The Unsorted BBS Collection/thegreatunsorted.tar/thegreatunsorted/texts/txtfiles_misc/vamp05.faq

Text File | 1995-03-26 | 22KB | 418 lines

The Vampire in Different Cultures


Here is a table of the more common species of vampire believed to have
infested Europe in the 18th century.  This was taken from a book by a
Rumanian author who's main hypothesis was that the prevalence and
persistence of the vampire myth in central and southern Europe was due
to conflict between the Catholic and Orthodox churches.  The book also
contains long sections on the historical Dracula and Countess
Elizabeth Bathory.  A completed bibliographical reference is given
after the table.

* Better known species of vampires believed to have infested Europe *
                  * in the Eighteenth Century *
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Name of          Country     How it becomes       Approved method
species                        a vampire            of disposal
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Sampiro          Albania     Natural causes       Stake through heart

Nachtzehrer      Bavaria     Being born with      Coin in mouth, cutting
                             a second skin         off head with an axe

Ogoljen  }       Bohemia                          Burial at crossroads
Mura     }

Krvoijac }       Bulgaria                         Chain it to the
Vepir    }                                         grave with wild roses

Pijavica         Croatia     Incest with mother   Cutting off head and
                                                   putting it between
                                                   legs

Vilkodlak        Czech Lands

Kuzlak           Dalmatia    Weaning before time  Transfixing with a
                                                   hawthorne bough

Kathakano        Crete                            Boiling head in
                                                   vinegar

Brukulaco }      Greece                           Cutting off and
Vrylolako }                                        burning head

Liderc nadaly }  Hungary                          Stake through heart;
Vampir        }                                    nail through
                                                   temples

Vampiro          Italy

Dearg-dul        Ireland                          Piling stones on
                                                   its grave

Vryolakas        Macedonia   Natural causes       Pouring boiling oil
                                                   on it;  driving
                                                   nail in its navel

Upier and        Poland      When born with       Bury face downwards
Upierzyca                     teeth

Gierach (Stryz)  Prussia                          Putting poppy seeds
                                                   in grave

Myertovets }                 Son of were-wolf     Transfixing it with
Vurdalak   }     Russia        or witch            a stake through
Upierzhy   }                   Witchcraft          chest, driving
                                                   stake through
                                                   heart; to be hit
                                                   only once,
                                                   otherwise revives

(a) Strigoiul }  Rumania     Born out of wedlock  (a) Taking out its
(b) Muronul   }                to parents          heart and cutting
                               begotten out of     it in two; garlic
                               wedlock             in mouth, nail in
                                                   head
                                                  (b) Nail through
                                                   forehead or stake
                                                   through heart

Vukodlak         Slovenia

Vlkoslak }                   Incest or killed by  Cutting off its
Mulo     }       Serbia       a were-wolf; being   toes; driving nail
Dhampir  }                    stillborn            in its neck

Neuntoter        Saxony                           Lemon in its mouth

Vampiro          Spain                            No known remedy

Vampyr           Sweden

Bruxsa           Portugal    Witchcraft           No known remedy
---------------------------------------------------------------------

* Ronay, Gabriel, _The Truth About Dracula_, (c) 1972 by Gabriel
  Ronay as _The Dracula Myth_, Stein and Day/Publishers/Scarborough
  House, 1974, Briarcliff Manor, New York 10510, pp. 22-23.

                              Dragon
                              'The blood is the life'

                     EDITOR'S    NOTE

     The following two accounts are fairly representative of the
     tales of vampirism that were current in Europe in the 17th
     and 18th century.  They illustrate some of the features of
     the European vampire, as he existed in folklore as opposed
                       to fiction, quite well.
                               Dragon


An old man died and they buried him. But a day later a healthy
youngster died, than again a young innkeeper, and so each day another
person died in the village.  The peasant could not get over this and
went to the priest and told him that someone was eating the people in
the village, and that it was certainly the old peasant who had died
first.  They must dig him up and render three others to the widow of
the vampire and said, 'Come along little mother, because we're going
off to dig up the old man.'

They took a large piece of cloth from her and went with her to the
churchyard.  They dug up the grave and behold! the vampire sat there,
supported on his hands, with a blood-red face, for he had already
sucked out a great deal of blood from the people.  When the wife saw
that, she spat out and said, 'You are to disappear; don't get up again
and don't move!' They they grabbed him out of the grave, cut him into
pieces and tied him in the cloth.  Then they threw him onto a thorn
bush, set this on fire, and burned the vampire.  Hereupon a strong
wind arose and blew after them, howling, all the way to the village.

         South Russian folk tale
       contributed by Jim Wilderotter



From: as yet undetermined ([e-mail])

I am presently reading a book entitled _The History of Magic_ by
Joseph Ennemoser (1787-1854), and I found something in one of the
appendices which I thought may interest all of you.

ACCOUNT OF A VAMPIRE, TAKEN FROM THE JEWISH LETTERS (LETTRES JUIVES),
LETTER 137

We have just had in this part of Hungary a scene of vampirism, which
is duly attested by two officers of the tribunal of Belgrade, who went
down to the places specified, and by an officer of the emperor's
troops at Graditz, who was an ocular witness of the proceedings.

In the beginning of September there died in the village of Kisilova,
three leagues from Graditz, an old man who was sixty-two years of age.
Three days after he had been buried he appeared in the night to his
son, and asked him for something to eat; the son having given him
something, he ate and disappeared.  The next day the son recounted to
his neighbours what had happened.  That night the father did not
appear, but the following night he showed himself, and asked for
something to eat.  They know not whether the son gave him anything or
not, but the next day he was found dead in his bed.  On the same day
five or six persons fell suddenly ill in the village, and died one
after the other in a few days.

The officer or bailiff of the place, when informed of what had
happened, sent an account of it to the tribunal of Belgrade, which
despatched to the village two of these officers and an executioner to
examine into this affair.  The imperial officer from whom we have this
account repaired thither from Graditz, to be witness of a circumstance
which he had so often heard spoken of.

They opened the graves of those who had been dead six weeks.  When
they came to that of the old man, they found him with his eyes open,
having a fine colour, with natural respiration, nevertheless
motionless as the dead; whence they concluded that he was most
evidently a vampire.  The executioner drove a stake into his heart;
they then raised a pile and reduced the corpse to ashes.  No mark of
vampirism was found either on the corpse of the son, or on the others.

Thanks be to God, we are by no means credulous.  We avow that all the
light which science can throw on this fact discovers none of the
causes of it.  Nevertheless, we cannot refuse to believe that to be
true which is juridically attested, and by persons of probity.  We
will here relate what happened in 1732, and which is inserted in the
Glaneur, No. XVIII.

The material below on Asian Vampires is from the Pacesetter Chill Game
Vampires Supplement.  It is copyright Pacesetter/Mayfair Games (they
bought the rights after Pacesetter went out of business).  Chill is a
horror role playing game.

(Authors are Gali Sanchez and Michael Williams)

Although this is gaming reference material, I have found all of the
Chill materials to be very well researched.  Read/use at your own
risk...

== JAPAN:  The Vampire Ninja ==

The vampire ninja is described as a 'horrible rotting body that beyond
nature and belief, seems to move with the grace and quickness of a
dancer'.

The creature attacks with the style and force of the deadliest
assassins.  Once its victim dies, the creature breaks the corpse in
half with its bare hands, then gulps down the blood pouring from the
torn cadaver.

The material goes on to say: This vampire assassin is not unknown to
Japanese folklore.  Long before the arrival of Europeans in Japan, the
creature was known as 'Death Ninja', the hero of the feudal ninja
assassins because he was as indestructible as he was deadly.  Stories
are still passed down about the Death Ninja's calmly pulling arrows
out of his body, about his treating critical wounds as though they
were mere scratches.  Legends mention his great age: it seems that the
Death Ninja had lived for hundreds of years - that is, something
within the creature remained alive, for the flesh on that body was
dying slowly. The ugliness of rotting flesh simply made the creature
all the more fearsome.

He is in such an advanced state of decay that his eyelids have rotted
away, leaving a horrifying death stare.  Cheekbones and fingers (about
the only thing showing in a traditional ninja costume) show exposed
bone among the shreds of flesh.

The Death Ninja seems not to have the shape shifting (or other) powers
of the 'traditional' vampire.  All accounts emphasize that his sole
from of attack has been physical assault.  The vampire's strength,
general agility, and stamina are unearthly, and he possesses
formidable weapons skills.

How to drive off such a fearsome creature? Japanese tradition suggests
the following:


* A bowl of uncooked rice will keep a vampire out of a room.
* The crowing of a rooster will scare away a vampire.
* A raw fish will keep a vampire out of a room.
* An open bottle or glass of saki will keep a vampire out of a room
  (some say the saki must be the sweet Mi-Run saki).
* A vampire will not cross a line of salt.
* Three lies told to a vampire will confuse the creature and allow the
  victim time to escape.


The portion for the person running the game provides additional
information:


* The Death Ninja casts no reflection and cannot be photographed.
* Exposure to sunlight causes immediate destruction.
* The vampire must rest each day by 'meditating' in a reclined
  position in any underground area completely devoid of sunlight.  He
  must be at rest to be destroyed.
* To destroy him, he must first have a stake driven through his heart
  while he is at rest; then the head must be cut off and the mouth
  stuffed with uncooked rice.  Both conditions must be fulfilled or
  the creature will return.



(They lied about the three lies, and the raw fish method of driving
him off is a red herring) (*)

Tomorrow - The Oriental Vampire (Chinese)

E. Bathory and a cast of thousands

Date:     8-OCT-93 10:32a
From:    IN%'[e-mail]'  'Richard H. Moore'
RE:      Vampyres of the World, part LXXIII

Pay no attention to the number in the title.  I don't have parts I
through LXXII.  However there used to be a 'series' of posts regarding
vampyres and vampyre legends in other cultures and I'd like to add one
which I recently came across.  I had the opportunity to visit the
Caribbean nation of Dominica this summer (Note: this is NOT the
Dominican Republic as the folk there are quick to point out).  Its
about 2/3rd the way down the Lesser Antilles between Martinique and
Guadalupe.  While English is the principal language the island was
variously 'owned' by the Spanish, French and English during colonial
times and most of the people speak patois or Kweyol (Creole) a
language derived from French, Spanish as English with lots of
influence from the native African dialects of the people.

On Dominica there exists a creature known as the SOUCOYAN.  The
'official' explanation of this creature's origin is that it is 'a
curious combination of West African spiritualism and 18th Century
Catholicism.  The people however know that the Soucoyan appears as an
old woman who sheds her skin at night (they know this because they
sometimes find the skins, which are very valuable in the practice of
Obeah magic.  The skinless phantom flies through the air, usually
appearing as a ball of fire and sucks the blood from her victims.  The
victims may die if too much blood is taken and it is possible for
their drained bodies to become Soucoyan ( Its not clear to me whether
the victim becomes a new Soucoyan or whether an existing Soucoyan
possesses the dead victim's skin.  Its also not clear how male victims
become Soucoyans since Soucoyans always appear as old women).  The
Soucoyan must return to her skin by morning, hence possession of the
skin by an Obeah (if they dare) gives control over the Soucoyan.

We'll be returning to Dominica over Christmas, as well as visiting
Grenada (Lestat's 'Isle of Spices') so I should have more
opportunities to resolve my questions about the Soucoyan.  Stay tuned,
same bat-time, same bat-station...

Ogcocephalus

Date:    Wed, 05 Jan 1994 10:40:00 -0500 (EST)
From:    'Richard H. Moore'([e-mail])
Subject: Vampires of the World (continued)</DL>

Well, your humble batfish has just returned from Grenada, the 'Isle of
Spice,' where in addition to consorting with some of his underwater
cousins he picked up a few more tidbits on the local supernatural
fauna.

Grenada, like most other Caribbean islands is a mixture of peoples
whose forefathers came from many lands.  Each brought with them their
beliefs in the supernatural and these have been handed down through
the generationswith alterations and substantial borrowing from one
another.

One good example  is the ligaroo.  The name is derived from French,
loup garoux or werewolf but has little resemblance to this creature.
This being has a normal human form by day but at night, especially
around the time of the full moon, he sheds his skin, turns into a ball
of fire and goes in search of victims whose blood he sucks.  This
aspect of the creature is derived from African beliefs and is almost
identical to the Soucoyan from Dominica, except that the Soucoyan is a
woman while the ligaroo is male.  Cecily also brought to my attention
the 'Haint' or Hag a supernatural creature identical to the Soucoyan
found in the Gullah traditions of the South Carolina Lowcountry.  But
the ligaroo can take other forms and a particular favorite is the bat,
which feeds from the jugular of its victims, evidence of further
European (or possibly Hollywood) influence.  Ligaroos are identified
by the eyes, which even in the daytime are red and bulging, however
the best identification is to find the shed skin and sprinkle it with
salt.  When the ligaroo returns and puts it back on he will have an
uncontrollable itch all over his body.  It is important that a ligaroo
never learn your real name.  Children are protected by having a 'home'
name which is used instead of the name with which the child was
baptized. Some people use their home names throughout life.  This
protects them from spirits, but can cause legal complications.

Another entity is the lajabless (French la diablesse or she-devil).
The lajabless looks like a beautiful woman, but always wear a long
skirt to hide her cloven hoof (just one, the other foot is of normal
human appearance).  She also wears a large floppy hat to hide her
head, which is actually a skull.  She victimizes men by luring them to
the edge of a precipice.  She then lifts her hat which either makes
him jump off the cliff from fright or drives him insane.  By day the
lajabless lives in the buttresses of the silk cotton (la Cieba) tree.
This tree also features prominently in other legends.  The Mayans
believed that the first man was born from the Cieba tree.

The Grenadian information is derived from 'Grenadian Superstitions and
Scary Stories' by Norma Sinclair.

Ogcocephalus (aka Richard)

From:   IN%'[e-mail]'  'The Lady in Black'  3-FEB-1994 10:35:00.80
Subj:   Celtic Vampyres


Fiends,

Someone asked about Celtic vampyres...I thought I'd add to the
discussion despite a lack of free time (no matter what Magnus says
*grin*).  The closest thing to an honest-to-Goddess vampyre I've
encountered in Celtic mythology is that of the Dearg-due, or the 'Red
Blood Sucker.'  Legend has it that a famous female Dearg-due is buried
near Strongbow's Tree in Waterford.  She purportedly arises once a
year from her grave to seduce men into her embrace and drains them dry
of blood.  I do believe she's a distant relative...  The way to
prevent the undead from arising, according to Irish legend, is to pile
stones on the grave.  The Irish also believe that the dead can rise
again on the New Year -- I'm unsure as to whether it's the Eve or the
Day.  I can check on this if anyone is truly interested.

Arguably, the Leanhaun (YSMV -- Your Spelling May Vary) Sidhe could be
considered a vampyre of the psychic sort.  She's the Gaelic Muse who
drains her victims after inspiring them to great height.  The Leanhaun
Sidhe, however, is one of the faerie folk rather than undead (although
I suppose it depends on your definition of that term).

The Lady in Black,
 indulging in gaelic musing on this morn...

{[e-mail]}

From:   IN%'[e-mail]'  'The Lady off-list (by way of
        [e-mail] Athan Chilton)'  4-FEB-1994 10:26:17.11
Subj:   RE: Celtic Vampyres

' When you say that they rise on the New Year, do you mean Nov. 1 -
 day after Samhain? That's the old Celtic New Year, isn't it? Jan. 1
 would have no meaning, seems to me...'

I had to go back and check my notes on this one *grin*  The book where
I originally got this information out of, _The Leprechaun's Kingdom_
(I don't have the author handy), states that *currently* some of the
Irish still believe that the newly buried will rise on New Year's...so
I'm assuming that it means Jan. 1st.

However, I'd hazard to guess that the tradition comes from Celtic
times, when the New Year was Nov. 1st.  It makes much more sense to
have this legend associated with Samhain, doesn't it?

'Guess I should've sent this to the list, but I didn't. O well!</DL>

Maybe I should have, too...  If you think it's worthwhile, feel free
to forward this.  Or drop me a note and I will.

The Lady in Black,
 who's curiousity is now aroused...

{[e-mail]}