CREATURES of the night have captured our imagination for thousands of years. Folktales and legends of strange beasts and ghouls, as they are called appear in almost ever culture and ancient religion — tales of human-like creatures that roam in the darkness of the night, hiding and waiting to attack their prey. But whether they are incidents that can be explained logically with a little common sense or is there really something true about these macabre tales of horror?

The most popular figure out of all the mythical characters is the vampire. One wonders why? After all it’s not an everyday occurrence that a vampire comes out and as assumed, bites people to drink their blood. To be honest, it does sound a bit ridiculous that in this day and age, we can still believe that something like this can exist. What with all the night parties and police patrolling and the modern way of life where cities never sleep and people are all over the place. Where can or how does such a creature manage to exist? Or are we talking about centuries past?

Let us go on a chilling and thrilling journey to learn about the tales of these creatures that are, thankfully, only the product of some people’s wild imagination.

Count Dracula

The best documented account about Dracula is from the writer Brahms Stoker, who relates the bloody creature to a ruler in Transylvania, called ‘Vlad The Impaler’, who was cruel and ruthless. He had wooden spikes fixed in the ground on which he would impale his enemies. He came to be known as a bloodthirsty man who liked to see people suffer.

From that arose the ‘Count Dracula’ legend. Vampires were also believed to exist in ancient times — night stalkers who suddenly appeared out of the dark to drink the blood of an unknowing victim. Every culture has its own interpretation. The reason for their so-called thirst for blood is believed to be due to the fact that they are in fact people who are dead and try to remain alive for centuries by drinking blood.

Tales from Europe

European tales speak of vampires as having hypnotic powers to overcome their victims. They were supposed to be stronger than 10 men and could change their form into animals or birds. They were also supposed to be able see in the dark and travel long distances at great speed and disappear at any time. If rumours of a vampire in the area were heard, precautions to keep it away were also used. Holy water, garlic and a crucifix or cross would be put in all the rooms of the house. Moreover, the creature could only be killed by putting a wooden stake through the heart.

The Indian connection

Then we have the Indian version. It is called the bhuta (bhoot, ghost) and presumed to be found in jungles and wild places. It is supposed to make its presence known by glowing lights and it eats dead animals and people! Its bite is said to be poisonous and infects those who are bitten.

Then there is also the female version (talk about equal rights here)! Okay so this very ugly female, called a churail, is said to have terrible skin, a misshapen body, rough black hair and looks for young men to feed on.

African vampire

In Africa, there are folklores about two types of vampires — the obayifo and the asasabonsam. Both creatures have West African origin, with obayifo mentioned in the folklores of the Ashanti tribe.

They believe that the obayifo can take the shape of humans as well as animals. They sometimes emit a kind of light and have shifty eyes and have a huge appetite, eating humans, animals, fruits and vegetables — basically anything when they are hungry!

The asasabonsam, are supposed to be from Ghana and living in forests on treetops. They are said to have human features but iron-like teeth, long legs and hooked feet that reached the ground while sitting in the treetops. Some tales also describe them as having horns or huge bat-like wings, giving them the ability to fly.

The way to kill these creatures are similar to those adopted for other vampires — strike them in the heart with a knife, burn in fire, expose to sunlight and beheading.

The Australian creature

In Australia, it is the yara-ma-yha-who, which is believed by the aboriginals as being four feet tall and red, with a very large head and mouth. Strangely, this version does not have any teeth! It is supposed to hide in fig trees and waits for its victims just like the African asasabonsam. They say that if these creatures attack a person again and again, they are likely to pass on their traits to the victim.

Across Asia

The Chinese have their own interesting version. The chiang-shih or kiang-shi, is a terrifying entity, supposedly the outcome of a suicide or violent death. According to a belief it’s a tall and menacing corpse with white or green hair on its body, with long sharp claws and has awful smelling breath that can make a person gasp for air, (seems they never heard of mouthwash!)

Well, now this hideous creature is known to appear human at will but cannot cross running water and is also allergic to garlic.

The Malaysian version of a vampire is the penenggalan, an old or beautiful woman who retains her beauty with the use of black magic. She is said to be able to detach her head from her body to go looking for prey. How bizarre is that?

The ancient Babylonian myth of a creature named ‘alu’ is assumed as a horrible creature with one eye and iron teeth. The ancients thought that using and keeping items made of iron kept the creature at bay.

Modern tales

There are some modern versions to the vampire saga. It is said that in Germany in October 1974, a man was lured into a home owned by a Mr Lorca. When inside, Mr Lorca is said to have attacked the man and tried to bite him. The stranger passed out but when he awoke he ran out of the house to the police station where he reported the incident. The police went to Mr Lorca’s house and while searching, found a coffin with the man sleeping inside. Was Mr Lorca really a vampire or trying to act like one?

Interestingly, all these legends and stories can be reasoned out by common sense. A town taken over by plague would have people bleeding from their noses and mouth, looking extremely pale and dying. The ignorant would blame a vampire lurking in the vicinity. A search party would go looking for the creatures resulting in many being killed by wooden stakes and buried with all sorts of rituals to keep the vampire from rising again.

Animals that are predators and would eat livestock at night roam in the wilderness. Again the reason for the bloody attack would be some kind of bloodthirsty vampire.

In Bulgaria, archaeologists found two skeletons in a grave from the Middle Ages, that had their hearts pierced after they had died in fear of them coming to life again. According to Bozhider Dimitrov who is head of The National History Museum in Sofia, Bulgaria, “These skeletons with rods illustrate a practice which was common in some Bulgarian villages up until the first decade of the 20th century,” he stated to the authorities.

Then again in 2004, archaeologist Peter Balabanov unearthed six skeletons in Bulgaria with the same kind of burial rites performed. It is most interesting how fear and ignorance can take over an entire town making them believe the impossible.

But even with all the awareness and education that there is today, the legend and lure of the vampire continues to tickle our sense of mystery and awe. No wonder so many individuals in the West have formed secret societies to look into the mystery of the creature. Fear is good business for movies and novels!