Within Lies Fact and Fancy, Truth and Metaphor. Discriminate with Care.
The Vampire Bible is the first in a series of five Bibles published by the Temple of The Vampire that began as an experiment by some members of The Church of Satan back in 1989, and is actually a registered religion with the U.S Government.
Like the COS it champions power, wealth and human potential to the greatest degree. I say human but to the Temple its members and future members view themselves as more than human. Like the Vampire of folklore they crave power and wield it without guilt. They know they are supreme, and have a higher calling than the human sheep of this world and have no qualm in answering that call, but we will also see that these vampires are nothing like their mythical counterpart in deed and operation.
The TOV offer a glimpse of the six secrets of Earthly power on their home page:
SIX SECRETS OF EARTHLY POWER
1. Develop willpower and mental strength. 2. Get your way with people.
3. Master self-defense secrets.
4. Improve and protect your health.
5. Achieve authentic financial freedom.
6. Live beyond the usual human lifespan.
Here I will discuss some of the contents of the Vampire Bible, and give a brief outline of its tenets. The Bible is only 50 pages in length but gives an introduction to philosophies and religious origins, how they 'feed' and nurture power, along with some of their other mysteries. To give you an idea as to the mind set and mission of the Temple and its members I reproduce their creed here:
THE VAMPIRE CREED
I am a Vampire.
I worship my ego and I worship my life, for I am the only God that is.
I am proud that I am a predatory animal and I honor my animal instincts.
I exalt my rational mind and hold no belief that is in defiance of reason.
I recognize the difference between the worlds of truth and fantasy.
I acknowledge the fact that survival is the highest law.
I acknowledge the Powers of Darkness to be hidden natural laws through which I work my magic.
I know that my beliefs in Ritual are fantasy but the magic is real, and I respect and acknowledge the results of my magic.
I realize there is no heaven as there is no hell, and I view death as the destroyer of life.
Therefore I will make the most of life here and now.
I am a Vampire.
Bow down before me.
The Winged Skull of UR
The Temple's motto is: Test Everything - Believe Nothing. This is similar to the Satanic Credo of Doubt, and where Doubt is more important than Truth, the utilisation of doubt leads to the real truth through investigation. With the topics and rituals within the Vampire Bible, the Temple and its Priesthood ask you to fully investigate and verify their claims and knowledge for yourself. They accept no flights of fancy, nor delusions or fantasies. These people are discouraged and turned away from the Temple as are criminals who break the laws of their respective governments. The Temple has disdain for those who break human law, especially those who are members of the Temple, and ex-communicates such imbeciles without compunction. Like the COS, the TOV gives responsibility to the responsible, and expects its members to behave in a responsible and adult manner within society.
Through its first Bible, the Temple is quick to discourage the classical and fantastical view of the vampire and views blood-drinking as a metaphor and a practise for blood fetishists that has nothing to do with the real Vampire. Once again such sanguine practitioners are turned away. Temple members are taught a form of psychic vampirism, a secretive yet moral way to take Lifeforce that is discarded from humans and use to expand their own power, and those that run the Temple including the Undead Gods.
The TOV revere Tiamat, the Dragon God of Babylonian Myth that was the Goddess of the Sea who gave birth to a variety of monsters. The Priesthood in the TOV is regarded as the Priesthood of UR with UR referring to an Ancient city in Southern Mesopotamia (Sumer) whose patron God was Nanna, the God Of the Moon. For the TOV, Tiamat is the ultimate Undead God and is the source of all things, and all Lifeforce and it is through her that a Vampire can obtain true Lifeforce through the Ritual Of The Calling in a form of vampiric communion with the Undead Gods (sacrifice) with the symbology of a mirror, the very symbol of Tiamat.
The ritualistic aspects are very Sumerian in nature as they should be given their origin. The TOV claim that these secrets have been held by those in power since ancient times and known by such groups as Freemasons and other mystics. Now they have decided through public experiment to relay this information to those that are worthy. Part of the ritual asks the Vampire Sorceror to call To the Four Winds, which resemble to Watchtowers of Sumerian Myth. Here the practitioner through this ritual learns of the symbiotic nature of this Temple, and the true secret to its power.
In the world of the Vampire there are three realities: Dayside, Nightside and Twilight.
The Dayside is the skeptical side of the Vampire, and the keyword is doubt. The Vampire needs to approach life with a seriousness of no-nonsense and their utmost mission to acquire material possession and wealth, to live finanicially comfortable, and never worry about money again. The result of this is hedonism in its purest form, and masters of their own life, which is a natural consequence of attaining one's greatest potential.
The Nightside contains the magical side to the Vampire. Belief in magick when harnessed, and the will of the Powers of Darkness manipulated and controlled by the vampire's desire and all traditional vampire powers become reality. The Vampire is the quintessential Chaos Magician, using different belief systems and paradigms that serve his purpose at that particular time. The Power of the Astral Body is absolute.
The Twilight is the successful melding of truth and fantasy, mixing doubt and belief together into a workable model for the Vampire to attain complete success, and to mold their world into one that suits their needs and desires. They become both master of reality and dreams, and essentially become the Dragon, become their own God.
There are five grades or circles within the Temple, and after the Vampire acquires the appropriate Bible for the next grade, studies, understands and passes the tests within are they able to graduate to the next level.
The five levels are: Initiate, Predator, Priest(ess), Sorceror(ess) and Adept.
Most literature from the TOV is reasonably priced, but priced nonetheless to turn the unworthy and generally curious away.
In regards to Immortality, the TOV offer two choices, one through science (cryogenics) and the other through their own magickal methods. The TOV do not believe in reincarnation and that this life is your only life, and you need to make the most of it here and now, become the best you can be, surround yourself with greatness and you will be great. All losers and wannabes in your life must be discarded and will be forgotten in the sands of time as they crumble to dust and memory.
Disclaimer: No, I am not a member of the TOV and I do not endorse it.
Wow -- a registered religion, huh? Learn something new everyday about who's tax-exempt in the USA ... And sorry, but whenever I see the word "Twilight" I automatically think of sparkly vampires!
ReplyDeleteYes, you would think they didn't think that one through too much about using Twilight in their philosophy, but it was formed in 1989, and its literature written before than perhaps, while Twilight by Meyer is only a few years old.
ReplyDeleteThough to be honest, I would have love to have been a member on their forums when people tried to join up after the fact, screaming for Edward and where in one of the bibles it shows you how to sparkle :D
HAHA!