Chiang-Shih
Chinese vampires, or the Chiang-Shih, are extremely terrifying creatures. The Chiang-Shih usually originate from the bodies of people who had suffered a violent death, such as suicide, hanging and drowning. "The Chinese felt that the unburied body was at great danger because the evil spirits could inhabit it."[1] The Chiang-Shih were known to have two souls; the first soul is the superior or rational and the second is the inferior or irrational soul.[2] The superior/rational soul had the ability to leave the sleeping body, roam around, appear as a double, and speak through the body of another. The inferior/irrational soul inhabits the body of a fetus during a pregnancy and would linger in bodies of the dead to preserve the corpse.
How they appear
The Chiang-Shih were known as vicious, nocturnal creatures with very strong sex drives. The Chiang-Shih violently attacked its victims by ripping off their head and other appendages. The Chiang Shih would also seek out women to rape in order to fulfill their sexual drives. The Chiang Shih could be identified by their white flowing hair, serrated teeth, and green talons. Some could take the form of humans while others could be seen with a green phosphorescent glow. The Chiang Shih were blind and haunted their prey by the scent of the victim’s breathe. The Chiang-Shih also used strong gale-force winds and long mustaches to hunt and capture their victims. It was also thought that if the Chiang-Shih lived long enough they could learn how to fly and possibly change into wolves. [2]
Vampire Comparison
There were many different things that people would do to try and protect themselves from the Chiang-Shih. It was thought that loud noises would keep the Chaing-Shih away and that thunder could possibly kill them. Items such as iron filings, rice and red peas would be used as barriers. Garlic, salt, straw, chicken blood and mirrors were also used to keep the Chiang-Shih away. Urine from a chaste virgin was thought to repel or corrosively burn the Chiang-Shih. When villages would become overrun with vampires, the village would recruit a Taoist priest to come into the village to perform a ceremony to rid the village of the vampires.[2] "It was commonly believed that with incantations the priest had the ability to activate a talisman which could totally inhibit a vampire’s actions when applied to it’s forehead area, thus putting the vampire under a spell." [1] The priest would then subdue the vampire and ring a bell to make the vampire take a single jump.
The Chiang-Shih vary from traditional vampires in many ways. The Chiang-Shih in most cases will take the form of a person who has died and seeking blood is not one of their characteristics. The more obvious difference between the two is the nature of the Chiang-Shih. The Chaing-Shih were a much more violent attacker than traditional vampires. The ways that the Chiang-Shih attacked, dismembered, and raped their victims is much different than that of traditional vampire.
Influence on Feng Shui
The fear that is instilled by these creatures has affected the wisdom of feng-shui. In order to try and prevent these creatures from entering the homes, people would install a piece of wood approximately six inches high along the width of the door. By doing this, it was thought that the threshold would prevent a hopping corpse from entering the room.
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Monstropedia.com. Chiang-shih; http://monstropedia.org/index.php
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 DeliriumsRealm.com. Chiang-shih. Dec. 12, 2007; http://deliriumsrealm.com
