This gate is on the main road and marks the entrance to Hem Dinh Binh Khanh (the Lane of Binh Khanh temple) which I pass through every day as I come and go. The reason this is my Halloween offering is for the bats that are featured each side of the main archway. They must have some spiritual or cultural significance for this particular temple.
It may be that bats are more common in this little neighbourhood than elsewhere. One of the joys of living chez Jo is that, during the early evening hours, bats frequently zoom through the french doors that open onto the garden, and fly through the length of the lounge and kitchen and back out again, inspecting the interior of some of the light fittings as they go. They might be looking for new roosts I guess. I just love it!!!
The roundels of red calligraphy might be a hangover from Chinese roundels which have been adapted and now contain words, or parts of words in the western alphabet, The three I have detailed appear to read 'Binh Kh Ahn' .. with Og from the start of some other word perhaps.
The dragons are pretty standard features on gates of this type, along with lions dogs and other mythical creatures. I have even seen a builders yard where you can buy them. Dragons seem so cheerful and these ones are highly glazed and twinkle in the afternoon sun.
In Eastern Asia dragons are usually portrayed as long, scaley, serpentine creatures with four legs like a lizard or crocodile... just like the two on the gate. In Yin and Yang terminology, the dragon is Yang to the Phoenix Yin.
The dragon symbolises potency and auspicious powers such as control over water, rainfall, hurricane and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength and good fortune.
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