[The Bear's Lair] Vampire: the Masquerade, religions and mythology - Vol. 4

With the twenty-third appointment with the Bear's Lair, the column dedicated to the discovery of mythology in video games And in the RPGs, our journey to discover the relationship between Vampire: the Masquerade, religions and mythology. At least for now.

If you missed the previous stages, I suggest you take a look at:

• the first part, which focuses onJudaism and on mild mesopotamic;
• the second, which passes to Christianity and at Cathar and Cainite heresies;
• the third, which collects Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Egyptian gods, Animism, Zoroastrianism, druidism, shamanism, paganism, Wicca, True Faith, ace of cups and seven of diamonds.

At this point, let's start the fourth and last article of this cycle on VtM and White Wolf's World of Darkness.

A splash of Demonology and Occultism

Let's continue on the path of the occult, dear investigators: let's see how much Occultism and how much Demonology we can find in the World of Darkness.

The answer, of course, is: a lot. Let's go!

Demonology and Satanism

As for the dark and demonic aspects of that disturbing territory that borders the north of the Religion, to South with the Mythology, and to the East and West with the sugar beet and the steel industries, I could first mention the Baal: a Blood Line literally imbued with demonic cult, to the point that its members are extremely vulnerable to True Faith of which we have already covered in the previous article, and all that is Sacred.

Some believe that i Baal they are simply Infernalists who use demons to gain power; for others this Bloodline has the goal of keeping the hellish demons through destruction, cruelty and carnage, thus keeping them at bay.

Still others believe it to be some sort of Judgment Day worship, which intends to favor and hasten the coming of the Gehenna,Apocalypse vampire.

Secondly we could talk about the link between the Clan Tzimisce e the demon Kupala, and here I suggest you take a look at our very valuable article on Clan Tzimisce, which best embodies thealien perfection of this clan of Transylvanian origins.

She bathed, in addition to being an extremely powerful demon, physically permeates the Transylvanian territory, including the land that surrounds the Brothers Tzimisce during their sleep. She bathedFurthermore, it is the same entity which it has more or less indirectly caused the conspiracy of Tremere and the birth of the homonymous Clan, i Tremere. By the way: this is our insight into magic and the Clan Tremere. I strongly advise you to read it later.

Finally we have already seen the Black Angels or Black Angels, one Blood Line descended from the demonic Baal and by The shadow, whose members openly practice Satanism and believe they are sfollow us of Satan e enemies of God.

In short, in a setting with dark, gothic and deeply linked tones to religion and mythology, could not miss the Satanism and the various shades of Demonology.

Occultism and Black Magic

Where there is Demonology, however, we often also find other nuances of the study of the occult. And indeed, in addition to various forms of Black magic, Esotericism ed Alchemy, in World of Darkness numerous links with theOccultism more traditional.

For example i Children of the Abyss, a faction of the The shadow, follow the ancient traditions of the so-called Mysticism of the Abyss; while not believing that much in the philosophy of Sabbath, they try to keep good there Sect, so as to be able to use its resources and protection to continue the study of arcane arts.

Ah, while we are facing the issue of arcane arts, I would like to mention the Tal'mahe'ra, Black Hands o Real Black Hand, born from a cabal of mortal wizards dedicated to study of the occult and spirit world.

Over the centuries the Tal'mahe'ra has become a real one Sect, consisting mainly of three small ones Lines of Blood: L 'ancient Tzimisce clan, the Veri Brujah and Nagaraja, as well as some outsiders.

This sect has been present since the time ofAncient Rome and managed to infiltrate various elements in both Camarilla, both in Sabbath and both in Anarchist Movement; the ultimate goal of Real Black Hand it seems to be, in practice, awakening the Antediluvians and placing oneself at their service.

What could ever go wrong?

Finally, it should be remembered that some you have hidden they collected and organized the pieces of information about the demon She bathed, which we have already seen and which we will talk about again shortly, and in 1498 - in very few copies - the manuscript Incunabulum.

The followers of Voodoo

A separate paragraph deserves the influence of Voodoo in Vampire: the Masquerade: yes, I'm talking about Saturday.

Originally from the Caribbean and strongly linked to Voodoo religion, the Vampires of this one Blood Line manage to manipulate the negromantic energy, but not like i John: the dark magic of the Saturday it has a more temporary nature, and therefore these Brothers become often Mambo e Houngan, especially in ghettos steeped in superstition and in communities related to Voodoo tradition.

It is unclear whether i Saturday descend from Cappadocians or come on Nosferatu, but they have some form of connection with both Clans: necromantic arts on one side, disfigured appearance (and constant decomposition) on the other.

The same Discipline of this bloodline have been modified between one edition and another: originally they were necromancy, Get busy e Thanatosis, while in the 'Revised edition the Discipline necromancy has been replaced by Fortitude, and the former became a set of Paths. Other changes take place in theIt was Victorian and in LARP rules, eg.

What is known, however, is that the Founder of this Bloodline uses the similarities extensively to the Voodoo tradition, and abuses it for his own purposes: it has in fact taken the name of Baron Samedi, just like the figure of the myth, and he also took on his appearance and clothing, consisting of a formal dress, probably complete with a top hat, on a body in an advanced state of decomposition.

Well: also the part relating to religions in Vampire: the Masquerade is over, against all expectations. Let's now analyze mythology in Vampire: the Masquerade and in World of Darkness di White wolf.

A little bit of Slavic mythology in VtM

Meanwhile, I state that the same concept of If you want to, as well as the word itself, derives from the Slavic folklore.

But that's not all: White wolf has drawn heavily from Slavic mythology, and on this I propose only a couple of ideas that, if treated in an exhaustive way, would make us lose consciousness and wake up on a chariot bound for Helgen in Many, in the heart of the area most imbued with mitologia slava in The Witcher 3.

The recurring figure of Kupala

We have already talked about the demon in several places She bathed and its relationship with Tzimisce,  Tremere and with the Occultism.

Well, She bathed it is also present in our world, and specifically in the context of Slavic Neo-Paganism: She bathed, in fact, it is the name of the deity of witchcraft, herbs, sex and summer, as well as the Mother Water, and is also the twin sister of Kostroma, goddess of fertility and Fire.

During the night between 6 and 7 July of Gregorian calendar, which corresponds to that between 23 and 24 June of Julian calendar, still used in some of the Orthodox Churches, many Slavic countries celebrate the Kupala night: A pagan rite linked to fertility and the purifying power ofwater.

During this holiday, young couples jump on glowing bonfires together, float wreaths of flowers and lighted candles on the rivers, young women seeking husbands weave more wreaths in their hair and enter the forests first, followed by young men who are not. married.

As it happens not infrequently, mythology influences religion, and the latter appropriates the pagan holidays: the Kupala night, in fact, with the advent of Orthodox Christianity becomes the Night of Ivan Kupala.

It is basically the Feast of St. John the Baptist, which is celebrated in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland, mixing Christian themes e pagan holidays.

THEpurifying water di She bathed becomes thebaptismal water di St. John Baptist, precisely. With all due respect to the Tzimisce.

Also in Italy the Night of San Giovanni has a certain connection with the magical aspects: it falls very close to Summer solstice, popular belief holds it to be a related night premonitory dreams, and that the herbs gathered in those hours -called Herbs of St. John, precisely - have healing properties, thanks to the dew that covers them.

Finally, we recall that also theSt. John's water and Nocino of San Giovanni they are prepared during that night which, evidently, was loaded with meaning for our ancestors.

Baba Yaga

Let's move on now Baba Yaga: this Methuselah Nosferatu di Vampire: the Masquerade, daughter ofNosidatu Antidiluvian and maybe the first Nictuku (in V20, at least), also called Little Grandmother, Little Mother e Iron-toothed hag, in Slavic folklore plows the skies of Russia astride a mortar complete with pestle or, in some illustrations, of broom of sorghum.

In the myth, however Baba Yaga is one of three witch sisters or a single figure with three different facets, and lives in a forest in a hut supported by huge crow's feet. He is not an inherently evil character, in the sense that he can play alternately or even simultaneously with the Proppian roles of helper and antagonist.

 

An ambiguous figure and inextricably linked to female and maternal magical rites, with fertility (or the negation of it) acting as a common thread between the multiple aspects of Baba Yaga. Also the Lilith of VtM is characterized by a triple aspect, as well as most of the female mythological figures of human history.

Here we could bring up the Moire, Norns and Patch, which we have already dealt with many times in this column, but also our own ones Witches of Benevento.

Besides Lilith, should also be named Lilita, Great Mother, Inanna, Ishtar, Astarte, Afrodite, Isis, Venus, Urania, Freya and various female divine and semi-divine figures, always associated with ambiguity, with maternal protection andbewitching female danger. And often with crow's feet.

Here I am reminded of Disney and Neapolitan Amelia, the witch who bewitches, and also the Witch of the gingerbread house (no crow's feet, apparently) gods Brothers Grimm.

For further information, I refer you to the part relating to Lilith and to Article,Antidiluviana Toreador, of the first article of this cycle on mythology in VtM.

The Crone, the Crone

Always remaining on this vein of witchcraft associated with femininity, we briefly mention a The Crone, the Crone, the Witch, or whatever we want to call it.

As we have already discovered, seen and reiterated, the origins of vampirism and story of Cain get lost in the night of time; in one of these events appears The Crone, the Megera, which teaches Cain how to establish a Blood relationship, and as pmake a Vampire driving the iconic stake straight into his heart. And then you know, who hurts from the stake ...

Apart from the fate that awaits him, we know little about this figure; from the book Revelations of the Dark Mother we learn that, in fact, the Shrew was the second wife of Adam:

• the first was Lilith, repudiated as little submissive to her husband;
• the second was the Megera;
• the third time it was a Eva.

This prototype of Eva, in essence, it was rejected by Adam because our male chauvinist and even picky progenitor has seen God create this woman… from the inside out.

At the sight of what usually hides under the skin, Adam barely held back the retching, and therefore God, probably rolling his eyes for the first time in the history (or myth) of Creation, he decided to design the 3.0 model: Eva.

This time, however, he has well thought of narcotizing Adam, so as to be able to work in peace on the definitive model. There Shrew, however, he did not take it very well: in one of the scenery of sourcebook Gehenna, in fact, the history of the birth of the Shrew is confirmed, and we discover that once the name of Eickos / Narciso, she allies herself with Lilith against Cain.

The members of the Blood Line Lhiannan, deriving from Gangster, claim to be descendants of the Shrew / Eickos / Narcissus, follow one matriarchal hierarchy, practice the druidism and Ogham discipline, that is a kind of Blood Magic linked to Spirits of the Forest, To Natura and at Celtic runes.

At this point I guess the name itself, Eickos, is a reference to the greek concept di Eikos, which means just natural, right.

The Greek myths could not be missing

Speaking Ancient Greece: in gnostic systems that flourished during theHellenism, that is, in the field Greek - Roman, one of the emanations of the God Prime, monad,Uno, is the 'Aeon named Ennoia. This name represents theIDEA, Notion, Concept, but it is also the name ofAntediluvian of the Gangrels di Vampire: the Masquerade.

in Gehenna scenery called "The Crucible of God" Ennoia transcends its limits, and thanks to Protean Discipline it merges with the Earth itself, essentially becoming Gaia or Gea, Primordial Titan which for the Greeks was the Land.

The myth of the Minotaur

In the past we have already rediscovered the Mesopotamian story of Ereshkigal, Tammuz and Gilgamesh, which also involves theAntidiluviana Toreador, namely Arikel / Ishtar, and the bull of heaven; that story ends with the escape of Article towards the island Crete.

On this island, also known by the name of Candia, we see that Article makes the acquaintance of the King Minos, who longed for theHug area of Toreador.

After having been coy for a certain amount of time, Article Hugs the son of Minos; the neo-vampire, however, soon falls prey to the instincts of the Beast, and is imprisoned by his father in the famous Maze designed by Dedalo, and fed with sacrificial offerings made up of young girls.

Over the years and centuries, this Vampire, now more animal than real Brother, is known by the name of Minotauro.

We all know the myth of Theseus and Ariadne, right? The Teseo di VtM it's a mortal, and succeeds in kill the Minotaur and to escape from Maze with the help of Arianna.

It is noteworthy that the son of Minos, Embraced by Article "The dancer of the bull", has become - in fact - his own a monstrous bull.

I leave you here a link to our analysis of the Toreador Clan, for another point of view on this Clan.

Sparta versus Athens

If we talk about Ancient Greece, we can not forget the conflict between Sparta and Athens, that is, between the power of the Clan Ventrue and the passions of Clan Brujah.

Both of them Clan they had their hands in the dough Greece: on the one hand theAthenian agora and democracy, the fruit of a social experiment of the Brujah; on the other, it is rigid militarist society di Sparta, in which i Pot-bellied (mainly in the figure of Artemide, Daughter ofAntidiluviano Ventrue) used humans as tools.

La First Witch War, as it was called, ended with the abandonment ofAthenian experiment and founding of Carthage, which during the Middle Ages will represent theUtopia Promethean. THE Pot-belliedinstead, they dedicated themselves torise of Rome, together with Malkavian, To The shadow and, in part, also ai Gangster.

Exiting for a moment from Vampire: the Masquerade, but always remaining within the World of Darkness, the Athenians di Changeling: the Dreaming: a rather radical faction, made up of Troll which, to explain their own vision oforigin of the Fairy People, refer to myth of the creation of Athena, already born as an adult from the skull of Zeus, who had a headache and then gave himself an ax on his forehead. Likewise, for the Athenians, Fairy People it arose spontaneously from the dreams of human beings.

The Witches of Echidna

We have dealt with i Followers of Set, but we have voluntarily left out one of the internal factions of the Remember: the Caste of Witches of Echidna, officially disappeared in 1244.

Le Witches of Echidna they are also called Gorgons, and they dedicate themselves to the cult of Mother of Monsters: echidna, in fact, the first appearance of the serpentine being adored by this Caste of Followers of Set.

It should also be remembered that one of the aspects of Set I say Typhoon, and the Typhoon Greek was a dragon, generated by Titan primordial Gea / Gaia; In the Greek myth, together with his partner echidna, Typhoon generated a dragon stock which also included the famous Colchis Dragon, which housed the Golden Fleece.

The figure of echidna, for the Witches of the same name, it also contains many of the others legendary Greek monsters like Python, Hydra, ophion (which will later inspire the figure of Gnostic Demiurge) and various dragons, as well as Old Norse Jörmungandr, That is, the Snake of the World, and probably the Vitra dell 'Hinduism, which in summary could be the same entity, as we have already had the opportunity to discover.

Norse mythology of vampire noantri

Let's let the conversation flow naturally, and let's talk a little bit about Norse mythology.

There is the parallel between Old Norse Thor killing the cosmic serpent Jörmungandr with the thundering power of Mjollnir, and the Hindu Indra killing the cosmic serpent Vitra with the thundering power of Vajra, as we saw when we talked about Followers of Shiva / Set.

But there is also a certain Methuselah Gangrel, which dominated over a thousand years ago and normanni with an iron fist and sent them to raid the lower civilizations. His name? Nothing special, only Odin, the father of the gods. Or self-styled such.

His daughters, however, were called Valkyries and were commanded by Brunilda, while his sacred warriors Einherjar they fought against the tribe of werewolves call Fenrir, subsisting on the magica cornucopia call Blood Horn and feasting in the halls of the temple of Odin as if it were the Valhalla.

In Gangrel, Berserker norreni

In the supplement Wolves of the Sea, we read that nowadays i Gangster have a myth of creation all of them, which revolves around the figure of Canarl: it is a warrior who had been cursed by a runic mark, which prevented him from dying despite the countless wounds received in battle.

Odin offered three drops of his blood a Canarl, tying it to itself and making it de facto the first Vampire. The fate of this ancestor, as well as that of his descendants, is to fight alongside the aesir during Twilight Fate of the Gods: Ragnarok.

The story resonates a lot with the story of Cain and also with that of Longino, which we have seen together previously, but the Norse myth is much more suited to the background of the Clan Gangrel, in my opinion. About this Clan founded by Ennoia: don't miss this article on some interesting aspects of Clan Gangrel.

Sweet in the ass: Lovecraft and Vampires

Now, let's be clear: in this column some mention of a could be missing Lovecraft? May it never be! In VtM I found two main references to the works of Solitaire of Providence.

The first, decidedly more nuanced, is that of Mysticism of the Abyss: this form of Blood sorcery, typical of Lasombra Clan and derived from Discipline of Darkening, opens a window onAbyss: A primordial emptiness, Chaos before Creation.

An almost sentient Chaos, however, especially after the fusion with the soul of theLasombra Antediluvian.

In short, it is appropriate to say that if you fix theAbyss too long, the A.fine linen could gladly look back.

The connection with Lovecraft it's the same Lasombra Antediluvian, who rejoiced at the arrival of the dark waves of the Deluge, and whose connection with the sea is so strong that its descendants, in addition to having been devoted to the piracy, still feel the irrepressible need to immerse themselves inunderwater darkness.

In the story The Creeping Chaos, published in 1921, the old HP shows us one opiate vision of Deluge which destroys the world, quite literally.

Also the theme of a Realm of Chaos just separated from reality as well as that of a primordial emptiness inhabited by creatures who, at times and under the right conditions, enter our world with all that goes with it, remind me of more than a single lovecraftian theme.

Madness of the Malkavians

Ah, one of the most recurring aspects in the prose of Lovecraft: the madness which protects us from forbidden knowledge, but at the same time reveals it to mortals.

Brutally summarizing the several dozen pages I read while researching this article, we can say that Malkav, the founder of the Clan Malkavian, has known the Truth Behind the Veil of Reality, Namely the Truth behind the Universe, but it was this discovery that drove him mad.

According to some legends, in reality, it was Cain himself to bless Malkav with the gift of madness, perhaps to protect him from this Truth, or perhaps to reward him for getting through the artificial barriers of Creation.

Died in unclear circumstances, it seems that the fragments of consciousness di Malkav continue to exist in the Clan Malkavian: the Network of Madness, which connects the minds of all Clan members.

It is not known whether it is an attempt, more or less unsuccessful, to arrive at one higher state of consciousness alone or together with the rest of the Clan, or if it is a contingency plan implemented by the Antediluvian to escape the Final Death. Or if, on the other hand, it is part of a plan to rise again in due course, devouring the minds of his descendants.

Ah, we can't forget that in one of the scenery of the Gehenna the dear Malkav awakens and takes control of the minds of his Sons, making them even more insane, and gripping in the grip of madness even the minds of mortals who, slowly and in perfect Lovecraftian style, regress to the semi-animal state and form packs that devastate, kill, tear and howl at the Moon. On the other hand there must be a reason if that of Malkavian is my favorite clan, right?

If in doubt, here is the access way to enter the online Malkavian. But only on Wednesdays.

To conclude the discussion on Vampire: the Masquerade, religions and mythology

Before finishing this long, very long journey of exploration inside the mythology and religions in Vampire: the Masquerade, we must reiterate that the vast majority of Vampiri was, originally, a mortal being; like all mortals or ex-such, they too interpreted reality according to the paradigms and the conceptual lenses which, in one way or another, then converge in myth and religion.

Also Vampiri, in short, they have gods preconceptions, if only as a remnant of their mortal lives: these preconceptions, enriched, embellished and distorted by non-life by Kindred, are handed down from generation to generation, with all the accuracy problems that come with it.

Historical accuracy and points of view of the sources

A Vampire born in Athens inAncient Greece, for example, will have interpreted the Vampirism and everything that follows second the world view of an Athenian of the time, while a Hindu will have had its optics, as well as a Egyptian, for an Norman, for an Etruscan, and so on.

To this we must add that there is only one Sire tell everything all to yours progeny, and this also applies to Antediluvians which, in turn, are not directly descended from Cain, but from the disappearance Second Generation.

La Camarilla, in part, it codified the history and tradition of the Vampiri, as well as as well as the first Council of Nicaea of 325, together with those immediately following, codified a large part of the Christian doctrine, smoothing out the differences so as to reach thedogmatic unity.

We also add that the books of VtM they are mostly narrated by a internal point of view to history, and therefore we cannot fail to take those testimonies cum magno grano salis.

On the other hand, if we were to take even just the stories of our parents literally, we would have to imagine that fifty years ago children faced three meters of snow, wolves and polar bears just to go to school, right?

Let's finish in earnest this time

Okay, we've said everything there is to say.

If you don't know the world of VtM and you want to start playing, I suggest you take a look at ours complete guide for Vampire: the Masquerade; while you're at it, just to understand how delicate and controversial some of the issues they make up are the World of Darkness, also read our piece on the recent controversy on politically correct that hit White wolf.

And if, like me, you enjoyed it i videogame basati su Vampire: the Masquerade, I predict that one dating app perhaps marks the return of Vampire: the Masquerade – Bloodlines.

At this point all that remains is to give us an appointment at Next Wednesday, with a new appointment with the Tana dell'Orso in which, hopefully, we will talk about something else.