Vampirism: Occult Syncretic Religions

Syncretic belief systems are religions that have combined two or more different cultural and spiritual beliefs into a new faith. Santeria, Voodoo, Hoodoo, Palo Mayombe, Candomble, and Shango are some of the syncretic Afro-Caribbean religions. Brujeria, a form of witchcraft, has distinctly Mexican cultural and religious roots.

Vampirism

Dear Paranormal Searcher Reader/Investigator.  This article addresses to the followers of Vampirism as a religion, enjoy!

Vampirism, like other religions, consists of people who have committed themselves to an ideology, maintain ethical tenets within a hierarchical system, and participate in rituals specific to their clans. Practitioners of Vampirism, referred to as Vampires, are part of an extensive subculture.
Currently, there is a prevailing phenomenon of Modern Vampires whose serious commitment to their beliefs, community, and culture meet the criteria to be designated a contemporary new religious movement. Since there is no agreed-upon definition of what constitutes a Vampire, the Modern Vampire is an amalgamation of characteristics derived from a variety of historical and cross-cultural archetypes. The subculture, like the Vampire, evolved from a combination of folktales, cultural myths, legends, and eventually the romanticized images found in Hollywood films and popular novels. There are many facets to Vampire culture, and members range from dabblers such as participants in role-playing games to the extremely devoted, who are referred to as "Real Vampires" within the Vampire community.



Websites that link to all facets of Vampire culture include: Vampire Junction (http://www.afn.org/~vampires/), Vampires Among Us (http://www.vampiresamongus.com/) and Sanguinarius.org for Real Vampires, Blood Drinkers and Vampiric People (http://www.sanguinarius.org/).

Vampire belief systems are dependent upon the person’s or group’s interpretation of a Vampire and may be manifested simply as an aesthetic choice or as an entire lifestyle based on a sophisticated Vampire philosophy. Vampirism is specific to Real Vampires, and is practiced in Western society both individually and communally through many different organized Vampire groups, variously referred to as Clans, Churches, Covens, Orders, Houses, and Circles. There are many subgroups of the main clans and a significant number of individual unrelated less well-known groups. As with other new religious movements, it is difficult to establish an accurate number of followers; estimates range from 1000 to 100,000 self-identified Vampires throughout the world. For an idea of how widespread Vampire culture is, the Sanguinarius web site hosts a list of State & Regional e-Groups for Real Vampires (http://www.sanguinarius.org/e-groups-USA.shtml).
Commonalties among the major Vampire groups include: hierarchical structures, opposition to Christian tenets, occult magical ideologies, dark symbolism and aesthetics, blood rituals, strict codes of conduct, and advocating the acquisition of personal and political power. Similar to other organized religions, beliefs vary among different sects according to church leaders. Rivalry among the various groups is common, with each professing spiritual superiority over the others and claiming that they are practicing the one true faith. Similar to other new religious movements, many Vampire organizations and churches have asserted that they continually experience various forms of persecution by the media, film perceptions of Vampires, and actual physical threats. The problem is exemplified by The Real Vampire Coalition’s web site entitled "Stop Vampire Hate" (http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Hollow/6416/stop.htm).
An essential attribute specific to practitioners of Vampirism is the inherent ability to acquire strength and energy from either empathic capability, imbibing blood, or drawing from the psychic energy of others. The latter is referred to as Psychic Vampirism, commonly referred to as "Psi" in the Vampire community. Psychic Vampirism has its origins in ancient folktales that identified Vampires as evil gods or demons and in medieval legends as incubus/succubus entities.
In the nineteenth century when science started studying the paranormal through psychical research, the Psychic Vampire was viewed as a ghost-like figure, as opposed to the contemporary conception of a Vampire acquiring immortality as a resuscitated body. There are two primary forms of Psychic Vampirism. One maintains the existence of the astral body, a second invisible body that can separate from the physical body, usually at the moment of death. Astral Vampirism is the ability to send your astral body to attack others. The second, more common form of Psychic Vampirism is sometimes termed Magnetic Vampirism and refers to the ability to drain the life force of another person simply by being in their presence. Most contemporary Vampire religious philosophies involve either one or both forms of Psychic Vampirism. The ability to acquire energy from others, called "feeding" in the Vampire community, is considered intrinsic to Vampire predatory nature. There is a dispute among Vampire Churches whether it is ethical to feed off of the blood or psyche of unwilling donors. Since the acquisition of human life force is the fundamental core of all Vampiric teachings, distinctive methods of assimilating life energy are what distinguish the individual rituals, fundamental principles, and philosophy of each Vampire church. For a complete description of Psychic Vampirism from the perspective of a Vampire, the following article provides interesting insights: (http://www.vampiresamongus.com/psyvamps.html).
The practice that is most readily identified with Vampirism is blood drinking and bloodletting. A group of members who imbibe blood are referred to as a "feeding circle" and, as opposed to media depictions, rarely bite each other on the neck but usually use razor blades to make cuts into each other’s bodies and suck the blood from those cuts. It is important to clarify that not all Vampires engage in this practice. Each church has an official position concerning blood drinking/letting, ranging from a neutral view of simply recognizing that it exists without encouraging it to considering it the highest sacred act of Vampire worship. All churches post disclaimers concerning the high risk of contracting blood-borne diseases and emphasize that these practices should only occur between consenting adults who have had blood testing and are aware of each other’s status. Even with official disclaimers, blood drinking/letting is sanctioned, extremely prevalent in the Vampire community, and often engaged in publicly at nightclubs, private havens, and churches.
For Modern Vampires, the use of blood is what separates the dabblers from the Real vampires. In Vampire culture the use of blood is commonly referred to as blood sports, blood play, blood lust, and blood fetishism; it is an expression of sexual, spiritual, recreational, or artistic activities that involve cutting and drinking blood. Blood rituals in the form of sacred acts of worship are fundamental to real Vampire religious beliefs.
Blood sports in the form of recreational and/or sexual activities are one of the most dangerous aspects of Vampire culture and are noticeably increasing in popularity. This activity is so popular that there are several websites specifically dedicated to what are called "donors," defined by Vampires as those who give a little of themselves to calm another person’s cravings. Donors can be psi (feed on psychic energy) or blood donors and feed on actual blood. Some of the web sites where people can meet and exchange blood are Blood Letters Donor Community Board (http://disc.server.com/Indices/107353.html), Drink deeply and dream.com (http://www.drinkdeeplyanddream.com/realvampire/donor.html), and Society of the Black Swan (http://www.angelfire.com/goth/blackswan/). Blood play involves cutting the body, then having another person lick or suck the blood from the cut. Cutting is most often done with a surgical scalpel or fine razor blade making shallow cuts in the top layer of the skin. At many of the Vampire nightclubs it is not unusual to see a group of people cutting and sucking each other’s blood in what is referred to as a feeding circle. Blood play frequently is intertwined with sexual activities and becomes an integral part of the intimacy shared. Occasionally blood sports entail using a syringe to draw blood and then imbibing it or sharing the blood with your partner. Essentially blood sports involve any sadomasochistic practice that involves blood and encompass all forms of body mutilation such as self scarring and play piercing in addition to cutting.
Some Vampire web sites provide suggestions for safe feeding, such as the Sanguinarius Vampire Guide: Vampires & Blood Matters: Safe Bloodletting & Feeding (http://www.sanguinarius.org/guide/blood/safe-feeding.shtml) and Vampires Among Us tips and information on bloodletting (http://www.vampiresamongus.com/bloodlettingtips.html), while others provide chat rooms and forums, such as Bloodfestish.com (http://www.bloodfetish.com/). For a detailed description of how blood rituals evolved from movements in the art world and popular culture to blood sports, self mutilation, and sadomasochism found in the Goth, Vampire, and Fetish movements, please see my previous article in Anthropoetics 5, no. 2 (Fall 1999 / Winter 2000) entitled "The Sacrificial Aesthetic: Blood Rituals from Art to Murder" (http://www.anthropoetics.ucla.edu/ap0502/blood.htm).
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Another characteristic immediately associated with the Vampire and related to blood drinking is immortality or more specifically life after death. More than any other attribute the conception of immortality held by Real Vampires differs from mythological and fictional accounts that portray a person rising from the grave and maintaining life by drinking the blood of living people. For Real Vampires, immortality is achieved in similar ways to other religious traditions.
In some instances the Vampire God(s) will rise again to restore faithful Vampires to their original state. For others it is a form of reincarnation. Additionally some Vampires already consider themselves immortal by virtue of their ability to consciously connect to their incarnations and walk in both the spiritual and physical realm. None of the Vampire religious groups claim to achieve immortality exclusively or instantaneously through the imbibing of blood.
A custom frequently affiliated with the Vampire scene includes bondage & discipline sexual activity, fetishism, and sadomasochism. This is related to the characteristic of the "Vampyre" as predator/hunter and is a mandatory ritual in some religious groups to achieve higher levels of spirituality. In Vampyre religion sadomasochism is theologically one form of feeding, because, according to The Vampyre Codex (http://www.sacred-texts.com/goth/vc/index.htm), energy coupled with strong emotion is more fulfilling than simple energy alone. According to the Codex, the most intense emotion to feed off of is fear and the next is ecstasy, either sexual or religious. Sadomasochism in the form of Vampire religious ritual provides a combination of all three emotions, hence an intense form of assimilating energy from another.
One particularly large and influential Vampyre group has an intricate network of members and is referred to as "The Sanguinarium." This term is derived from the Latin word for blood, sanguis, and signifies how Vampyres regard each other, as in "of the blood." The Sanguinarium’s website is now referred to as Vampirealmanac.com so there will no longer be confusion between the Sanguinarius web site (http://www.sanguinarium.net/).

The Sanguinarium promotes a common Vampyre lifestyle comprised of specific customs, etiquette, aesthetics, and ethical tenets. Organization consists of a board of directors called the Sanguinarium Council or Council of Vampyre International Community Affairs (COVICA); board members are designated as Ministers who each have a specific function. The Legacy is the inner circle of the Sanguinarium. Important texts include a combination of fundamental writings from member groups including "The Black Veil," a code of conduct, "The Vampyre Codex" a spiritual understanding of Vampyrism, and the Sanguinarium Lexicon of Terminology. The Vampyre Almanac is the official publication of the organization. The code of conduct is enforced by the Elders in the tradition of the "Black Veil" (http://www.sanguinarius.org/articles/black_veil_2.shtml) and is comprised of thirteen ethical tenets which all members are expected to abide by.
Currently there is only one international church authorized as a Vampire Religion by the United States Federal Government. The Temple of the Vampire (http://www.vampiretemple.com/) has been legally registered as a religion since December 1989 and has paved the way for other Vampire religious groups to be acknowledged as practicing an authentic religion. Sacred rites of the Temple of the Vampire include magical rituals to achieve the traditional powers of the Vampire, contact with Undead Gods, and, eventually, the holy act of Vampiric Communion. The Temple of the Vampire is a millennial religion whose origin and resurrection is explained in their Vampire Bible. According to Temple theology, Vampirism is an ancient religion that distinguishes between Living Vampires and Vampires who have experienced physical death who then become known as the Undead Gods. Genuine Vampirism is the exchange of energy between the Living Vampires and the Undead Gods in a ritual that the Temple refers to as Communion. Through this Communion the person gets closer to the Gods, develops higher levels of Vampiric skills, and ultimately achieves immortality by becoming an Undead God. Energy that is offered to the Undead Gods is collected astrally from sleeping human beings.
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Another well-known religious group is The Vampire Church (http://www.vampire-church.com/pageweb48.html), which has an ecumenical philosophy. The stated purpose of The Vampire Church is foremost to offer a haven for Vampires, to share with others of their kind, and to learn from one another. Unlike the elitism of many of the other Vampire sects, they do not tolerate racism (among Vampires), welcome diversity, and their goal is to unite all vampires in a common bond. The Vampire Church considers psychic attacks and forceful feeding as unethical and barbaric, and they are not tolerated. The organization consists of a church council that is responsible for all activities, projects, web site, and general well being of the church. The council is chaired by the Church Elder, who is head of the council and founder of the church.
Other Vampire groups include the Kheprian Order (http://www.kheperu.org/), whose members are primarily scholar-monks, and their sister house the Sekhrian Order (http://www.geocities.com/sekhemu/), whose members are comprised of mystics and scholars. Both orders follow the Sanguinarium Black Veil or what is also called the "Rules of 13"; the Kheprian Order is where the Vampyre Codex originated.
There are several Vampire religious groups who openly state that they practice the black arts or what is referred to as the Left Hand Path. Some of the better known groups are Lucifer’s Den (http://www.angelfire.com/mi/LUCIFERSDEN/), House Lilitu (http://www.houselilitu.org/Main.html/), and Order of the Vampyre (http://www.xeper.org/ovampyre/). Some of these groups also identify themselves as Satanic orders and their philosophies focus on individuality, self-preservation, and personal empowerment. One particular Vampyre religious organization known as Thee Empyre ov Nozgoth attempted to unite all Satanic, Left Hand Path, and other occultist groups who follow the dark paths into a new alliance. Their stated goals were political as well as religious and included overthrowing "Zionist majorities" and creating a pure-blooded race and a promised land for the Vampyre race. Although all Vampyre religions are theologically supremacist, the Empyre ov Nozgoth was suggestive of white supremacist hate group ideologies. Fortunately their web site has shut down and hopefully the organization has also.
Other individual and Vampire religious groups include: House Quinotaur (http://www.quinotaur.org/), The Loyal Order of St. Germaine (http://saintgermaine.com/), House Verthaine (http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Labyrinth/2497/index.html), and many more unpublished, underground, and developing groups.
Many people are introduced to the Vampire scene through the role-playing game "Vampire: The Masquerade" (http://www.white-wolf.com/Games/Pages/VampireHome.html), others through the erotic nature of the lifestyle, and many more through popular literature such as Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles. However, similarly to Satanic groups, the most renowned source for reaching new members, disseminating information, and gathering is the Internet, which contains thousands of web sites for Vampire organizations, churches, support groups, supplies, and so on. Vampires pride themselves on their use of graphics and technology to create the most distinguished and intricate web sites. The Vampire Society web site has links to almost the entire vampire community (http://www.100megspop3.com/vamplegacy/legacy9.htm).
Vampirism, the most recent manifestation of the occult, has led to many crimes, ranging from vandalism to murder. Vampire culture is relevant to law enforcement because many juveniles and young adults dabbling in the Goth movement are seduced into the more serious level of the subculture, the Vampire and Fetish Scenes, where blood rituals, sexual sadomasochism, and bondage discipline are regular occurrences. The dangers implicit in drinking and exchanging blood and violent sexual activities are more insidious when they are viewed as sacred rituals that are required for initiation, membership, and status in the group.