| | | | |
Vampire
In folklore, a vampire is a malign spirit — usually believed to be a restless soul of a heretic, criminal or suicide — that refuses to join the ranks of the dead but instead leaves its burial place — in its original body or taking possession of another's corpse — and becomes a bloodsucking creature in order to continue enjoying the pleasures of the living.
The belief in vampires dates back to antiquity. Ancient Mesopotamians feared that corpses not properly buried would rise from their graves and attack the living to suck their blood.
Western notions of the vampire come primarily from Slavic folklore, especially as it was interpreted by the author Bram Stoker in his novel Dracula (1897). In some isolated regions of eastern Europe, peasants still hang wreaths of garlic over their doors — a preventive measure cited in Dracula — as protection against evil spirits, but many other aspects of Stoker's story may have been his own invention. Due to the popularity of Stoker's book, the term 'Dracula' is often now used to denote a vampire.
The Dracula of Transylvanian legend appears to have originated from Vlad IV of Wallachia (1430-1476), known as Vlad the Impaler, although he was not a vampire. It is suggested that Stoker's Count Dracula was a composite figure derived from Vlad the Impaler and the Countess Báthori, who was arrested in 1610 for murdering some 650 girls. It was her habit to wash in the blood of her girl victims in order to maintain her skin in a youthful condition.
See Boggard, Bogy, Brownie, Fairy, Elf, The Boggart, Casting Black Magic Spells, Commanding Spirits, The Tarot Store, The Chakra Store, Divination & Scrying Tools and Supplies, and The Pyramid Collection.
Sources: (1) Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase & Fable, Harper Collins Publishers; (2) Bunson, Matthew, The Vampire Encyclopedia, Gramercy Publishers; (3) Melton, J. Gordon, The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead, Visible Ink Press.
| | |
 | | | | | Suggested Software:
|  | | Courses on New Age and Alternative Beliefs:
| | -- The Totally New Complete Edgar Cayce Readings CD-ROM.
-- The URANTIA Book CD-ROM: The History of Earth.
-- Vampire Saga: Pandora's Box [Download].
-- Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines.
-- Click HERE for more related software.
-- Click HERE for the best prices on top-selling software titles.
-- Bram Stoker's Dracula (DVD).
-- Biography - Anne Rice: Vampires, Witches and Bestsellers DVD.
-- Diary Of A Vampire: The Legacy of Bram Stoker (Amazon Instant Video).
-- Dracula: The Vampire and the Voivode (Amazon Instant Video).
-- Dracula: The Vampire and the Voivode (DVD).
-- Diary Of A Vampire: The Legacy of Bram Stoker (Amazon Instant Video).
-- Exploring the Supernatural: Vampires (DVD).
-- Is It Real? Vampires (DVD).
-- Mysteries: Vampires, Oak Island, Time Machines, Psychics and Much More (Amazon Instant Video).
-- The Aswang Phenomenon (documentary on the Filipino vampire) DVD.
-- The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (DVD).
-- Vampire Secrets (History Channel) DVD.
-- Click HERE for more related videos.
-- Click HERE for the best prices on top-selling DVD titles. | | | -- Auras: Viewing, Identifying, and Understanding.
-- Ancient Civilizations (World History Part 1).
-- Paranormal Investigations: Complete Edition .
-- Understanding Parapsychology and the Paranormal.
-- Working with Your Animal Allies, Teachers and Totems .
-- World Religions 101 .
-- Click HERE for more new age and alternative beliefs learning.
Suggested Art prints and Posters:
-- Click HERE for more related art prints and posters. | | | Suggested Books: -- Bram Stoker's Dracula: The Film and the Legend (A Newmarket Pictorial Moviebook).
-- Blood Lines: The Little Book of Vampires.
-- Blood Read: The Vampire As Metaphor in Contemporary Culture.
-- Blood Thirst: 100 Years of Vampire Fiction.
-- Celebrity Vampires.
-- Classic Vampire Stories.
-- Creatures of Forever.
-- Dracula.
-- Dracula: Between Tradition and Modernism.
-- Dracula Book of Great Vampires.
-- Dracula (Broadview Literary Texts).
-- Dracula (Cliffs Notes).
-- Dracula Doesn't Drink Lemonade.
-- Dracula (In the Footsteps Of).
-- Dracula Is a Pain in the Neck.
-- Dracula, Prince of Many Faces: His Life and Times.
-- Dracula: The First Hundred Years.
-- Dracula: The Vampire Legend on Film.
-- The Complete Book of Vampires.
-- The Dracula Book.
-- The Dracula Cookbook of Blood.
-- The Essential Dracula/Including the Complete Novel by Bram Stoker: Notes, Bibliography, and Filmography Revised.
-- Vampires, Burial, and Death: Folklore and Reality.
-- Vampires: The Occult Truth.
-- Click HERE for more related books.
-- Click HERE for the best prices on top-selling book titles. |
|
|
| | Occultopedia |
|
| 2012 - Will You Survive?
Helpful Hints... Which nightmarish predictions are complete jokes, and which ones are 100% correct… And exactly why world leaders and mass media have been covering these facts up for years. Get the answers you need to survive 2012... |
| The Art Of Covert Hypnosis
You Are About To Learn The Easy-To-Master Secrets To Hypnotizing Anyone, Anywhere, At Any Time For Whatever Reason You Desire... |
| Secrets Of The Secret
EBooks That Reveal The Spiritual Law-of-attraction Secrets Behind The Movie The Secret, Starring Bob Proctor, Joe Vitale, Jack Canfield, Michael Beckwith, James Ray |
| The Power Of Conversational Hypnosis
Undeniably The Most Advanced Digital Audio Course On Conversational Hypnosis Currently Available In The World |
| | Bell, Book & Candle
Pagan, Wiccan, Metaphysical and Occult Supplies. | | |
|
|
|
| | |
|
This website is best viewed with the latest
versions of
Microsoft
Internet Explorer,
Firefox or
Netscape.
Occultopedia
makes extensive use of
Flash and Scripting in its pages and interface. Make certain your browser
permissions are set
accordingly and that you have the latest
Flash plug-in for the full experience, proper look and accurate
layout.
If using
Microsoft
Internet Explorer 7, clicking (or pressing the SPACEBAR or ENTER) on the
Flash graphics may be necessary to activate it. If using the latest versions
of
Firefox or
Netscape,
adjusting the browser trust permissions to "ENABLE MAXIMUM SITE
FUNCTIONALITY" may be required to fully
enjoy Occultopedia's features and
Flash graphics. You can do it with confidence. This site does not contain any viruses, malicious software
or scripts.
|
| | |
| | |
|
As you may have noticed, Occultopedia is being updated.
Navigation areas are completed, but the word definition pages are not. The
layout in these pages might not look as good as they should. Updating them
may take a while, so please, be patient and understanding. I am only one
person working on this site in my spare time.
As soon as these updates are concluded I will begin setting up the
Forums, so we can all discuss the
occult, paranormal and extraordinary, and whatever else we please.
Registration will be required.
Occultopedia's images and art are also undergoing an adjustment to
Flash based graphics. This process may take some time as well, so again, be
patient and understanding.
|
| |
| | |
|
Occultopedia is the genuine article, the
original and the best internet index of the extraordinary and uncanny,
shamelessly copied by many, but never equaled. Online since the
early 90s — at first in a free web space provider, and in 1997 finally
with its own domain name and hosting — Occultopedia still is the
principal online resource for those looking for the unexplained, the
curious and the unusual. |
|
Occultopedia respects your privacy. As
such, no cookies or any other tracking software will be installed as a
part of this website's original programming. I do not seek to obtain any personal information
beyond what is volunteered through electronic communications
(e.g. emails & forms).
|
|
Occultopedia may appear to be a for profit site, but my site is
not really a commercial one. All of the commercial links are from affiliate
programs, and the little revenue I get from these is to pay for hosting,
bandwidth — that can be quite costly if you have a lot of traffic, graphics and
pages — and any other expenses related to Occultopedia's upkeep and maintenance.
For more details, visit my
ordering
information page.
Occultopedia is a
FREE online
resource available to the whole world. Usage of my word definitions and articles
by educational institutions, teachers and students alike, is here by granted. For more information, please consult my
intellectual property rights, warranties and
disclaimers information page. Support Occultopedia and make it your
online shopping
destination. If you prefer, you can also make a donation.
|
|
HELP FOOT THE BILL: this website
is created and maintained by one guy, who also pays the hosting bill.
Please donate if you like and/or use Occultopedia.
|
|
Participate in Occultopedia and submit a word
definition or article for the occult encyclopedia at my
entry submission
page. If you would like to suggest a web site or page for
addition into Occultopedia's links database, please go to my
URL submission page.
|
| | |
 Site creation and design by M. V. G.
| Copyright © Occultopedia™ . All rights reserved. |
|
|
