Papaver is the Latin name for poppy. What if the name means 'father's worm'? Papa, father + ver! worm... I really don't know anything about this. Here I just write down my day-dreams.
What if the opium poppy was called 'father's worm' or maybe 'mother's worm' long ago? What if the dragon (also called worm) represents the ill effects of opium. That gives you Saint Margaret as a shamanic healer using opium. And that would also give you a new interpretation of Saint George and the dragon.
Saint George is linked to Jarilo, Slavic God of wine, similar to Dionysius. What if the picture of St. George and the dragon is a picture of alcohol defeating opium? Hmm... I keep wondering why Saint Margaret does get angry when George kills her pet reptile. Silly me.
But in the Slavic mythology, I think Jarilo is the son of Mokosh. Suppose Margaret is a Christian version of Mokosh. Then you have her son killing the animal she rode to get around to the three worlds.
I am no expert on dragons. I just wondered why the dragon needs wings. So, the dragon has 3 ways to travel: slithering, walking, and flying. My guess is that it's for visiting the underworld, the land of the living, and the heavens.
I would appreciate comments on this mess of ideas. If you have something useful to add about dragons, please leave a comment.
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