12 What are the vulnerabilities of vampires?
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This article is from the Vampires FAQ, by BJ Kuehl bj@alpha1.csd.uwm.edu with numerous contributions by others.
12 What are the vulnerabilities of vampires?
- Weakened or harmed by sunlight. Although this vulnerability seems
prevalent, there are notable exceptions to it, i.e., Dracula was
relatively unaffected by sunlight.
- Repelled/harmed by religious symbols. This is a subject of debate.
One theory is that the symbol itself is useless unless the wielder
possesses a strong faith in the efficacy of the symbol as a despoiler
of evil. As such, the symbol is a mere vehicle for the faith of the
holder, thus the actual symbol need not be religious. Another theory
is that the icon is powerful in and of itself and channels power from
above, whether or not the holder believes in it.
- Repelled by garlic. During the Middle Ages, breakouts of certain
communicable diseases were sometimes attributed to the presence of
of a vampire, for example, bubonic plague. During the early 1700s, as
the plague swept across Europe, people turned to a concoction of vinegar
and garlic called "Four Thieves' Vinegar (FTV)." FTV is said to have
originated with four thieves who confessed that wearing a facemask
saturated with garlic vinegar protected them against catching the
plague when they plundered the dead. It is true that garlic contains
an antibacterial substance which might very well have afforded some
protection against the plague bacillus and other pathogens.
- Repelled by wolfbane. Wolfbane was mentioned in the Bela Lugosi
movie version of "Dracula" and was used in place of garlic.
- Does not cast a reflection in a mirror. Reflections were believed to
capture a bit of a person's soul, something a vampire is thought not
to possess. In some areas, vampires were also believed not to show in
photographs or to cast shadows.
- Unable to cross running water, except at the ebb and flow of the tide.
The reason for this is uncertain. Some say it may be linked to the
similarities between mirrors and the surface of the water. Others
suggest that it has to do with water being a purifier. Regardless
of the theory as to how it works, it became a practice in some places
to bury suspected vampires on islands so that they couldn't return by
crossing the water. One famous such island is Santorini (in the Aegean
Sea, north of Crete) which was reputed as having so many vampires
buried there that the phrase "sending vampires to Santorini" has a
meaning similar to "selling freezers to Eskimos". They don't need any.
- Can't enter the home of someone without an invitation
- Must pass the daylight hours in a coffin filled with the soil in which
he was originally buried.
- Cannot pass a thicket of wild rose or a line of salt
- Has to stop and count every grain in a pile of grain (type of grain
varies, such as millet, rice, even sand)
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