Long Wang (龍王) aka Dragon King of the Sea. In the Chinese Deity System, they do hold a very important task.
So who are they??
In myths, there are Four main Dragon Kings (四大龍王), which each of them is being appointed to look after one directional sea, here they are:
Dragon King of East Directional Sea: Ao Guang (東海龍王敖廣)
Dragon King of South Directional Sea: Ao Run (南海龍王敖潤)
Dragon King of West Directional Sea: Ao Qin (西海龍王敖欽)
Dragon King of North Directional Sea: Ao Shun (北海龍王敖順)
In different contexts, they will have different names.
So what is their Primary Task??
According to Taoist records and scriptures-explanation, the Dragon Kings are being appointed as the Deities in-charge of Rain-pour (行雲佈雨) and sometimes, flooding (造洪遣水).
Upon receiving orders from the Heaven, the Dragon Kings will have to perform the task themselves or sometime, they will get their subordinates to act accordingly on the orders.
It is possible for Dragon Kings not to accept Orders from Heaven??
It is possible, but of cos, actions will be taken accordingly if they have caused un-necessary issues.
In the Ancient Era, there was a Chinese Religious record/myth on Dragon King who didn't follow the order and after the incident was being reported to the Heaven, the Dragon King was being beheaded.
So how many Dragon Kings are there in total??
According to Taoist records and scripture-explanation, there are total of 54 Dragon Kings 五十四海龍王 (including the Four main one 包括四海龍王) and 62 Dragon Deities 六十二水龍神 (each of them are being appointed with different tasks and areas to look after) – in the 62 Dragon Deities, Five of them are those we addressed as Wu Fang Wu Tu Long Shen (包括五方五土龍神), which is the Underground Dragon Deities.
In other contexts, in this whole Universe, there are a total of 84,000 Dragon Kings (八萬四千龍王與龍神) and Deities exist.
So when is the birthday or Anniversary of the Dragon Kings?
According to Taoist records and scripture-explanation, every year, on the 3rd Day of Lunar 10 Month (農曆十月初三日), all the Four main Dragon Kings will gather together, and people addressed this day as Long Ju Ri (龍聚日).
And according to the Taoist records and scripture-explanation, every year, on the 3rd Day of Lunar 2 Month (農曆二月初三日), all the Dragon Kings and Deities will have to report to Jade Emperor for an Annual Reporting in the Celestial Palace (龍神朝天日).
For High Res Pictures, please proceed to this link: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/taoism_deity_singapore_2007/photos/album/136134719/pic/list
