Where Do Vampire Customs On Feeding Come From?

Hello everyone,

So I'm fairly versed in vampire media and a common rule I've found is the cardinal rule of "Don't drain them dry" which has been featured so prominently in media. For example one of the only pieces of tangible information that Lestat gives the main character is to never drink from a dry vein. This information is later supplemented when our main character, whom I can't remember the name of, travels the world in hopes of meeting others like him and encounters what our friends at White Wolf call a Wight. It was void of sentience and attacked them on sight.



And this isn't the only example of a literary device that allows Vampires to preserve their humanity. In Vampire: The Masquerade vampires - commonly called Kindred - often try to abstain from draining their victims. Many follow a moral code called the Path of Humanity which allows them to stave off their bestial nature in favor of a facade of humanity. Committing sins on this path such as murdering innocents, committing atrocities and dealing otherwise inhumane damage to the world results in this Path's ability to stave off "The Beast" weakening until eventually, at its complete abandonment, the Kindred becomes a Wight who is only capable of feeding and sleeping.



I understand why these literary devices exist but where do they come from? Vampire: The Masquerade, if I recall, has taken no small amount of inspiration from many different interpretations of Vampirism but going beyond these two examples, many media examples feature elements such as these so they must either be plagiarizing each other to the highest degree or pulling their inspiration from a similar source.

Thank you!

follow the money

It's true that games like Vampire: The Masquerade and works of fiction like Dracula and Anne Rice's novels have influenced several modern groups and their notions of vampirism, especially those founded here in the US around the 90's. However, there have been concepts of vampirism and feeding present in the occult long before those works of fiction or the founding of modern groups and cultures, even though these are often underground and not prominently featured in the media for a good reason. As example you have the Temple of the Vampire, the Red Order of Seth and the Order of Aset Ka as groups that predate V:TM and modern vampire culture, and they're all extremely different from one another. In the case of more modern groups you have House Kheperu, Strigoi Vii or Sabretooth Alpha and Omega alongside many others as examples that show influence from those mentioned works of fiction. Didn't include Sahjaza here because they're sort of a middle ground between the first group and the second, not exactly as modern as those but not nearly as old as the others. Here we tend to focus more on the study of earlier vampire culture, metaphysics and magick but we're open to anyone and all views really.

As for your original question on feeding, I believe it originated in ancient cultures that had a better understanding of life-force metaphysics than we find today, but it's extremely hard to accurately trace the exact origins. Also I wouldn't describe it as vampire customs, since feeding isn't just mere tradition but a vital practice.

I would say from the perspective of real life vampirism it has only got to do with morals and ethics; I wouldn't know what else might tie into it or be its reason, really, but that might just be due to my own unitiated insight. It would be the obvious answer, from my point of view and coming from me; not to directly harm the people that you feed upon. Then there might be different scenarios where someone is attacking you and a counter-drain might be necessary or useful as self-defence. However, even in self-defence one better exercise caution and balance in dealing with such cases as the defencive attacks could be over-escalated, not just to the target's despair but to your own as the laws of balance might be over-extended and upset in making such heavy retaliation. To know what are the boundaries of balanced restraint for executing a well deserved attack might not always be easy and to have such a sight of justice does not come easily either. Yet this should not imply that one is fearful of leaving them a strong lesson not to mess with you again unjustly or as unfounded by reason, if necessary. I suppose that is a lesson that comes with growth, time and experience, how to properly manage self-defence with magickal offense and vampiric drain, on top of a better understanding of that justice. And even then, feeding heavily upon an attacker by counter-drain might not always be desirable considering what kind of energy they might have and if you wish to make that part of yourself. I would also like to see other members thoughts and perspectives on that, by the way.

However, the point you bring up about "The Path of Humanity" might refer to a certain balance within the vampire not to become addicted to the art of draining and practice of feeding for any purpose, whether it would be magickal for increased power and higher operation of energy work or psychically for need of life-force sustenance. The latter might certainly be needed to be met, however, but the former might be be up to debate or individual practice and more or less justified depending upon execution and personal ethics, something that individuals will have to find out for themselves but caution, greater balance and higher responsibility might be needed depending upon the greater or lesser extent of the practice. To add further to the supposed "Path of Humanity", it might also simply have to do with a certain sense of balance in regards to interaction with and exchange of energy, not to solely become a black hole that sucks everything in, but also be able to radiate energy giving off a good impression and positive influence but that balance is up to the individual and might have something to do with various methods of cycling and different states or attitudes of mind. This is just my own interpretation.

Nevertheless, to go more directly to the interpretation of "The Beast" as you mention might simply mean that any otherkin ability or vampiric nature might require the exercise of self-control, least the inner beast controls you; a matter of self-mastery, balance and control over oneself for it to be channelized more productively and healthily.

I certainly cannot understand in any fashion why the answer to anything based on Lestat and comedy material is given any legitimate consideration with time and effort expended in answers to this.  You have treated it as if Lestat was an actual fact.  hilarious.

Draining depends on any individual incident.  Every incident is different from another and no way can they all be lumped in together.  MAMA cannot be used in much if any of these crash incidents.  (Make America Moral Again) ha. Do you know of any actual Vampire incidents that are Moral??? ha.

Maxx, I was interpreting it as if he meant that the fictional side of vampirism, as portrayed in the media, would be somehow based off of reality, not that it was real in and of itself - but those seemed to be his indications, that it would somehow be inspired by reality. So that is the thread I followed and line of thought I elaborated upon. Do not see any harm in actually raising some contribution to a topic, no matter how you would perceive it as illegitimate, if it was actually raised in a somewhat mature and respectable fashion.

then we are able to discuss the roadrunner cartoons in a mature and respectful fashion to seem mature and respectful?  Will that make it seem so very much more important?  lol.  it is still hilarious.

Trying to make a cartoon worthy of an academy award is my analogy of all of this.

Presented by Wile E Coyote

and Temple of the Vampire never shows up as a creation prior to 1989 and some say ever later like 1992. George says his grandfather put it together but it came from George leaving the Church of Satan as a project unfolded.

Maxx wrote:and Temple of the Vampire never shows up as a creation prior to 1989 and some say ever later like 1992.  George says his grandfather put it together but it came from George leaving the Church of Satan as a project unfolded.

That's probably correct or close but it still places them earlier than the groups I mentioned among the modern organizations. Of course it's not nearly as old as the AK or the ROS, I wasn't implying that.

ok.  then I received it wrong.  I viewed you as inferring they were being compared and held up to the same critique as the other two you mentioned. but then again, it seems I see things thru a different lens than many others.... especially here. ha.

david77 wrote:Hello everyone,

So I'm fairly versed in vampire media and a common rule I've found is the cardinal rule of "Don't drain them dry" which has been featured so prominently in media. For example one of the only pieces of tangible information that Lestat gives the main character is to never drink from a dry vein. This information is later supplemented when our main character, whom I can't remember the name of, travels the world in hopes of meeting others like him and encounters what our friends at White Wolf call a Wight. It was void of sentience and attacked them on sight.



And this isn't the only example of a literary device that allows Vampires to preserve their humanity. In Vampire: The Masquerade vampires - commonly called Kindred - often try to abstain from draining their victims. Many follow a moral code called the Path of Humanity which allows them to stave off their bestial nature in favor of a facade of humanity. Committing sins on this path such as murdering innocents, committing atrocities and dealing otherwise inhumane damage to the world results in this Path's ability to stave off "The Beast" weakening until eventually, at its complete abandonment, the Kindred becomes a Wight who is only capable of feeding and sleeping.conversor de divisas



I understand why these literary devices exist but where do they come from? Vampire: The Masquerade, if I recall, has taken no small amount of inspiration from many different interpretations of Vampirism but going beyond these two examples, many media examples feature elements such as these so they must either be plagiarizing each other to the highest degree or pulling their inspiration from a similar source.

Thank you!

Thank you my issue has been solved,...

david77 wrote:Hello everyone,

So I'm fairly versed in vampire media and a common rule I've found is the cardinal rule of "Don't drain them dry" which has been featured so prominently in media. For example one of the only pieces of tangible information that Lestat gives the main character is to never drink from a dry vein. This information is later supplemented when our main character, whom I can't remember the name of, travels the world in hopes of meeting others like him and encounters what our friends at White Wolf call a Wight. It was void of sentience and attacked them on sight.



And this isn't the only example of a literary device that allows Vampires to preserve their humanity. In Vampire: The Masquerade vampires - commonly called Kindred - often try to abstain from draining their victims. Many follow a moral code called the Path of Humanity which allows them to stave off their bestial nature in favor of a facade of humanity. Committing sins on this path such as murdering innocents, committing atrocities and dealing otherwise inhumane damage to the world results in this Path's ability to stave off "The Beast" weakening until eventually, at its complete abandonment, the Kindred becomes a Wight who is only capable of feeding and sleeping.conversor de divisas




I understand why these literary devices exist but where do they come from? Vampire: The Masquerade, if I recall, has taken no small amount of inspiration from many different interpretations of Vampirism but going beyond these two examples, many media examples feature elements such as these so they must either be plagiarizing each other to the highest degree or pulling their inspiration from a similar source.

Thank you!

Thank you my issue has been solved,..

.. in Soul Reaver (another video game), they drained their human victims dry, and consumed the entire soul of their enemies.
... that frightened me as a kid, and also made little sense.
Kept me awake, spurred me to research. Many years later, here I am *Jazz hands/spirit fingers*


.. yeah I guess it was already answered. I've added nothing here