This drawing is one of my first digital drawings (Wacom Cintiq 16, Clip Studio Paint) and the very first one I colored (Adobe Photoshop). The characters in the picture are a Chinese/Tibetan style dragon and a magpie.
Rarely, but indeed, the anthropomorphic dragon occurs in Tibet (e.g., Mi Ngon Druggi Gochen is the Guardian of the South in the Bön religion) and China (the Chinese equivalent of the Buddhist Naga Kings are the Dragon Kings). My version is a celestial hermit, a bald monk sitting on a cloud (and a Vajra) holding a huge gem/pearl in his hands.
I have tried to use only a few but meaningful elements/symbols. Vajra (Dorje in Tibet) is a thunderbolt, while the Tibetan name for dragon (‘brug) has another meaning: (sound of) thunder. According to traditional depictions, the dragon floats between/in the clouds, holding a brilliant pearl between its claws (in at least one paw) - which is often the source of lightning. There is also a pearl in the middle of the Vajra (as a symbol of Emptiness) – in this representation, the two pearls are the same.
The magpie came into the picture completely spontaneously. The magpie in China is omen of good fortune, harbinger of joy. It is known in Europe as a naughty thief of shining, glittering objects. Well, according to an old Chinese theory, the power of the dragon lies in the pearl held between its claws.
