The Johto Ledgendaries

[Zeek Slider]

Okay, let's end the debate right here and now in this guild.

What the hell are they!?! Cats? Dogs? Tigers? Lions? Wolves?

Supplying any photographic comparison to prove your view is MANDATORY! Photographs must also be from REAL ANIMALS!

I would start, but I, honestly, can't tell myself what those... things are.  

[Sui Kune]

Alright, a theory of mine:

http://www.oldchesterpa.com/images/deshong_lion.jpg
Exhibit A

I personally believe that the Legendary Dogs (as I call them by habit, technically they're Legendary "Beasts") are based on the shishi Buddhist lion, who are the guardian statues that stand outside of temples and such. If you think about it, the three are the guardians of Ho-oh (which I more often type "Houou" out of habit); they stood guard as statues in the Brass (burned) Tower in the GSC games.

This is among my very long-winded theory of the Legendaries and their connection with Shinto and Buddhist mythology. Here are exerpts:

Ryujin/Owatatsumi no Kami (Umi no kami): "The sea kami born of Izanagi and Izanami; father of Toyotamabime. The element 'watatsumi' designates a kami that rules the sea. In the Kojiki Izanagi's purification results in the production of three such sea gods: Uwatsuwatatsumi, Nakatsuwatatsumi, and Sokotsuwatatsumi."
-- IJCC, Kokugakuin University

"Lugia possesses a connection to Ryujin, the umi no kami. Ryujin, a dragon living within a lavish palace beneath the sea, possesses two (probably three moreso) jewels that control the tides; the Tide Jewels. As in the above definition of Ryujin, there could actually be three such gods (kami), which could be connected to the three Tide Jewels. Like the Legend in the second Pok魯n movie involving Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres, and not to mention Lugia and the three Jewels. So Lugia is the Dragon."

Houou: "According to legend (mostly from China), the Ho-oo appears very rarely, and only to mark the beginning of a new era -- the birth of a virtuous ruler, for example. In other traditions, the Ho-oo appears only in peaceful and prosperous times (nesting, it is said, in paulownia trees), and hides itself when there is trouble. As the herald of a new age, the Ho-Oo decends from heaven to earth to do good deeds, and then it returns to its celestial abode to await a new era. It is both a symbol of peace (when it appears) and a symbol of disharmony (when it disappears)."
-- Omarkproductions.com Shinto & Buddhist Corner

"Houou and Lugia, the two Legendary Pokémon, are essentially two sides of the same coin. They complement and oppose each other. Though their opposition to each other is in their blood, they are seen as partners in many instances. They are the Dragon and the Phoenix. Lugia arose the trio of Legendary Birds from the sea. Houou arouse the trio of Legendary Beasts from the ashes. Lugia rules over the Legendaries that fly, as Houou rules over the Legendaries of the land. They are Day and Night; Dawn and Dusk; Light and Dark. The Phoenix, naturally having the cycle of death and rebirth in its blood, used this power in its sorrow over their deaths to raise the three nameless creatures that perished within the chaos of the Brass Tower fire. They were embodied with the three elements that had each worked one in one to fulfill their destiny. Thunder, Fire, and Water.
Suicune is the spirit of the Northern Winds. Entei is spirit of the Southern Winds. Raikou is spirit of the Western Winds. And Houou is guardian of the Eastern Winds. Such as their Legendary counterparts of the cardinal directions: Articuno with the North. Moltres with the South. Zapdos with the West. And Lugia, guardian of the East. Houou and Lugia are both in the East; two sides of the same coin indeed."  

[Edward E!ric]

i know you said we must have pics but heres something i just wanted to say i know they are not cats because cats have small thin like likes so they can jump and climb easy but the legendary dogs or whatever have somewhat thick legs and theirs bodies are not built like a cat its built more like a dog so im pretty sure they are related to a dog  

[Zeek Slider]

Rion, I'm not taking your argument as valid. It sounds more opinionanted if anything.

Sui, you never sease to amaze me with your knowledge about ledgendaries. I knew you'd show up the moment I published this thread. Your information gave me a better understanding now as to those sets of Ledgendaries, but in all honesty, you were talking more about Ho-oh and Lugia than you were about Suicune, Entei, and Raikou. All you told me is that they are based around the Shishi Buddhist lions, but didn't supply any other information beyound that. Kind of would like more information. sweatdrop

Damn, I'm such a nerd.  

[Sui Kune]

ZeekSlider

Sui, you never sease to amaze me with your knowledge about ledgendaries. I knew you'd show up the moment I published this thread. Your information gave me a better understanding now as to those sets of Ledgendaries, but in all honesty, you were talking more about Ho-oh and Lugia than you were about Suicune, Entei, and Raikou. All you told me is that they are based around the Shishi Buddhist lions, but didn't supply any other information beyound that. Kind of would like more information. sweatdrop

Damn, I'm such a nerd.

True, but in order to understand the 'Dogs, you have to understand Lugia and Ho-oh. sweatdrop They are in there. I'll supply more theories when my brain's less fried. ^^;;  

[Zeek Slider]

Sui Kune

True, but in order to understand the 'Dogs, you have to understand Lugia and Ho-oh. sweatdrop They are in there. I'll supply more theories when my brain's less fried. ^^;;

True, very true. You know these myths have an odd way of being inter-related to each other.

I eager await more of your theories no matter how much time your brains to recover.  

[Seminal Contamination]

[ Message temporarily off-line ]  

[Zacius]

What I would give for a dragon pearl

My humanity, Check
My mortality, Check
My family, Double check

I would even trade up to 5 of the souls I have collected for it

Then one of you guys need to get a pheonix egg...  

[Zeek Slider]

[ Message temporarily off-line ]  

[Toko Ojin]

They are lions! 3nodding  

[Zeek Slider]

Toko Ojin

They are lions! 3nodding

What?! Suicune is modeled after a lioness?! And all this time I thought it was a wolf. crying  

[Sui Kune]

A comparison to two shishi prints I own (sorry that their photo quality sucks, it's hard to take their photos with the glass frames.)  

[Zeek Slider]

Sui Kune

A comparison to two shishi prints I own (sorry that their photo quality sucks, it's hard to take their photos with the glass frames.)

I was wondering what those shiny parts were.  

[Sui Kune]

ZeekSlider

Sui Kune

A comparison to two shishi prints I own (sorry that their photo quality sucks, it's hard to take their photos with the glass frames.)

I was wondering what those shiny parts were.

They're actually a thin, plastic-wrap-like protective cover inside the frame. The one for the second print is slipping down at an angle a bit, I need to get to it and secure it, but I'm too lazy to do it, since the backing for both prints are secured with duct tape.  

[Saiyajin-Neko]

Entei



This is the closest I could find, and I think these are the things they are roughly based off. sweatdrop