The palladium and emblem of Vietnam.

While in Western mythology the dragon is an evil beast, and best illustrated by the story of St George and the dragon, in the East--especially in mainland Asia --it has opposite significance. The dragon is the totem, the palladium and emblem of Vietnam. It is the symbol of man in general, just as the woman is represented by the phoenix, another of the four mythical animals of the land. When a dragon and phoenix are shown together either in cloth designs or carvings, a marriage is represented.

According to popular belief the dragon is a genie that preside over the creation of meteors and other cosmic activities. In addition, he is often considered to be god of the waters who lives in the sea and rivers.

According to the Chinese tradition still prevalent in Vietnam, the has the horns of deer, head of camel, belly of a crocodile, scale of a fish and buffalo like hair. Its hearing ability is in its horns, rather than in its ears. The neck of serpent, eyes of a demon and claws of an eagle complete the strange figure.

There are many legends about the dragon, with some being used to explain the origin of the Vietnamese people. One of these tells the story of a Vietnamese king named Lac-long Quang (circa 2,500 BC) of the dragon race who kidnapped the wife of his cousin the Chinese king De-Lai and got 100 eggs. From these came 100 boys -- 50 of these, taking after their father, became water genial; the other 50 took after their mother and became land dwellers. One of the latter founded the hung-Vurong dynasty, but its kings were still more at home at the bottom of the rivers than in their places.

While Vietnam had a dynasty and from time to time the ruler died, the Vietnamese did not say "The King is dead” but rather, "The dragon has gone up into the upper regions,"

Source from: The Religious of South Vietnam in Faith and fact.