Week 7 Reading Notes: Monkey King Part B

The Dragon King of the Four Seas, painted in the first half of the 19th century. Source.

 

Dragon Kings of the Four Seas

 

Azure Dragon - 靑龍 Qīnglóng (blue dragon). Proper name is Ao Guang, the Dragon King of the East Sea. Appears in Fengshen Yanyi and  Journey to the West. 

From Wiki: 

"According to the Fengshen Yanyi, after the passage of many years, Ao Guang had brought chaos to the world by creating droughts, storms, and other disasters. Due to the people's immense fear of the dragon king and his sons, they never dared seek protection against him from the Jade Emperor. As a result, Ao Guang enjoyed countless offerings by the people throughout a time interval of many years. One day, Nezha cleansed himself at a neighboring stream of the East Sea, causing Ao Guang's palace to shake at an annoying level. After Ao Guang's favorite investigator Li Gen and third son Ao Bing were both killed by Nezha, Ao Guang set out to talk to Nezha's father, Li Jing. Ao Guang demanded that Li Jing offer himself as a sacrifice to atone for Nezha's actions, but Li Jing refused. After a long discussion on the matter, Ao Guang, by now extremely angry, ascended to the heavens to state the issue to the Jade Emperor. However, Nezha, having opted to sacrifice himself in his father's place, appeared in heaven and began to beat Ao Guang very violently, even tearing scales from his skin and causing him to bleed. Ao Guang was forced to turn himself into a small snake and come with Nezha back to the Old Pond Pass to forget about the incident completely.

Later, Ao Guang, along with three other dragon kings, came to Old Pond Pass and took both Li Jing and his wife Lady Yin. Nezha, wishing to free them, offers the dragons all of his internal organs in exchange for his parents. Ao Guang personally agreed to Nezha's resolution with happiness and brought his internal organs to the Jade Emperor. After this point, Ao Guang's fate is unknown." 

 

Red - 赤龍 Chìlóng or 朱龍 Zhūlóng, literally "Cinnabar Dragon", "Vermilion Dragon". Proper name is Ao Qin, the Dragon King of the South Sea

There isn't much information about Ao Qin other than what is shortly mentioned on wiki.

Black - 黑龍 Hēilóng (Black Dragon). Proper name is Ao Shun, the Dragon King of the North Sea. 

There isn't much information about Ao Shun other than what is shortly mentioned on wiki.

White - 白龍 Báilóng (White Dragon). Proper name is Ao Run, the Dragon King of the West Sea. Ao Run is the patron of Qinghai Lake and could be linked to the White Tiger as both are Chinese western gods.

From Wiki:

"According to Legend of Qinghai (传说青海), a long time ago, the King of Dragons was very happy to see that his queen had given birth to four dragons. Many years later, the four dragons grew up, causing more and more mischievous pranks until the Dragon King was out of breath. One day, the King of Dragons came up with a way to summon all the dragon princes into the Crystal Palace. He said, "You have grown up, so you should all have your own side." Then he ordered the eldest prince Ao Guang to become the King of the East China Sea, the second prince Ao Qin to become the King of the South China Sea, and the third prince Ao Shun to become the King of the North Sea. The King of Dragons wanted to keep the little prince Ao Run beside him, but Ao Run said, "I will be the King of the West Sea!" The King of Dragons laughed and praised him. After the Huaxia Jiuzhou, Ao Run did not see the West Sea. When he came to the southern foot of Qilian Mountain, he was exhausted. He cried sadly, "How can I be the King of the West Sea without the West Sea?" Then he climbed to the top of Qilian Mountain and made a big storm, but it did not suffice. When the Jade Emperor saw this happen, he felt pity. Therefore, he sent Leigong, Dianmu, Fengbo, and Yun Tong to help Ao Run. Lightning, thunder, and storms created Haizi with an area of more than 5,000 square kilometers and a depth of more than 20 meters, which became the West Sea (Qinghai Lake). Since then, Ao Run has become the Dragon King of the West Sea.^[4]

Ao Run has three children. His sons are Ao Lie, who was the steed of Tang Sanzang, and Ao Moang (敖摩昂). He has a daughter named Ao Cinxin (敖寸心), also known as the Xihai Longnü (西海龙女).