Vampire Awakening and Turning: is it Even Possible to be Turned Into a Vampire?

This topic will be the focus of discussion at the next Sanford Vampire Meetup; you can join the discussion on Friday, February 6, 2009 at 7:15 pm at Talkshoe.com.

To figure out whether it’s possible to be “Turned” into a vampire, first we must discuss the possible explanations for vampirism. The website “Drink Deeply and Dream” lists five theories: 1) that vampirism is a genetic trait; 2) that it’s a spiritual matter having to do with the soul; 3) that it’s the result of a parasitic or symbiotic entity inhabiting a human host; 4) that it’s a condition caused by damaged or missing chakras, energy deficiencies, etc.; or 5) that it is the symptom of a virus or other outside pathogen. (Read the post at http://www.drinkdeeplyanddream.com/realvampire/vampire-cause.html for full explanations of each paradigm). I’ll discuss each in turn, and give my theories as to how they may relate to the possibility of Turning someone who is not already a vampire:

Genetic

The Science of Vampires by Katherine Ramsland briefly discusses the possibility that vampirism may be genetic; either there is a recessive gene for vampirism (meaning both parents must carry the gene for it to be inherited in the child), or, alternatively, vampirism is the result of “junk DNA” becoming activated.

The neo-Darwinian evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins goes into detail about what “junk DNA” is in The Selfish Gene and other books. Briefly, the human genetic code has many genes that do not seem to code for any proteins -- so-called “junk DNA.” The current theory is that this junk DNA became part of our genetic makeup through our exposure over our entire evolutionary process to viruses capable of injecting their DNA into our own. The ones that didn’t kill us became symbiotic, becoming part of our genetic code. Mitochondrial DNA (found in the cell nucleus and only passed on from the mother) is probably the best known example of this.

Genetics is a good explanation for the physical symptoms of vampirism. This would make being a vampire akin to being blond, having blue eyes, or being a hemophiliac. It could be inherited or run in families. The only possible way to Turn in this scenario, (as opposed to being born a vampire), would be through the activation of (possibly “junk”) DNA.

The Science of Vampires suggests that this might be induced through high stress and adrenaline levels, such as might be experienced during a vampire “attack,” or from the biochemical mix of endorphins and other pleasure hormones induced by the ecstasy that some donors experience from being fed upon. An additional theory expounded in an article on Sanguinarius.org suggests that the right biochemical mix must be achieved in the gene-carrier’s body to activate the gene for vampirism. See: http://www.sanguinarius.org/articles/DG_biochemical-theory.shtml.

There are spiritual or metaphysical paths that believe it is possible to affect one’s own genetic code with magic or other metaphysical manipulation. I am skeptical, but others believe it is possible.

Spiritual/Soul

Turning in this instance would more truly be an Awakening to your True Self, discovering that you are already a vampire in spirit, or have a vampire’s soul in a human body. To discover if you are already spiritually a vampire, you might ask yourself, why do you want to be a vampire? Explore the vampire archetype already within you, through meditation, visualization and role play. Research as much as you can and find out what, if anything about vampirism resonates for you (and there are many different kinds).

I would suggest, if this scenario were true, then it should also be possible to do some sort of magick or spiritual ritual to Turn oneself. There are those who claim to be able to do this. (There is one such person referenced in The Science of Vampires. She does not sound credible to me, but that is my personal opinion).

Parasitic/Symbiotic Entity

If this scenario is true, then there would definitely be a possibility vampirism could be passed on through physical or psychic contact, either like a physical parasitic infection or some kind of spirit possession.

In the latter case, it would theoretically be possible to summon a vampiric entity from the astral plane, invite it to join with you, and thus make you a vampire. Once again, this would mean deliberately Turning yourself, rather than being turned by another person (although it would require the assistance or cooperation of a spiritual entity).

Damaged/Missing Chakras; Energy Deficiencies; etc

If this is the explanation for vampirism, it wouldn’t make sense for someone to deliberately damage or handicap themselves in this fashion, so unless someone already has this condition, there’s no benefit in being Turned.

In theory, this kind of damage can be caused by giving too much or for too long as a donor, and I have heard of people believing they have been Turned this way. I have heard of more instances, though, of donors who only became vampiric temporarily, but go back to normal once they have “healed” or spent time away from their vampire. Michelle Belanger calls this “sympathetic vampirism” in her book, The Psychic Vampire Codex.

This is a subject of much debate in the vampire community. Many do not believe it is possible to be Turned into a true vampire, but only to be made temporarily vampiric until the effects of feeding wear off.

Virus or other outside pathogen

In this scenario Turning would be possible as a form of infection, but it would require exposure to another (vampire) who is already infected, or exposure to the environmental factor that has caused others to Turn. (At this point, such a pathogen is unknown; The Science of Vampires suggests chemical pollutants or nuclear radiation as possibilities). This explanation seems unlikely, based on vampire experience. I have not heard of any “infecting” their donors in such a fashion.

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Of course, there are many kinds of vampires (see my article, “The Truth About Modern Day Vampires,” for an explanation of the various kinds), and more than one of these scenarios might be the “true” explanation for any given vampire. Therefore, there might be a variety of ways that someone could be “Turned,” depending on the type of vampirism in question and which paradigm(s) are accurate.

I invite you to join us at Talkshoe for our Meet Up discussion on this controversial subject. There is a lot of meat here to pick over and pick apart, and I’m sure there will be many different and opposing points of view and opinions.