293: Vampire of the Rising Sun

[Zhuo_MingDao]

We also don't tend to ignore any part of out shame in history because it pretty damn noticeable. That and we have politicians use a screw up for gain. Though I can say only the majority of American history if you go by the text books, if you go in deeper it tends to not pull any punches.

And just how many US History books in public schools give more than a paragraph to the Opium Wars? America practically funded the Western expansion and construction of the transcontinental railroad off of the cash gained from being British drug runners and by helping to utterly destroy the Chinese economy, society, and government. It took the Chinese more than 150 years to recover, having gone from the most economically powerful and stable country in the world to a broken shell in less than a decade. And we did it by sneaking illegal drugs into China for the British and then taking advantage of the Chinese after the British knocked them around for having tried to stop the flow of drugs into their country. If you don't think that it is out of shame that we play down that ugly chapter of our history, I don't know what it is.

 

[xengk]

What I don't understand is why we don't see the Chinese Vampire more often; it wasn't a blood sucking creature, but instead one that fed on Chi (Ki, energy, whatever), however, was the same as the western vampire in many ways; Weak to sunlight, couldn't cross moving water, etc.

Wait What?!
Are you referring to the 殭屍 (JiangShi or the Chinese Hopping Vampire)?
Those guy are still blood sucker.
However, they have extra weakness such as being blind, repel by sticky rice and lack mobility.
But on the plus side, decapitation does nothing to them. They can only be destroyed by total destruction of the body either by fire, sunlight or come under the control of a Taoist Priest.

The one that suck on Chi are a variety of Ghost or plants and animals that gain human form after living for a long time.

The closest thing South East Asia culture has that is similar to the western Vampire is the Banana Fairy (Not related Dongkey Kong). They can be summon by tying a red twine from a red banana heart to the windows of the victim. The fairy will appear at that house at night and have intense sexual act with it's victim before finally draining his/her blood.
This can last for several nights if the victim is strong.

 

[Mstrswrd]

What I don't understand is why we don't see the Chinese Vampire more often; it wasn't a blood sucking creature, but instead one that fed on Chi (Ki, energy, whatever), however, was the same as the western vampire in many ways; Weak to sunlight, couldn't cross moving water, etc.

Wait What?!
Are you referring to the ???Æ (JiangShi or the Chinese Hopping Vampire)?
Those guy are still blood sucker.
However, they have extra weakness such as being blind, repel by sticky rice and lack mobility.
But on the plus side, decapitation does nothing to them. They can only be destroyed by total destruction of the body either by fire, sunlight or come under the control of a Taoist Priest.

The one that suck on Chi are a variety of Ghost or plants and animals that gain human form after living for a long time.

The closest thing South East Asia culture has that is similar to the western Vampire is the Banana Fairy (Not related Dongkey Kong). They can be summon by tying a red twine from a red banana heart to the windows of the victim. The fairy will appear at that house at night and have intense sexual act with it's victim before finally draining his/her blood.
This can last for several nights if the victim is strong.

You know what? You're probably right, as I'm not nearly as familiar with Eastern Mythologies as I am with Western (to my great shame). Though, the different myths of different area's do tend to get kind of... condensed, as it were, into massive, kind-of-dependent-on-the-translation-you-read type of things.

Actually, now that I think about it, in certain mythologies (but not in others, showing exactly how powerful local variation can be), the Kitsune is kind of Vampirish in it's actions. Well, okay, it's actually more... succubus/incubus, actually. In certain area's, the mythologies would states that Kitsune would feed on the emotions of humans (and the energy of humans), and often did this kind of feeding directly during sex.

Of course, in other areas, the more common (and more widely known) myths state less about that (or, usually, nothing at all), and instead focus on things like the prankster nature of the foxes, the nobility of some, the cruelty of others, etc.

Like I said though, I'll take your word for it, as you both show more knowledge about this than I do, and I have little time to go and do in depth research... Maybe later, during summer break.

 

[xengk]

You know what? You're probably right, as I'm not nearly as familiar with Eastern Mythologies as I am with Western (to my great shame). Though, the different myths of different area's do tend to get kind of... condensed, as it were, into massive, kind-of-dependent-on-the-translation-you-read type of things.

Actually, now that I think about it, in certain mythologies (but not in others, showing exactly how powerful local variation can be), the Kitsune is kind of Vampirish in it's actions. Well, okay, it's actually more... succubus/incubus, actually. In certain area's, the mythologies would states that Kitsune would feed on the emotions of humans (and the energy of humans), and often did this kind of feeding directly during sex.

Of course, in other areas, the more common (and more widely known) myths state less about that (or, usually, nothing at all), and instead focus on things like the prankster nature of the foxes, the nobility of some, the cruelty of others, etc.

Like I said though, I'll take your word for it, as you both show more knowledge about this than I do, and I have little time to go and do in depth research... Maybe later, during summer break.

I only know more about stuff from that part of the world, because I live there. /shrug
You probably know more about culture and mythos from your region better than I do too.

Anyhow on the topic of Kitsune.
Generally speaking, they are opportunist pranksters. As in they don't go out of their way to look for human to play tricks on. Lone traveler or farmers far away from civilization are the usual victim.
If I got my culture studies right, Kitsune are believed to be divided into 2 group of good and bad. The good one are often worship as messenger from deity or pray to for good harvest (think Horo, technically a wolf, from Wolf and Spice) and fertility. The bad one are those that possess maiden and manipulate people into misery.
For some reason unknown, they supposedly love Inari Sushi.

 

[Mstrswrd]

I only know more about stuff from that part of the world, because I live there. /shrug
You probably know more about culture and mythos from your region better than I do too.

Anyhow on the topic of Kitsune.
Generally speaking, they are opportunist pranksters. As in they don't go out of their way to look for human to play tricks on. Lone traveler or farmers far away from civilization are the usual victim.
If I got my culture studies right, Kitsune are believed to be divided into 2 group of good and bad. The good one are often worship as messenger from deity or pray to for good harvest (think Horo, technically a wolf, from Wolf and Spice) and fertility. The bad one are those that possess maiden and manipulate people into misery.
For some reason unknown, they supposedly love Inari Sushi.

Inari was the God of the foxes, right? Well, that, and about 20 million other things as well... Anyway, I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

Hey, whoever said that some Puns can't be useful!

Seriously. I know that in Greek myth, there's a fair bit of that; for example, Heracles is named as such in an effort to appease Hera (well, that and other things), who hated him because he was another child Zeus had with a mortal woman, so Hercles's mortal mother and step-father (?) figured that naming him after the goddess that would hate him would mitigate the hatrid. It didn't work.

Also, the reason it's step-father (?) is because Heracles and his twin were a case of heteropaternal superfecundation (aka: they're twins with different fathers, each father's sperm only fertalizing one egg).

Also, quick question: I thought Horo from Spice and Wolf was the very definition of the older meaning of Kami, not necessarily god in the literal sense that it has taken on today (like a being like Amaterasu or Izanagi, or, if we go western, God, Allah, Yahweh), but instead a higher spirit/being that was kind of divine, sort of like the Grecian/Roman Nymphs, but more holy/spiritual, in where they would still have some divinity to speak of (being worshipped has to count for something), but weren't on the same level as those who lived in the heaven's.

Apologies if I'm bugging you with these questions, but I always find the different mythologies of the world fascinating; it's why I'm really happy that for one class this semester, I have to read Journey to the West (which, if I enjoy it, will probably motivate me to read Romance of the Three Kingdoms).

 

[xengk]

Inari was the God of the foxes, right? Well, that, and about 20 million other things as well... Anyway, I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

Hey, whoever said that some Puns can't be useful!

Seriously. I know that in Greek myth, there's a fair bit of that; for example, Heracles is named as such in an effort to appease Hera (well, that and other things), who hated him because he was another child Zeus had with a mortal woman, so Hercles's mortal mother and step-father (?) figured that naming him after the goddess that would hate him would mitigate the hatrid. It didn't work.

Also, the reason it's step-father (?) is because Heracles and his twin were a case of heteropaternal superfecundation (aka: they're twins with different fathers, each father's sperm only fertalizing one egg).

Also, quick question: I thought Horo from Spice and Wolf was the very definition of the older meaning of Kami, not necessarily god in the literal sense that it has taken on today (like a being like Amaterasu or Izanagi, or, if we go western, God, Allah, Yahweh), but instead a higher spirit/being that was kind of divine, sort of like the Grecian/Roman Nymphs, but more holy/spiritual, in where they would still have some divinity to speak of (being worshipped has to count for something), but weren't on the same level as those who lived in the heaven's.

Apologies if I'm bugging you with these questions, but I always find the different mythologies of the world fascinating; it's why I'm really happy that for one class this semester, I have to read Journey to the West (which, if I enjoy it, will probably motivate me to read Romance of the Three Kingdoms).

No biggy. Its not often I encounter people who interested in such subject as Eastern folklore, outside of the usual Naruto and Inuyasha stuff.
Olympian mythos definitely are not my strong point. lol.

"Kami" in an old sense is like what pagans and aborigine call "spirit". Daily or natural object and phenomenon given a personality and back story.

Horo, although is a made up "god" from the light novel series of the same name, is more akin to how ancient druids view "force of nature" and fairies. That they have some power over the land but are not "god" or divine in a religious sense.
Based on the novel, Horo is simply a wolf that have live longer than any other wolf and attained wisdom.
This is a common theme in mythos from China and Japan. When a creature survive for a very long time, they would gain sentients. Continue long enough and they will gain supernatural powers. Those that are helpful to mankind often get deified.
Journey to the West will contain many of this trope.

A quick Wiki shows that Inari is the god of rice, fertility and fox, among other things.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inari_%C5%8Ckami
That would explain why Inari's Kanji name can be written as having the meaning of "Make Rice" or "Growing Rice".

Romance of 3 Kingdoms is a good read but is not historically accurate, as it is a dramatization of the Records of 3 Kingdoms, which is the original history record.