Koi and dragons appear together all over East Asian art: on scrolls and screens, on kimono and porcelain, in tattoos, and now in neon city scenes. They are linked by a single legend, in which one becomes the other. Knowing the story changes how you see any picture of either.
The legend of the Dragon Gate
The story is Chinese, and very old. A great shoal of carp swam up the Yellow River against the current. They came to a waterfall at a place called the Dragon Gate. Most turned back. A few kept trying to leap it. The story says that a carp which reached the top was changed into a dragon.
The tale became a saying for success earned by effort. For centuries in China, passing the imperial examinations, which opened the way to a career in government, was called leaping the Dragon Gate. The legend travelled to Japan, where the carp, called koi, became a favourite emblem of determination.
So the koi is the striver, and the dragon is what the striver becomes.
What the koi means
- Perseverance. The fish that swims against the current and doesn't give up.
- Courage. In Japanese tradition a koi is said to lie still on the chopping board and face the knife without flinching, like a warrior.
- Ambition and success. The leap at the waterfall.
- Good fortune and prosperity. Koi are kept in ponds as living symbols of luck.
- Long life. Koi can live for many decades.
- Love and friendship. In Japanese, koi is also a word for love, written differently. A pair of koi stands for a happy couple.
In Japan, carp-shaped streamers called koinobori are flown on Children's Day, 5 May. Each fish stands for a member of the family, and the wish is that the children will grow up strong and determined.
Up or down?
In tattoo tradition, the direction matters. A koi swimming upward is still struggling towards its goal. A koi swimming downward has passed the fall, or in another reading has yet to find the will to try. A koi among waves and maple leaves, or among cherry blossom, sets the season.
The colours of koi
Ornamental koi were bred in Japan, in Niigata, from the early nineteenth century. Colours have gathered meanings, which vary from source to source. The common ones are:
- Red or orange: love, energy, courage. Often read as the mother or as a strong, passionate nature.
- Black: overcoming a hardship. Often read as the father.
- Gold or yellow: wealth and prosperity.
- White with a red mark: success in a career. A white koi with a single red spot on its head recalls the Japanese flag.
- Blue: calm, and often a son.
What the dragon means
The dragon of East Asia is not the fire-breathing monster of European tales. It is a lord of water and weather.
- Power and authority. It was the emblem of the Chinese emperor.
- Rain and rivers. It brings the water that makes crops grow.
- Wisdom.
- Good fortune and protection.
- Transformation. It is the carp that succeeded.
It has a long, snake-like body, the horns of a stag, the scales of a carp and the claws of a bird of prey. It flies without wings. It is often shown holding or chasing a flaming pearl, which stands for wisdom or spiritual energy.
In Japan, dragons are painted on the ceilings of Zen temples, coiling through cloud. A water god in dragon form, Ryujin, rules the sea. In Chinese tradition, the Azure Dragon guards the east and stands for spring.
Koi and dragon together
A picture that shows both tells the whole story at once: the effort and the reward. There is a creature in between, too. A fish with the head of a dragon, caught half way through the change, is a common subject in Chinese art and in tattoos. It stands for someone in the middle of becoming something greater.
The dragon is also paired with other animals. Dragon and tiger are heaven and earth, spirit and strength. Dragon and phoenix are emperor and empress, a happy marriage. See bird symbolism in art.
In ukiyo-e and tattoo
The woodblock printmakers of nineteenth-century Japan loved these subjects. Utagawa Kuniyoshi drew heroes covered in tattoos of dragons and koi, and made famous prints of giant carp and of the boy Kintaro wrestling one under a waterfall. Those prints shaped the style of Japanese tattooing, where the koi and the dragon are still the best-known designs, with their waves, wind bars and falling leaves.
From there the imagery passed into modern illustration, streetwear and games.
Koi and dragons in neon
Cyberpunk borrowed heavily from the look of Japanese cities, and the old symbols came with it. A koi or a dragon in a neon street is a meeting of tradition and technology: the ancient creature in the electric city.
- Japanese City Punk FX.2: Koi Attack. Two huge koi, orange and violet, swim through the air above a crossing that recalls Shibuya. The fish are warm orange against a cool blue city. Read with the legend in mind, they are swimming upstream through the modern world. Two together also carry the meaning of a pair.
- Blue Sky Dragon. The head of a pale blue dragon coming through white cloud. It is a cloud dragon in the old manner, and a blue one: the dragon of the east and of spring.
- Midnight Psychic Dragon. The same dragon in lilac-pink and black, with a rough printed texture.
Hang Koi Attack and Blue Sky Dragon together and you have the Dragon Gate story across two pictures: before and after.
Choosing and placing them at home
- A koi for effort. A study, a student's desk, a home gym, a workspace. It is a picture about keeping going.
- A dragon for achievement and protection. An office, a hallway, the wall behind your chair.
- Direction. Hang a koi so that it swims upward or into the room. Hang a dragon so that it faces into the room, not out of a door or window.
- The east. Those who follow feng shui place a dragon on the east side of a room, and prefer it not to face a bathroom or sit in a bedroom. Treat that as tradition, to follow or not as you like.
- With water. Both creatures belong to water. Blue, a plant, a bowl or a fish tank nearby suit them.
As a gift
- A koi for a student, a graduate, someone facing exams or a hard year. See graduation gifts.
- A pair of koi for a couple. See anniversary gifts.
- A dragon for a promotion, a new business, or someone born in a Year of the Dragon.
A note on respect
These symbols belong to living traditions in China, Japan and elsewhere. Our pieces are original artworks inspired by that imagery, made with admiration for it. If the subject interests you, the old prints and paintings are well worth seeking out.
For related reading, see celestial animals: dragons, foxes and koi as wall art, what is Heisei Retro and fox symbolism in art. Browse the canvas art collection.