Post by Arioch on Jun 5, 2004 10:42:38 GMT -5
THE ORIGIN AND DESTRUCTION OF THE CHIANG-SHIH
The chiang-shih seems to have originated as a means of explaining problems associated with death. The chiang-shih arose following a violent death due to suicide, hanging, drowning, or smothering. It could also appear in a person who had died suddenly, or as a result of improper burial procedures. The dead were thought to become angry and restless if their burial was postponed for a long time after their death. Also animals, especially cats, were kept away from the unburied corpse, to prevent them from jumping over it, lest they become vampires themselves.
The chiang-shih lacked some of the powers of the Slavic vampire. It could not, for example, dematerialize, hence it was unable to rise from the grave, being inhibited both by coffins and the soil. Thus their transformation had to take place prior to burial, an added incentive to a quick burial of the dead. The Chinese vampires were nocturnal creatures and limited in their activity to the night hours. The chiang-shih had trouble crossing running water.
The chiang-shihs were very strong and vicious. Reports detailed their attacks upon living people, where they ripped off the head or limbs of their victims. This homicidal viciousness was their most often reported trait. They usually had to surprise their victims because they had no particular powers to lure or entrance them. Besides their homicidal nature, the chiang-shih might also demonstrate a strong sexual drive that led it to attack and rape women. Over a period of time, the vampires gained strength and began to transform to a mobile state. They would forsake the coffin habitat, master the art of flying, and develop a covering of long white hair. They might also change into wolves.
In general, the vampire began its existence as an unburied corpse. However, on occasion there were reports of unburied body segments, especially the head, being reanimated and having an existence as a vampire. Also, reports have survived of the ever-present Chinese dragon appearing as a vampire.
People knew of several means of protection from a vampire. Garlic, an almost universal medicinal herb, kept vampires away. Salt was believed to have a corrosive effect on the vampire’s skin. Vampires were offended by loud noises, and thunder would occasionally kill one. Brooms were handy weapons with which a brave soul could literally sweep the vampire back to its resting spot. Iron fillings, rice, and red peas created barriers to the entry of the vampire and would often be placed around a vacant coffin to keep a vampire from taking it as a resting place.
If the vampire reached its transformative stage as the flying hairy creature, only thunder or a bullet could bring it down. In the end, the ultimate solution was cremation, the purifying fire being something of a universal tool of mankind.
The chiang-shih seems to have originated as a means of explaining problems associated with death. The chiang-shih arose following a violent death due to suicide, hanging, drowning, or smothering. It could also appear in a person who had died suddenly, or as a result of improper burial procedures. The dead were thought to become angry and restless if their burial was postponed for a long time after their death. Also animals, especially cats, were kept away from the unburied corpse, to prevent them from jumping over it, lest they become vampires themselves.
The chiang-shih lacked some of the powers of the Slavic vampire. It could not, for example, dematerialize, hence it was unable to rise from the grave, being inhibited both by coffins and the soil. Thus their transformation had to take place prior to burial, an added incentive to a quick burial of the dead. The Chinese vampires were nocturnal creatures and limited in their activity to the night hours. The chiang-shih had trouble crossing running water.
The chiang-shihs were very strong and vicious. Reports detailed their attacks upon living people, where they ripped off the head or limbs of their victims. This homicidal viciousness was their most often reported trait. They usually had to surprise their victims because they had no particular powers to lure or entrance them. Besides their homicidal nature, the chiang-shih might also demonstrate a strong sexual drive that led it to attack and rape women. Over a period of time, the vampires gained strength and began to transform to a mobile state. They would forsake the coffin habitat, master the art of flying, and develop a covering of long white hair. They might also change into wolves.
In general, the vampire began its existence as an unburied corpse. However, on occasion there were reports of unburied body segments, especially the head, being reanimated and having an existence as a vampire. Also, reports have survived of the ever-present Chinese dragon appearing as a vampire.
People knew of several means of protection from a vampire. Garlic, an almost universal medicinal herb, kept vampires away. Salt was believed to have a corrosive effect on the vampire’s skin. Vampires were offended by loud noises, and thunder would occasionally kill one. Brooms were handy weapons with which a brave soul could literally sweep the vampire back to its resting spot. Iron fillings, rice, and red peas created barriers to the entry of the vampire and would often be placed around a vacant coffin to keep a vampire from taking it as a resting place.
If the vampire reached its transformative stage as the flying hairy creature, only thunder or a bullet could bring it down. In the end, the ultimate solution was cremation, the purifying fire being something of a universal tool of mankind.