Vampire

The vampire we know today is an example of modern folklore in that in older tales they were more zombie-like. Never-the-less it contains some interesting symbolism.

I believe Christians too readily dismiss mythology as bad. Yes, it is bad to glorify evil. We probably don't want to read or watch the Twilight series, but also there the myth of the vampire is flipped on its head to a degree.

I believe that folklore and mythology has important lessons embedded that can help us to understand certain things - acting as a sort of parable. If we consider how myths develop, it's likely that they represent subconscious realities and questions. To become a popular folktale, the aspects of a story must be "agreed upon" in some sense. That is, it must resonate with enough people for it to be passed on. Legends are filtered through the consciousness (intuition, memory) of a lot of people and therefore it becomes a distilled and interesting tale.

In the case of the vampire, I believe it answers a question that we all wonder sometimes -- the problem of evil, suffering, and death. Specifically, why do we have to die?

The Bible answers this implicitly in the story of Adam and Eve. After eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Bad, they were immediately cast from the garden. We are told why:

![quote] Genesis 3:22
“Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”

The reason may not be obvious at first. Why can't they be allowed to have knowledge of good and bad and live forever? In short, we need to die so that we don't live forever in a fallen state.

The vampire story takes this to the extreme. Why can't we live forever? Because that would mean living in an ever more twisted state. What would people do in their old age if they had the vigor of a 25 year old? Age mellows the violent. The nearness of death causes the foolish to reflect. It causes the guilty to seek forgiveness.

For the vampire, eternal life is a curse. The vampire is not immortal because it is resurrected. It is immortal because it must take life blood to extend its own. It's power is obtained by corrupting or losing its own soul. It lives forever but becomes a hollow shell of its former self. This is symbolized in Bram Stoker's Dracula by its lack of reflection. Although that concept does not appear to be in early folklore, it may have been said to be a ward against them. The mirror is often backed by or made of silver, which represents purity. Dracula also dies with peace on his face as though to suggest that it is a release that he longed for.

The animated dead (both zombie and vampire) represent the body without the soul or with a spirit other than one's own. It is animated but acts solely on the basest, primal desires, as opposed to the ghost, which is the opposite.

The vampire and other myths serve as commentary on the human condition.

What would a person look like that is only guided by carnal desire?

If we enacted desires that would rob others of life (or wealth, or wellbeing), what would we become?

Other notable aspects of the vampire:

It is forbidden from passing over running water, which is a symbol of purity (cleansing) and life, even eternal life (in the proper sense). Water is also a mirror.

It is repulsed by the cross. Though the cross is an implement of death, it of course represents Christ himself and, ironically; true resurrection, life, power, and holiness.

It shares the quality of a demon in that it cannot come in unless invited.

It is repulsed by garlic. This might be because garlic is know for its curative properties. Older vampire stories have them as bloated, presumably disease ridden animated corpses.

While not relevant to this discussion, the tales may have started due to exhumed corpses having blood around the mouth, appearing to breathe due to gases during decomposition, or having long nails and teeth (due to shrunken gums/finger tips).