of a hero's strength in their
culture's legends; and Eastern dragons, which are characterized physically
as amalgams of many different creatures and are associated with the powers
of nature.
A far more detailed
account of the different types of dragons and their stories and symbolism
can be found in the alt.fan.dragons FAQ at http://www.dragonfire.org/IndexFAQ.html
or at Jen Walker's "What Is a Dragon?" page at http://www.draconian.com/whatis/.
It is a statement of
identity. "I am a dragon" means that one has chosen to acknowledge dragons
as an important part of their life -- as a social group, as a way of looking
at themselves, as a way of looking at the world.
Beyond that, it is up
to each individual person what to make of their draconity. Many draw strength
from this identity in everyday life, but some submerge it in order to deal
with the human world. A few treat their draconity with such importance that
they identify only as dragons even to strangers; many will answer to both
their human and dragon names in public; some only feel comfortable with
their draconity among close friends.
Dragons are powerful
symbols, transcending everyday life and cutting to the heart of far deeper
and more eternal struggles. Whether they are good or evil -- whether they
embody power or wisdom -- whether they guide humanity or oppose it -- are
all dependent on culture and personal worldview.
This is because dragons
are mythic creatures. Myths are stories that are profoundly true and have
deep impact on believers' lives (1), like Jesus' death
and resurrection, Hindu creation stories, or the Big Bang theory. Regardless
of whether or not they are objectively true, myths are certainly
true to their believers, and answer fundamental questions about the nature
of the universe.
Draconity, in its own
way, is just an encompassing a myth as any of those listed above. Because
there is no single standard of a "proper dragon," its answers, truths and
consequences vary from person to person, but there is one thing for certain:
they are big.
Because that's
what we are. ]B=8)
Draconity is certainly
a different belief to the average person, but it's important
to keep in mind that different and crazy are not the same. Liking garlic
ice cream (it exists!) is different. Pulling out an AK-47 at the local McDonald's
is crazy. I do not know any crazy dragons.
In general, one of the
greatest struggles that dragons have to go through is coming to terms with
their draconity, simply because it is such a different worldview. Embracing
it means confronting many doubts and demons, often completely alone. It
is far easier for someone to ignore the question of their draconity than
it is for them to deal with it honestly. Therefore, accepting one's inner
dragon requires high self-esteem and inner peace -- two qualities that truly
crazy people lack.
They certainly can,
but not all do. Dragons are so far removed from the accepted paradigm that
most people haven't even seriously considered their existence, but many
are tolerant enough to approach the idea objectively once it's presented.
My friends (and parents!) have all come to terms with my draconity, and
I've explained the situation to many strangers with favorable receptions.
(Other dragons haven't been nearly as lucky, and my heart goes out to the
ones whose parents won't accept them.)
Opinions vary from individual
to individual, and depend largely on culture, upbringing, willingness to
listen, and level of ingrained skepticism. A common attitude I've seen is
that someone can't personally believe in dragons, but accepts that I believe
I am one -- which works for me; as long as they respect my view of reality
I am quite willing to respect theirs.
Of course, whether draconity
is accepted or rejected by "the mainstream" does not make it any more or
less real. The only opinion that counts, for your reality, is yours.
Escapism is the adopting
of a particular belief in order to avoid confronting the harsher side of
reality. The very act of accepting one's draconity involves mental struggle;
proclaiming one's draconity to friends and relatives often results in estrangement;
and there is no "fantasy world" that a dragon can hide in -- on the contrary,
dragons have the added difficulty of trying to fit into human society as
a spiritual outsider. Where is the escapism?
Escapism can also indicate
a lack of introspection, an unwillingness to face oneself. And here, too,
draconity is not escapist. Instead, denying one's draconic
heritage -- abandoning truth to avoid social and inner conflict -- is escapism,
and someone going through the struggle of finding his or her inner dragon
doesn't need the condescension of others who don't understand that draconity's
an uphill battle.
Yes -- in the same way
that one can "believe" they are Lithuanian or Catholic or heterosexual.
Draconity is an identity. We choose to accept that part of us which we identify
as draconic. Do we ultimately choose to be dragons, or is it something that
is predetermined? I don't know.
Also see next
question.
This is the question
that most people mean when they ask "Do you really believe you're a dragon?"
-- and there is a misconception that all people aspiring to draconity expect
someday to sprout wings and scales. This is not universally true.
Many people are dragons
spiritually, and that (more or less) abstract connection is as far as it
ever gets. There are also those in the dragon community who believe that
in this life they are humans, but in the past they have been dragons, and
that draconity is a "more natural" form for them. Of course, there are dragons
who expect within this lifetime to regain dragon form, and there is not
anything wrong with that, either.
Unfortunately, there's
no simple answer to this -- no tests you can take, no card you can dig out
of your wallet. The only way to tell is to look, long and hard, at yourself
and to come to a decision on your own. Don't take shortcuts, and don't trust
anyone who says otherwise: how much meaning your draconity has is proportional
to how much effort you put into it.
Ask yourself: Am I aspiring
to draconity because it's right rather than cool? Do I have a real
perspective on what it means to be a dragon? Would I be able to accept that
I'm not a dragon if the evidence I find says so? Is draconity a consistent
explanation with all of the evidence I have found so far? Is it the best
explanation? If you can't answer any of the above, answered "no" to any
of them, or are anything less than 100 percent sure of your draconity (and
if you're convinced, why are you reading this question? :-)), then take
some time out to evaluate.
It's perfectly OK to
not be sure; I told people "I think I am a dragon" for half a decade before
I found out enough to know. And don't rush yourself. Draconity
is a beautiful destination on the road of self-discovery -- enjoy the journey!
There are many people
out there who consider their dragon to be only part of, or separate from,
their human self -- a distinct facet of their personality, or an "avatar"
which they are spiritually in touch with, or an outside identity with which
they communicate and have bonded.
As I consider my dragon
to be not only me but all of me, I have written this FAQ from that
worldview. But I am not trying to exclude those whose dragons play different
roles in their life! Many of the questions in this FAQ apply no matter what
your relationship with your dragon may be. Some questions (and answers)
may apply more specifically to the way I perceive draconity, so if any of
my writing rubs you the wrong way, please feel free to talk to me personally
(see "Contact Information" at the bottom of this
document).
(Also see "What's the deal with 'dragon magic'?" below.)
The answer would seem
obvious at first: Would we be proud of our draconity if the answer were
"no"?
But this is a very shallow
look at the issue. There are many things which humans excel at, and just
because dragons are proud of their heritage doesn't mean that they can't
recognize the beauty of human life. True dragons don't maintain their identity
to reject humanity -- they insist on their draconity because it better fits
them.
Speaking personally,
during my last life as a dragon I snuck into a local human town on a weekly
basis to buy books, and I have always been fascinated by human music. (You
should see my CD collection!) I would not be ashamed to be a human, and
sometimes (like when I read Loren Eiseley) I envy you. However, I am a dragon.
It's not better than humanity, but different. And far better for me.
Just because dragons
haven't been proved to exist in the physical world doesn't mean that they
hold no claim on reality. Consider the variety of cultures, both Eastern
and Western, in our world that have dragons in their mythology -- and the
lack of cultures that don't. How can we explain this prevalence of dragons
in myth? Is it any more plausible to say "early racial memories of dinosaurs"
(we're talking tree-shrew early, since dinosaurs haven't existed for 65
million years) than to consider dragons as real?
But the question of
whether dragons are physically real doesn't make a difference in the end.
Dragons are mythic creatures (see "What are dragons?")
-- and, therefore, are exceptionally real beings to those who choose to
accept the myth. That acceptance is a matter of faith ... the same faith
that drives people to turn to Christianity or to scientific skepticism (yes,
even being a skeptic requires faith -- faith that everything can be neatly
parceled up, explained and understood, a faith which not everyone shares).
We do love being dragons.
It means a lot to us. Otherwise we wouldn't acknowledge it.
"Taking it too far"
is a judgment value, and the question that hinges on is: "Why do you believe
in something which I can't accept as real?" The only possible answer to
that question is "Because it is true to me."
Draconity is an issue
of identity, and being acknowledged as a dragon by others is important to
that identity. A name is the most direct and obvious way of accomplishing
this. If someone prefers to go by their dragon name, refusing to use it
can be just as insulting as insisting on calling the pope "John."
This is not an issue
of validation, however, nor is it an issue of rejecting humanity (see "Do
you consider dragons superior to humans?" above). Many dragons see their
dragon name as more fitting or more meaningful than their human name, which
after all is rather arbitrary. For example, "Baxil" means "beloved" in a
dragon tongue, and as such it is a powerful word for me. Also, a dragon
name can be a strong reminder of someone's commitment to their draconity,
in the same way that a convert to Islam may take a new name (e.g. Cassius
Clay / Muhammad Ali).
We are only a group
in name and have no fixed dogma. I doubt you'd ever get all of us to agree
on anything. ;-) In fact, I cannot claim to speak for all dragons with this
FAQ, and differences of opinion are certainly welcome. (See "Contact
Information" at the bottom of this document.)
Dragons come from all
walks of life, span all ages from schoolchildren to grandparents, are widely
distributed geographically (no, this isn't just a California thing), and
in general are hard to pick out in a crowd. Speaking from experience, though,
I will observe that most dragons seem to be introspective individuals, many
of whom felt a social detachment from their peers at an early age, and many
of whom are either well-educated people or bright underachievers. Draconity
cuts across gender lines, although males apparently outnumber females (which
is true of just about any group on the Internet). The majority of dragons
are avid readers, and unsurprisingly, they seem to enjoy fantasy/science-fiction
novels.
No.
A cult is an organization,
usually with religious overtones, characterized by the presence of a charismatic
leader, a demand for unconditional acceptance of its dogma, and a focus
on financial support from its members.
Being a dragon is completely
at odds with all of these danger signals. The dragon community has no members
which could rightly be called "leaders." There is nothing one must believe
in order to call themselves a dragon (except draconity itself, by definition).
And there is no place to send money to.
We do not try to "hook"
gullible people into draconity. On the contrary, conversation in dragon
circles tends to be intellectual and social (e.g. pun wars, riddles), and
if people stay it is because they like the casual and friendly atmosphere
which characterizes all of our online correspondence. Non-dragons are always
welcome, and there are many humans who have been in dragon circles for years!
No social pressure is ever applied -- one does not have to be a dragon to
participate in any dragon community activities.
Dragons are a very diverse
group, and if one stays for long enough they are almost certain to be exposed
to a wide range of beliefs, but there is no agenda we have to push upon
others. If someone you care about is a dragon, you can rest assured that
it is by their free will.
Dragons are only a group
in name and have no fixed dogma. The only requirement for believing that
one is a dragon is to believe at some level that dragons exist (by definition).
There is no organization that sets standards for draconity. There are no
fixed rituals, no social conventions, and no necessary ethics. In short,
no.
I am not aware of any
religions which specifically preach to dragons (2),
although (as might be expected) some religons appeal more to dragons than
others do. I suspect that the "typical dragon" has a worldview that does
not fit into the framework of any world religion, although one may certainly
be a dragon and be of various faiths.
Believing that one is
a dragon does not, in itself, create incompatibilities with any religion
-- there is no dogma of draconity that states what you need to believe.
There are, of course, conflicts with some faiths, but these are caused by
the dogma of the religion in question, most often when the religion labels
dragons as inherently evil.
To provide a specific
example: Christian churches that call for a literal interpretation of the
Bible traditionally have had problems with draconity. (See following questions.)
Christianity, in
general, demands a belief in Jesus Christ as one's savior and in the
unity and supremacy of God. Draconity is not incompatible with either
of these concepts, and so being a Christian dragon is certainly possible.
"Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps." (Psalm
148:7)
It is far simpler
to be a dragon, to be certain, in a liberal church. In more conservative
organizations, which tend to insist on a literal interpretation of the
Bible, draconity can be incompatible with the teachings of the institution
(see next question).
Christian dragons,
in my experience, tend to have a very colorful and living mythology
that unites their conception of dragon with their conception of God.
One friend of mine, for example, identifies dragons as among God's angels.
Just like everything
else in such a symbolically loaded book, it all depends on interpretation.
Dragons have typically been associated with the Antichrist mostly on
the strength of the book of Revelation (specifically Rev. 12:1-9, among
other references). However, there's considerable speculation that John
was writing symbolically about the Roman Empire in that passage, and
so the question may hinge on: Why was a dragon used as a symbol for
something so evil?
Dragons are a very
powerful Other, instantly recognizable as something alien to humanity.
In a religion so centered on humanity as Christianity, this placed them
naturally in the role of enemies. They may have been associated with
the enemy simply because of the strength of their symbolism
and mythology and their universality.
Of course, not all
references to dragons in the Bible portray them as evil. But in general,
Western thought has been to condemn them -- unfairly, I say.
One either is or is
not a dragon, and trying to "become" one is rather like trying to change
sexes without the proper medical procedure. In short, people cannot "become"
dragons.
However: This is not
to say that dragons always know who they are! Very few are born
with the knowledge of their inner draconity; most have to grow into it and
discover it. Draconity is just as legitimate if discovered late in life.
True draconity is not a "becoming," it is a "returning," and true dragons
know the difference.
Ultimately, the
question boils down to "How do I know if I'm a dragon?" (answered above).
However, one can certainly join the dragon community whether they are a
dragon or not (see next question). And many members of the dragon community
"adopt a character" at the beginning of their stay -- but later grow to
find that the "character" has adopted THEM.
All people, whether
they are dragons or not, are welcome to the dragon community. On the Internet,
this community takes the form of Usenet newsgroups (such as alt.fan.dragons
and, to some extent, alt.lifestyle.furry),
Internet Relay Chat rooms (such as Dalnet's
#afd channel), a tangled web of WWW pages (the AFD page, http://www.dragonfire.org,
is a good starting point), MUCKs (such as Alfandria at alfandria.chameleon.org,
port 8888), and scattered mailing lists, spin-off chat rooms and bulletin-board
style discussions. Nearly all of these forums are open to the public, so
feel free to walk in, listen for a while, and make your presence known.
Information on joining the newsgroups or IRC channels is available from
many sources, including here (which is also
maintained by me).
The longer you
stay and the more you contribute to the community, the more your name will
be known. So come on in and make a difference!
Many people's
first exposure to draconity is through a larger group collectively known
as "furries," which is a gathering of people who are (or are interested
in) anthropomorphic animals. Dragons are furries by default, since the term
applies to all beings possessing both human qualities and non-human shape
(whether or not they possess fur).
However, draconity
did not grow out of the furry community. It is not a "new" idea, and it
was not developed by any one person or group, much less furries. Although
dragons and furries are under the same umbrella, they are not causally connected.
Estimates vary.
It is certain that there are at least 500 to 1,000 worldwide -- that many
alone are participants in the online dragon community, mostly from the United
States but found anywhere that Internet cabling has been lain.
As new dragons
show up all the time, it seems reasonable to assume that this figure is
far low of the mark. One of the more intriguing estimates I've heard is
that up to 600,000 people on Earth may be dragons, most unaware of it. This
figure may seem high, but keep in mind that this is only one-tenth of one
percent of the world's population, and if they all moved to the United States
it would still be less than 3 percent of America.
All "Dragon Union"
jokes aside, there is no person or group which claims (or can claim)
to represent all dragons or all "real" dragons. One can be a dragon independent
of any organization, and in fact, one has to be.
In an effort
to provide a centralized gathering place for dragons on the Internet, most
dragons recognize alt.fan.dragons, #afd, Alfandria, and the like (see "How
do I join the dragon community?" above) to be "official" gathering places.
This simply means that the online dragon community has agreed to support
a set of standard meeting forums in an attempt to keep the group unified.
There is nothing canonical about AFD/#afd/Alfandria except that they are
places where you will find more dragons than elsewhere.
The dragon community,
in the physical world, is spread out so broadly and so thinly that it is
almost impossible to maintain a physical network. (For the first three to
four years of my personal experiences with draconity, for example, I thought
I was alone in my belief and probably crazy. See "How did you discover your
draconity?" below, for details.)
To put it bluntly,
the Internet magnifies the visibility of "fringe" groups, those with nonstandard
beliefs. It is far easier for those with similar opinions to find each other
and gather together. (Draconity is nothing if not a nonstandard belief.)
The result is that people who might never see another dragon in the years
before the Information Age are suddenly discovering dozens, scores, even
hundreds of fellow draconics -- online. Although this often leads to increased
physical networking, such as regional "Dragon Gathers," the simplest way
to maintain contact with such a far-flung group is through the Internet.
Often, dragons
feel that their beliefs and attitudes are misunderstood by everyone
except the dragon community -- a feeling that is unfortunately grounded
in reality, since many people find draconity very difficult to accept.
Since the dragon community is so overwhelmingly online (see previous
question), those parts of the Internet that are dragon-friendly can
start feeling, in a very real sense, like home.
If you are
a physical-life friend or relative of a dragon that you are concerned
is spending too much time on the Internet, the first step to a solution
is to show increased tolerance, interest and understanding of their
draconity. The more understood and loved they feel offline, the less
they will need to fill that void on the Internet. (Do not expect them
to completely do without, though. Being a dragon is a very real and
profound force in their life, and cutting off close friendships by denying
them Net access can create intense alienation that destroys the rest
of your work.) I also recommend taking more interest in what they do
online -- perhaps you will discover that you approve of how they use
their online time. With patience and support, a happy medium can be
reached.
No. All races
are welcome. The dragon community runs the gamut from dragons to humans
to wolves to gryphons, shapeshifters, fish, etc. (See "How
do I join the dragon community?" above.)
Even among the
dragons themselves, though, there will be the unfortunate but inevitable
contingent of wanna-bes -- the people who don't believe they are dragons,
but say they are. The reasons for this vary from inaccurate understanding
of draconity to the need for peer acceptance to belief that dragons are
all role-playing anyway (which we aren't). The biggest cause of user turnover
in the dragon community is when people pretending to be dragons are suddenly
confronted by the realization that We're Not Kidding Around and quickly
decide that they don't need to hang out with people whose beliefs they can't
accept (see "Are you crazy?" above).
(Also see "How
do I know if I'm a dragon?" above.)
The question
of sincerity often boils down to earnestness -- people pretending to be
dragons haven't got as big of an investment in their identity as the true
dragons do. Staying power is the biggest indicator.
Of course, it's
a lot easier to tell which dragons are "fakes" after one knows what "real"
dragons are like. Hanging around the dragon community for a few months and
getting to know many dragons will be invaluable in helping you to form your
own guidelines for dragon evaluation.
For some idea
of the sort of things that you can notice with sufficient exposure to draconity,
you can see my list at http://www.draconity.com/faq/true-dragons.txt.
The Dragon Purity
Test (aka Draconity Corruption Test, Draconity Test), which was developed
by Dymus in 1995 and can be found at [http://www.armory.com/tests/draconity.html],
is designed to measure and rank one's inner dragon through a series of questions
such as "Have you ever answered faster to your draconic name than your human
one?"
The test itself
states at the top: "This test is purely for fun and entertainment. If you
do not feel that your score is relative to your draconity then ignore it
... I warn you now that the validity of the test isn't exactly real high,
just fun."
While it's true
that in general dragons score higher than humans, the test is also unbalanced
so that long-time alt.fan.dragons residents score higher than newbies, even
if the long-timers are non-dragons. Additionally, scoring higher does not
make one "more" of a dragon, nor is there a clearly defined cut-off point
below which no dragon can score. So, "the chief benefit of test results
is living in a world where they are overrated" (to paraphrase H.L. Mencken).
Dragon magic,
outlined by D.J. Conway in her book Dancing With Dragons (Llewellyn
Publications, 1994), involves the invocation of dragon spirits to aid one
in one's magical work. "Invoke their ageless wisdom and power!" says one
of the book's cover blurbs.
As both a dragon
and a practicing mage, I find Dancing With Dragons' promises
rather silly -- all I have to do to harness the ageless wisdom and power
of the dragon is to look inside myself. Still, the book's target audience
is, I'm sure, human, and for those people who are not themselves dragons
I can understand how it could aid their work.
Be forewarned
that I can't claim to speak for anyone but myself on this one. Everyone's
story is different.
I grew up for
over a decade as a human, came to realize gradually that I wasn't normal,
came to realize that draconity explained that lack of normality very well,
and gathered evidence and experiences for many years before I came to the
conclusion that being a dragon was the only explanation that made
sense in a self-consistent way.
A more detailed
version of the story (and a self-analysis) are at http://www.draconity.com/faq/history.html.
Happy reading, and best wishes in your continued encounters with draconity!
To contact me, e-mail
faq@tomorrowlands.org. (This is my
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If you have a question
not covered in this FAQ, put "Draconity FAQ question" (or something similar)
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The URL of the official
Draconity FAQ is http://www.draconity.com/faq/
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