A Little Vampire History

[LV426]

Vampire History

Shrouded in the shadows of time, the exact date of the vampire legends are unknown, but there has been eveidence of stories and writings of the vampire with the Chaldeans in Mesopotamia, near the Euphrates River, Assyrian writings on clay and stone tablets and near the Tigris river.

Even in the Bible Lilith was a possible vampire. Originally she was the wife of Adam, before Eve. According to the story Lilith was demonized because she refused to obey Adam. She is described in the book of Isaiah as being a monster that roamed the night with the appearance of an owl. She would hunt, attempting to kill newborn children and pregnant women. She was considered evil and had become a vampire who then attacked the children of Adam and Eve, basically all human descendants.

The belief in undead creatures that rise from their coffins at night craving the blood of unsuspecting victims is a world wide one that goes back thousands of years. Because of the diversity of tales and stories of the vampires in so many different lands, Scholars believe that the stories originated independantly and were not passed from one culture to another. It is quite unusal for such an independant tale to occur. Ancient Greece held a tale of a vampiric creature, the lamiae or Stringoe. Lamia as mythology tells us, was a lover of Zeus, but his wife Hera became jealous and fought against Lamia. Lamia was driven insane, and she killed her own offspring. At night she became a monster that hunted human children and drank of their blood. There was even a vampiric demon Empusas in Greek mythology that was a supposed servant of Hecate.

Ancient China also held tales of monsters called kiang shi. Even legends in India and Nepal existed of a vampiric creature. Paintings on the walls of caves depict the Nepalese "Lord Of Death", holding a blood filled goblet in the form of a human skull and standing in a pool of blood. Some of these paintings date back as far as 3000 B.C. In ancient Indian holy writings, Rakshasas are depicted as vampires. There is also a creature in India's anceint lore that hangs upside down from trees, somewhat like a bat, and it is devoid of it's own blood. This creature, called Baital is a vampire in the legends. There is also the legends of Brahmaparush a creature that consumes not only blood but the brains of a victim. After the blood and brains have been consumed the creature then takes the victim's intestines and wrap them around itself and dances.

The Maylayan people believed in a type of vampire called the Penanggalen. This creature was a human head and entrails that had left the rest of the body and searched for the blood of others, especially that of children and infants.

Prior to the Spanish Conquistadors, the vampire may have lived in Mexico. There are also tales of Arabian vampires, creatures called Algul that appeared in the "Tales of the Arabian Nights". These were ghouls or vampiric demons that feasts upon dead babies, lived in cemetaries, and consumed human flesh.

Scotland has stories of a vampiric creature as well. Called Baobhan-sith this is a creature that appears in the form of a beautiful woman dressed in green. She is known to lure male victims to their deaths.

In Germany there is the belief that children who nurse again after they are weaned become child vampires or Doppelsaugers. These creatures enjoy eating the breasts of women, especially those of a relative.

Even in Africa there are legends of vampiric beings as well. A tribe, the Caffre, had a belief that the dead could return and survive on the blood of the living.

In Peru the legend of the canchus, devil worshipers who sucked the blood from the young.

There are hundreds of legends and stories from every area of the world and although the majority of them take on the human guise there are other creatures that can take on other forms such as fireflies, wolves, cats, sheep, horses, dogs, coyotes, snakes, and bats. In some cultures even inanimate objects can be vampiric such as pumpkins and watermelons. These objects are said to become vampiric when left so that they become rotten.

The journeys from a plethora of exotic places and lands have revealed tales and stories of the vampire. Perhaps this stems from the fear of death and the beliefs in the life giving properties of blood that have given birth to the creatures we now call vampires.

[FireShimara]

:eek: Whoa! That's a lot of interesting stuff you have there ^^ It gives a clear explanation. *claps* Nice one.

[COLONV]

you truly have knowledge in vampirism,good job.

[native_wolf]

^_^ Lot of Vampire info there! *claps* Good one.

[Shandrel]

Might i add, that Lillith, was also depicteded as a black cat..... leading to the idea that black cats were the servents of the devil, and also in the days of the witch trials and earlier,,,,, people woudl cut a cross into the cats skin to make sure it did not turn into a witch, however most viewed witches and vampires as the same at that time.

[LV426]

I would love to know where you get that from because there is no mention in the hebrew texts of Lilith ever being a cat. She was sometimes referred to as a screechowl and occassionally would use an owl-like form to fly into the rooms of sleeping men and children but there is not one reference to a black cat or any cat.

[COLONV]

Are she a succubus?

[Ves]

Are she a succubus?
No she isn't.. technically.
In case you didn't know, Lilith was the first wife of Adam, who was cast out of the Garden of Eden long before Eve got a craving for apples.

[LV426]

Actually Ves she does have a succubus like quality in that she is said to attack men in their dreams, draining them of sexual energy if they are not sleeping beside a woman. It was said that the phenomenon of a wet dream was caused by a visit from Lilith.

She also would kill children as well, apparently only male children, unless they bore the mark of the angels. This became the symbolism behind the circumcision. The mark that the male child wore (the circumcision) protected him from Lilith but up until he recieved his circumcision he was helpless and she could take his life at any time. This was a retribution for all of her children becoming monsters and revenge upon Eve for replacing her as Adam's wife.

[COLONV]

Then she is a type of succubus,not like the other succubus but she can be count like one of them.

[Ves]

Actually Ves she does have a succubus like quality in that she is said to attack men in their dreams, draining them of sexual energy if they are not sleeping beside a woman. It was said that the phenomenon of a wet dream was caused by a visit from Lilith.
Oh balls! I sit corrected it appears.

What was it about her children being the monsters of the dark oceans?

Apologies for drifting further off topic.

[COLONV]

Can a vampire and a succubus interbreed or it is not possible to do? :confused: :confused:

[van helsing]

dopple guangers are duisguisting

[Arctos]

Ancient Greece held a tale of a vampiric creature, the lamiae or Stringoe. Lamia as mythology tells us, was a lover of Zeus, but his wife Hera became jealous and fought against Lamia. Lamia was driven insane, and she killed her own offspring. At night she became a monster that hunted human children and drank of their blood.

Wasn't Lamia the Greek name for energy draining demons or psi vamps? :confused: And did Hera ever do anything but make Zeus' mistresses suffer? You'd think constantly tormenting mortal women would be emotionally taxing after a few centuries, no?

[Buddha Monkey]

Some place's in Europe believed that the soul's of the Vampire were all the left the grave to feed, hence the iron nails in the coffin.

And did Hera ever do anything but make Zeus' mistresses suffer? You'd think constantly tormenting mortal women would be emotionally taxing after a few centuries, no?
She had her own lovers, but that is a conversation for another thread:) !

[Adekit]

Thats strange that Ive never heard of Lilith before. In fact no one had ever mentioned her in any church I have been in.This isnt stated in the bible is it but in hebrew texts you had mentioned? If that is true I dont see why they wouldnt mention it. Maybe they have and I should pull out my bible. I guess I shouldnt be so shocked about Lilith because I am not as knowledgable as I should be of the bible or any stories of religion. Ill shut up now :P

[Adekit]

Oh and Id like to ask if you know about a story of vampires serving werewolves as in the vampires would come to the peasant's home and entice them to go outside where the waiting werewolf or werewolves would then feed on the peasants and the prize for the vampires would be the blood. I cant remember for the life of me where I heard that but I was just wondering if you or anyone else has ever heard that?

[Louve]

Also she could be considered a Morava. :)

[Redwolf_Claw]

She also would kill children as well, apparently only male children, unless they bore the mark of the angels. This became the symbolism behind the circumcision. The mark that the male child wore (the circumcision) protected him from Lilith but up until he recieved his circumcision he was helpless and she could take his life at any time. This was a retribution for all of her children becoming monsters and revenge upon Eve for replacing her as Adam's wife.
Maybe that is how they explained SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) back then. They thought that Lilith killed them, and by the time they got circumcised they were less likely to die from SIDS.

[DarkHunter]

I wish I had a succubus.


Anyway, a great source of reference for vampires is The Vampire Encyclopedia by Matthew Bunson. It has over 2000 entries pertaining to stories, books, movies, and legends. Tons of legends.

[Habakkuk]

People were circumcised when they were seven days old, not much of a difference in time.

[LV426]

People were circumcised when they were seven days old, not much of a difference in time. And isn't it funny how most legends, and myths, and anthrpology ideas all trace to the Middle East (i.e 'ISRAEL')?

I hardly call one legends to be most and vampires myths are global legends, meaning they span the globe and approximately the same time period and on.

[McKitty]

On topic of Lilith: She's a myth in the Jewish tradition and the Christians will mostly deny her because 'God could not have made such a devil-like woman' or at least that's what the Pastor at the local church states. My Rabbi, on the other hand, use her as a warning against pre-marital sex and the 'dieases' that can drain you. Don't ask, I don't understand him either.

[Habakkuk]

I've never heard of her, it would be interesting to hear.

[Buddha Monkey]

I've never heard of her, it would be interesting to hear. That is man made Google


Speculation is that perhaps there was a connection between Lilith and the Etruscan divinity Lenith, who possessed no face and waited at the gate of the underworld along with Eita and Persipnei (Hecate (http://www.pantheon.org/articles/h/hecate.html) and Persephone (http://www.pantheon.org/articles/p/persephone.html)) to receive the souls of the dead. The underworld gate was a yoni, and also a lily, which had "no face." Admission into the underworld was frequently mythologized as a sexual union. (see Tantrism) The lily or lilu (lotus) was the Great Mother's flower-yoni, whose title formed Lilith's name.

Even though the story of Lilith disappeared from the canonical Bible, her daughters the lilim haunted men for over a thousand years. It was well into that Middle Ages that Jews still manufactured amulets to keep away the lilim. Supposedly they were lusty she-demons who copulated with men in all their dreams, causing nocturnal emissions.

The Greeks adopted the belief of the lilim, calling them Lamiae, Empusae (Forcers-In), or Daughters of Hecate. Likewise the Christians adopted the belief, calling them harlots of hell, or succubi (http://www.pantheon.org/articles/s/succubus.html), the counterpart of the incubi (http://www.pantheon.org/articles/i/incubus.html). Celebrant monks attempted to fend them off by sleeping with their hands over their genitals, clutching a crucifix.

Even though most of the Lilith legend is derived from Jewish folklore, descriptions of the Lilith demon appear in Iranian, Babylonian, Mexican, Greek, Arab, English, German, Oriental and Native American legends. Also, she sometimes has been associated with legendary and mythological characters such as the Queen of Sheba and Helen of Troy. In medieval Europe she was proclaimed to be the wife, concubine or grandmother of Satan.

Men who experienced nocturnal emissions during their sleep believed they had been seduced by Lilith and said certain incantations to prevent the offspring from becoming demons. It was thought each time a pious Christian had a wet dream, Lilith laughed. It was believed that Lilith was assisted in her bloodthirsty nocturnal quests by succubi, who gathered with her near the "mountains of darkness" to frolic with her demon lover Samael, whole name means "poison of God" (sam-el). The Zohar, the principal work of the Kabbalah, describes Lilith's powers at their height during the waning of the moon.

According to legend Lilith's attraction for children comes from the belief that God took her demon children from her when she did not return to Adam. It was believed that she launched a reign of terror against women in childbirth and newborn infants, especially boys. However, it also was believed that the three angels who were sent to fetch her by the Red Sea forced her to swear that whenever she saw their names or images on amulets that she would leave the infants and mothers alone.

These beliefs continued for centuries. As late as the 18th century, it was a common practice in many cultures to protect new mothers and their infants with amulets against Lilith. Males were most vulnerable during the first week of life, girls during the first three weeks. Sometimes a magic circle was drawn around the lying-in-bed, with a charm inscribed with the names of the three angels, Adam and Eve and the words "barring Lilith" or "protect this newborn child from all harm." Frequently amulets were place in the four corners and throughout the bedchamber. If a child laughed while sleeping, it was taken as a sign that Lilith was present. Tapping the child on the nose, it was believed, made her go away.

[Habakkuk]

Interesting.

[DNSimmons]

There are all sorts of vampire legends...I think Bram Stoker's version is simply the most alluring.

What I did find interesting, is after I purchased the special edition of the "Lost Boys" dvd and watched the special feature. I learned so much more on the different legends, such as the one about the female who's head and torso detach from the body to drain the blood of men and women during the night. It was said the only way to survive an attach was to find a thorn bush, therefore, causing the entrails to become tangled in the bush. Pretty disgusting if I may say so myself.

[Phantomviper]

There are all sorts of vampire legends...I think Bram Stoker's version is simply the most alluring.

What I did find interesting, is after I purchased the special edition of the "Lost Boys" dvd and watched the special feature. I learned so much more on the different legends, such as the one about the female who's head and torso detach from the body to drain the blood of men and women during the night. It was said the only way to survive an attach was to find a thorn bush, therefore, causing the entrails to become tangled in the bush. Pretty disgusting if I may say so myself.


Most peaple who were accused of being a vampire years ago were dead the people would dig up the graves and cut out the heart and put it on a fire they thought this cause people had come up with strange markings on there neck also the dead body's were bloated it's a good legend

[McKitty]

Most peaple who were accused of being a vampire years ago were dead the people would dig up the graves and cut out the heart and put it on a fire they thought this cause people had come up with strange markings on there neck also the dead body's were bloated it's a good legend

Not even that. Sometimes the bodies wouldn't decay as quickly as the other 'normal' bodies. The reasns for this were from temperature to if the deceased had certain chemicals in their bodies from drugs/food/poision/ect. If you opened a grave and expected to see a rotting corpse but instead saw a corpse looking much like it did when it went into the grave ...you'd think 'Vampire' too in those times.

[prystmarkel]

i have read and heard some of what has been said and feel as tho many people are falling for the great myth of the vampire history, this story was placed to enable that the great demons of the moon and the angels of wisdom created this, if you look at most of the artwork that was made of the lilith, u would see that it is mostly beast than man where-as vampire are more humain, please LV426 pm me so that we can exchange the knowledge we know

[sericthekiller]

i think all of that is fake your making that up or did you get it from a ancient diary i found a diary in a musueum on the bathroom floor and there was vampire old pic of vampires eating human penises