“You have more than one great-grandfather, Zuko. Sozin was your father’s grandfather, your mother’s grandfather was Avatar Roku” - Iroh
You should have four, not just two, but then you’re royalty…
If you’re wondering what I mean by Charles II of Spain.
The Seventh movement of the Dancing Dragon form. This movement uses a Bow stance with a double Spear hand. It may be worth noting that when Zuko performs the Dancing Dragon form with the Dragons he forms Sword finger hands during the transition between the sixth movement and seventh movement. The Sword finger hand is used for Lightening generation and redirection. This may indicate that Zuko is thinking about the possible applications of the form.
Boosting the signal for cool stuff :D
Roku’s Guan (head piece)
Ever wondered how Uncle could even have that guan, when Roku’s house and the whole island he lived on got destroyed by the volcano?
Remember how Sozin came to first help, then watch Roku die? See how the guan falls down and is left behind when Roku and his wife flee their home? Sozin must have looked for Roku at his house first, before finding him on the volcano.
Guan are head pieces/head dresses (usually for men) that used to denote station or rank in Imperial China.
Someone asked how Uncle managed to get it while being locked up: I am pretty sure Ming helped him out.
Zuko’s Ancestors: Remaining Portraits
-I will call them Fire Lord Left and Fire Lord Right, since they have no canon names-
Timeline:
Fire Lord Left > Fire Lord Right > Sozin > Azulon > Ozai > Zuko> Honoria
Fire Lord Left
He is blessing the world with fire, but not, if Sozin is to be believed, in Ozai’s way. Remember how Sozin claimed the Fire Nation was prosperous in/before his time, economically and culturally.
What is more interesting about that portrait are the flowers. I cannot decide if they are supposed to lotus or peonies.
As discussed many times before, lotus stands for enlightenment and that would fit well with what Sozin said. The bud of the flower could well be a lotus, but if you take a closer look at the leaves, they do not match. Lotuses have big, round, single leaves, the flower depicted does not, it’s leaves are small and branch off.
Which lead me to think it might well be a different auspicious flower: The peony.
When stylized the lotus bud and the peony bud can look rather similar, but when you compare the leaves, you will note that the ones of the peony look more similar to the ones shown on the portrait than the lotus leaves.
Now, what would it mean if said flowers were peonies:
The tree peony or mudan (牡丹) signifies the third month of the lunar calendar and symbolizes longevity, loyalty, happiness and eternal beauty.
Because of the way it sometimes grows as doubles, the peony appears to the Chinese like strings of cash coins and thus has come to symbolize prosperity and wealth.
For this reason, another name for the peony is fuguihua (富贵花) which means “flower of wealth and honor”.
Longevity, loyalty, happiness, honor and wealth. All of these do fit well with what we know from Sozin about the past.
Here comes the funny part, though. The peony also has a distinct meaning in fengshui.
(The peony is) One of the most sensual flowers with a delicious scent, the peony has long been used in feng shui as a cure for love & romance. This especially applies to a couple of pink peonies.The symbol of peony is often considered a metaphor for female beauty.
The flowers we see are in fact in couples, and pink. Which makes me wonder if the artist tried to imply that Fire Lord Left was very much in touch with his feminine side. After all, it seems to run in the family, isn’t that so, Phoenix* King Ozai…
*Phoenixes are female, dragons are male
Fire Lord Right
The interesting thing about Fire Lord Right is how he is holding both, the flames of the Fire Nation and the Sun, Moon and Stars of the Watertribes.
The hand holding the Sun, Moon and Stars, is shown in the mudra of blessing, which implies a benevolent, close relationship with at least one of the Watertribes, this, in combination with the clouds is making me wonder if this implies a marriage.
Further, Fire Lord Right is standing on clouds:
Clouds, sometimes referred to as “auspicious clouds” (xiangyun 祥云), represent the heavens and also “good luck” because the Chinese word for cloud (yun 云) is pronounced the same as yun (运) meaning “luck” or “fortune”.
Its form often resembles the auspicious shape of the lingzhi “fungus of immortality”.
The cloud is a commonly seen design and when repeated in a pattern symbolizes never-ending fortune.
Check out this blog about A:TLA Martial Arts Forms!
It’s really cool!
I will link to this again, once I cover that specific episode.
The first movement of the Dancing Dragon form. The stance used is popularly known as the “Crane stance” and it is the starting position for a number of kicks. The raised leg can be used to block or deflect low and middle height attacks.
The non Avatar picture can be found here.
Happy New Year!
-Jin
What are your resolutions for the next year?
Azulon’s Portrait
Azulon’s head is surrounded by the Buddhist “Flames of Wisdom”, and he is standing on a tortoise symbolizing longevity.
Now there are not just one, but two jokes hidden in that painting:
1. The longevity. Yes, Azulon did live quite a long life, if my math is correct he had to be at least 90, but then he threatened Ursa’s kid… The joke comes in when you think about how his life ended.
2. The second one is the euphemistic meaning tortoises have in Chinese swearing. The tortoise is associated with promiscuity. Calling someone a tortoise (龟) can mean “tortoise; cuckold; (old) male owner of a brothel; pimp (王八)” or “pimp (龟公)”, “son of a bitch (王八蛋 )”.
It all makes sense once you take his charming personality into account. Remember what he suggested Ozai do to Zuko? Also: Li and Lo?
Ozai’s portrait
Ozai’s hands are shown in a double abhaya mudra.The abhaya mudra is a
“Gesture of Fearlessness” or “Blessing”. Which, I guess, form Ozai’s point of view makes a twisted kind of sense. He is blessing the world with the progress of industrialization, and later with fire …
Ozai is standing on a lotus. The lotus flower does symbolize enlightenment in Buddhist teachings. Does that mean Ozai is supposed to be enlightened? Well, if you look closer you can see that his lotus is rooted in black flames and is covered in flames itself. If there is any enlightenment to be had it is through fire. Quite literally, if we take the finale into account.
Each Fire Lord’s portrait depicts their achievements during their reign. Sozin has the comet and his legacy (the history scroll), Ozai the cogs and furnaces of industrialization, as well as more flames than anyone else. Interesting, though, is that he is not depicted with the comet, even though it occurs during his reign and he plans to use it to conquer/destroy the world.
Image source: One
Wait a second, did you name your kid after your pet?!?
Sozin’s dragon is blue： Azure i.e. the ‘Azu’ part of Azulon’s name could mean blue. Long (龙)i.e. the “lon” part sounds like dragon “long” in Chinese. Azulon could easily be a double language pun on 'blue dragon’.
The Palace Caldera - before and after Roku’s and Sozin’s remodeling spree
