Vampires and Werewolves

Immortality is the permanent existence of the soul after physical death and is a theme in many religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism in one form or another. Is it any wonder that vampires are endowed with this quality in folklore as a means of terrifying and/or attracting us?

The legend of the vampire apparently started in Eastern Europe, but stories are found all over the world. The idea was popularised by Bram Stoker's Dracula, and various films and may be based on the real life ruler of Walachia - Vlad the Impaler slaughtered hundreds of people.

It is believed that these creatures must have a fresh supply of blood, often obtained by biting the necks of their victims who usually weaken, die and become vampires themselves.

Other beliefs were that vampires were restless souls of suicides, dead criminals, or people who died violently, who left their graves to drink blood from living beings. From the late 1600's to early 1800's graves were still been dug up by people searching for these creatures.

It is also said that a vampire must return to its grave or coffin filled with its native earth by morning, that they cast no shadow and have no reflection in mirrors. And can be killed by a wooden stake through the heart, burning or destroying the daytime resting place. The myths and legends often clash, so you're never quite sure what's true and what isn't.

Whatever the origin of the vampire it is an enigma that has fascinated and terrified people for centuries and will undoubtedly continue to do so.

Werewolf means 'man-wolf' derived from the old English words wer meaning man and wulf meaning wolf.

Stories of these creatures have been around since ancient Greece and were spread all over the continents. Wolves were also substituted for other fierce animals in places where they were rare or non-existent.

How you become a werewolf varies, some stories claim that wearing a wolf skin makes the change occur, or drinking water from a wolf's footprint, using magic ointment or by someone else's magic. The one most people have heard of is an attack by a werewolf, if it bites you and you don't die you're doomed to turn hairy once a month!

That is another hazy point, do werewolves change every full moon or is there a different cycle to it?

Ways to return a werewolf back to human form include hitting it 3 times on the forehead, saying its real name and making the sign of the cross, personally I wouldn't want to get that close!

To discover the identity of a werewolf, you wound it and search for a similar wound on a human.

In some legends the werewolf becomes a vampire after its death and as with vampires, these creatures can be sexy and/or scary and are usually portrayed as stronger than mere mortals.

We are their prey and our fascination with them is often returned.

The technical word for a werewolf is lycanthrope and comes from Greek mythology. Zeus turned the Greek king Lycaon into a wolf and the name developed from there.

Vampires and werewolves are creatures of the twilight and as such you can never be entirely sure that they are just myth and legend, but do we really want to know?