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Just out of curiosiy--how many of you subscrbie to the theory that a vampire must be invited to a home. Where did this originate ad is it really a cover up for something more sinister--like drifters that slaughtered families?

i don't follow the the believe of being invited... if anything it's a vampired last way of being polite to his/her intended victim.. not sure on the origin though.. never really thought about it till now.. will be interesting to look it up though and hear what others have to say

i think it came more from symbolism than anything else..if you choose to let evil into your life than you diserve what you get..i think is the idea..

I think it was something made up along time ago to give people a sence of security. If they don't let it in then it can't come in is what it seems to me they were thinking. But if you really think aout it, they could have used that same phrase or idea for death; eithier way once it's there time that's it now way around it. Death comes invied or not, well so does a vampire... but you could br right maybe it is the way of giving the human a last chance to say no go away.

A ridiculous notion. It is a cute myth though. But one must consider that I do not believe in vampirism the same way as most others here do. So, yea.

i don't believe in that theroy, i think if a vampire wanted to enter your home it would with or without your permission

Once again we see the blending of lifestyles and post "meanings". "POSTER" : do you mean to ask for the first movie or Hollywood reference to vampires not being able to enter a dwelling unless asked.....or do you mean to question as to whether ot not a "modern" "living" vampire can enter a dwelling without permission? Clarification, please; it will save ALOT of hassle in this thread.

I find this one hard to belive I don't buy into it at all. I'm not shure where it comes from but agree with a few here on the point that it probaly hes to do with inviting evil into you'r life. *so does that mean we are evil or just seen as evil*

I dont think they have to be invited in per se. Maybe they just want to be cordial and make themselves feel better :)

I thought one of the oldest vampire myths was that they come at night, and drain the sleeping of blood? The sleeping do not invite...

CTyler, that is a good point that sleeping people do not invite. In a lot of myths or stories, once invited the vampire can come back at any time. He would get invited in as a person and then come back later for the blood if he wanted to maintain secrecy.

As far as the invitation goes, people do not like the idea that something is out of their control. So they come up with some kind of special circumstances in which they can avoid it. For vampires, it was that you had to invite them in. I agree that modern vampires do not have to be invited in and if they ask, it's out of courtesy.

I don't believe in the invitation thing either; I think it was made as a way of reducing the fear of being turned or fed upon... I maen, if the vampires can do a lot of things, why being stop by a silly thing like "invitation"?

I though the legend was 'crossing a threshold' not into a home. Makes a difference because cemetaries have thresholds that had to be crossed.

It also goes against the other anti-vampire myths: hanging garlic, crosses etc - none of these would be necessary if all you had to do was say 'no' at the door.

I actually have never heard of this legend before. I honestly see no reason as to why it would be a true one. I would think a vampire can come and go as he or she pleases and that they would not bebound to stay out of somewhere if they are not invited. Is there anymore behind this? I mean is it being invited in or is it crosshing the threshold?

I dont think it is by invitation only...Just a myth... something invented to give people a sense of security

it was an old tale brought up by the centuries from hungarian beliefs ..... i think it was a way to make people feel safer in there houses at night.... and in those times they would not welcome anyone into there home after the sun had gone down.....someone up above said it was a security thing.... and i think they are right......since vampirs only came out at night this could be a way to make sure your families were safe to keep everyone out of your house after dark.....and to not go out of the house either...i honestly dont think it was true just like some of the outhere superstions on vampires.... ....but what ever makes people feel better in the times i think is how superstions and such get started.....

I believe an invitation would not be be necessary. I like the point Artemka made as well. I think it falls more into the myth category.

I agree with most here that it is simply superstition. I say this because if it were true, a vampire would only have to wait outside for the first human to leave the home of which they were uninvited to "feed." Security or not, it is simply BS because there is more than one way to skin a cat.

This vampire fiction was invented solely by Bram Stoker, an irish author who never set foot in Transylvania nor spoke to a single Romanian Gypsy about their vampire folkoric accounts:

"Stoker, from his dramatic Irish imagination (he was a theatre agent, after all) and Roman Catholicism, actually invented several of the vampire characteristics that immediately became 'vampire rules' in English literature. These include vampires not having a reflection, a vampire's having to be invited into a house before it could enter, the vampire's great strength, vampire mind-control powers, and the vampire needing special soil or earth to sleep in -- all pure inventions by Stoker."

- http://www.sanguinarius.org/articles/vampdef.shtml

I agree with PITBULLSRBABYS2 if you invite them in you are embracing what they bring. I see it as a form of acceptance. Myth or not isnt this society based on formality and tradition?

I have heard that on the movie "Lost Boys"

I think the myth that one must invite the vampire in goes hang in hand with the myth that vampires were not savage beast but refined gentlemen who used their smooth personality to persuade and entice victims...

Do i believe it is true? Not at all.

it's a likely adaptation to the ancient rites of adding some maner of marking or protections to doorways and windowsills that has been practiced since biblical times and before.
but the actual inability of a vampire to cross without invite, I have to agree with vampirologist(never did I think I would ever use those words) it was a creation of stokers.

i really dont fallow that and im not shure waire that came from and i dont think it's ture

That's interesting
If a vampire can use mind control then they could have you invite them in

I don't believe the thing about inviting vampires in.
The first time I heard about it was when I was watching The Lost Boys but I'm sure they didn't come up with the idea.

Again... Bram Stoker invented this completely on his own.

It first appeared in his book, Dracula

I think that this along with many other things are myths.

True... however, it is important to understand the difference between myths, which often have some basis in historical events and/or facts, and purely invented-for-entertainment fiction.

Unfortuantely, almost everything today accepted as "factual" about vampires comes solely from such baseless fictions.

im not sure if its tru ,but its in most movies ,so maybe they got it from legends

Lamia, in no way should they be anything less than what they are. But, as they are our "foundations," they were set a very long time ago during a conservative age of rules and regulations. Since then, we as people have evolved to be much more liberal and far less controlling. Yes they should be remembered, respected, and our manners should always be based on them; but at the same time, should be somewhat let go of so that people can grow.

I can't say that I believe in this theory. The problem that I see in trying to prove it exist or not (for me anyways) is that I don't try to break into people's houses to feed. LOL I tend to feed from people I know. So, in a way, I've always been invited. An interesting concept though.

Good point we shoud evolve but Loveseternaldeath sumed it up nicely would you take what wasnt given freely. Im not saying we cant take but should we.

We are supposed to have manners. You should never enter someones house without being invited.
lol Its where I think that notion came from..Sounds good anyway

I agree with Kytrin, i think it is mostly just good manners.

Just to play devils advocate...

Why would manners matter in the long run to a vampire? They're prey would not live to tell the tale of their rudeness.

I was thinking about the saying comment about crossing the tresh hold of a home... Because it is my understanding that a house does not make a home. It the books I've read about magic have also made that quite clear about the love and good memories made inside the house making it harder for evil to cross a tresh hold of a true home...as for vampires though i think it was more a polite way to further munipulate their intended victoms...though they could just enter they would rather be welcomed through the doorway then as others have stated they could truly feel you have decided to let evil into your home and your fate is then sealed... *shrugs* but who knows perhaps it also depends on if you truly BELIEVE that...believing in something also tends to have a certain power in itself...

I think it is more superstition, or maybe depending on where you live it is just plain good manners to wait to beinvited in, I do not think it really has importance unless you want to make a movie. Other then that...nope dont think it matter.

Myth only. Again, I think that inviting a vampire into your house is the same as inviting anyone into your house. Common courtesy dictates that you don't show up at someone's door without a prior invitation, usually. Of course there are exceptions to the rule for friends, etc, but even most friends will announce their arrival before they knock on the door.

I, for one, do not prescribe to the ideal that a vampire needs to be invited into someone's home. I am not sure where this came from; however, it is rediculous. Probably just an old wives tale.

I too like PITBULLSRBABYS2 believe it is purely symbolic. And it is not only relevant to vampires. More to human beings really. If you let evil into your life and into your mind, it starts to have power over you. On the other hand if you ignore it and don`t let it influence you, it doesn`t.

I think it is just a myth to make people feel safer .... most fear the unknown.

I don't know I think it's mostly just bs! In my family tho I was kinda taught if you were good & went by religion (christianity) then you didn't open yourself up to evil things! That meaning you are kinda welcoming it in if you did not do as religion states! Maybe part of this theroy or idea is more an altered version of that belief!

as i mentioned before, all things about vampires and certain ways were created so christians could handle the concept

I think this is totally made up. But then again maybe most Vampires are polite.

I guess the answer to this thread would depend on whether one believed in the Hollywood version of vampires which is fictional or that being a vampire is a lifestyle some choose to partake in.

This may have been a myth used to make people feel safer and that they could not be touched by evil unless they allowed it into their lives. Also, it is in Bram Stoker's Dracula ( others in this thread have mentioned that.

I believe that its made up, that the vampires have their own free will but the polite ones might wait to be invited

it is to do with our creators. vampires were the childeren I think and we were the test tube.
but we were still given free will. the invatation is for the mind only not the body. for anyone can brake in but if you truly wish no one in your mind no one will enter. for your body is your temple and your temple your home.

ya, that is pure myth, if a vampire wants to enter your home, he/she will do so. with or without invitation.

Tha'ts just plain silly, if you're talking about the living, breathing kind of vampire and not the kind you can find in books and movies.

As for how it originated, that's actually not a bad question. I'll have to look that up and get back to this thread.

i think this would be a courtesy for anyone to be invited in a home or across a thresshold. rather it be human or vampire or any creature in this world

This is another classic example of modern 'vampires' getting rid of part of their own 'history' because it isn't cool. Originally, Vampires had a host of weaknesses. Couldn't enter unless invited, couldn't cross running water(but could be carried), were instantly destroyed by stakes, and so on and so forth. These items were taken as fact by the people who knew it, and now, they are disregarded by people as 'myth' because it doesn't jive with the vampiric mystique. Eventually, vampires won't have any weaknesses at all, not even a need to avoid sunlight or drink blood, and be utterly indistinguishable in all ways from humans.

It's kinda silly, really.

Line me up with Daermon...I'm betting it could have origin with charms, spells, and prayers to keep evil at bay from your home.

I think that it was probably brought about to keep hysteria at bay long ago... that if there were a vampire about, he couldn't enter your home unless invited in. Although I do know that some writers incorporate this into their writings about vampires. Charlaine Harris is a fiction writer who uses this in her vampire series. Her vampires are not allowed into a home unless invited in. It is an interesting theory...but I personally believe that if a vampire wanted in...no invitation would be needed.

I would have to agree with Dragoneyes that it stopped mass hysteria.

Scybermonk has a point:

In the mad rush for anyone and everyone wishing to be "unique" by viewing themselves as "vampires," the modern definition of "Vampire" is becoming more and more mundane every day.

We see this particularly in the most common two forms of "vampirism" that today's truly Mundanes have adopted as their own: "Sang" and "Psy" claims.

Setting aside the fact that NEITHER trait is supported by the historical evidence as true indicators of actual "vampirism" (that's right... not even the "sang" aspect is truly historical), yet today's Mundanes love to believe that just because they lick some blood and/or subjectively "feel" they are receiving energy from those around them... they get to call themselves "vampires."

Sorry... but this is not "vampirism."


As for the fiction of "By Invitation Only," yet again... this discussion is moot given that Bram Stoker, the fiction writer, single-handedly invented the concept for his 1897 seminal publication, "Dracula."

That's where this fictitious trait began, and that's where this discussion ought to end.

Scybermonk and the guy who who looks like Fabio's cousin whose name I completely forget have damn good points, and I agree with Fabio Junior...

But then it brings up another question that I think should be discussed in another thread, which has actually been discussed to shreds.

What is a real vampire? If not sang or psi or the kind that needs permission to cross your threshold...what the hell is a real vampire?

Hi.... Fabio's Cousin, here... ;)

If you seriously wish to know, I invite you to read my profile front page and my journal entry for November 2006 "The Slavic Vampire as per the Original Gypsy Accounts". Both are well backed up with hyperlinks and/or citations from the books documenting the original accounts.

Now, you'll have to excuse me as I'm scheduled to be Fabio's stunt double for another roller-coaster ride.

There are a lot of Vampire myths, many of them explored in this very Forum. I think myths were there to keep young children in their beds at night. Mothers used to tell their children not to let people into their homes or they may just be a Vampire to scare them into not inviting strangers into the house!

Exactly so... they were designed to scare and frighten.

Except in the case of those males vilified as evil "vampires," it was not children the scary stories were intended to frighten... but instead, females.

I agree that when u invite a vamp into ur home u r inviting whatever may happen after, so it should not be a surprise. But really, they say it was a sybolism of describing how if u a vamp into ur home u invite the evil as well. Well, all vamps aren't evil....only when they need to be ^_^

I think that this was intended for vampyres in the olden days of yore and doesn't really apply to the vampyres of today.

Perhaps it has roots within an aberrant sense of chivalry, inherited from the Medievil times?

Yep, I definitely recommend reading Upir Fabio's profile and journal. That answers a lot of questions.

UpirInsatiable, have you considered submitting this information to the Database here?

Tis partly a myth from old horror movies, that a vampire must be invited in or he cannot cross the threshold to the door.
In Celtic stories and present today, when one wants to feed from another..be it blood or energy.One asked to be"invited in" or in other words asking that person's permission to feed.Taking anything from another is stealing and considered most crude.

I believe it derives form a false sense of security. I remember as a child, I watched dracula for the first time,, and was afraid to go to sleep,, and my mother told me as long as I did not invite a Vampire into my bedroom,, then he couldnt hurt me.

Well then, you're all safe and sound, then :)

Plus it cuts down on all the screaming when you're resting peacefully and I slip out from under your bed. God bless those mommies.

I KNEW that was you in my closet!!!!

I've been out of the closet for years! (It's scary in there.)

i do believe the vampire has to be invited into the home

Just a guess here, but I'm going to say it's a myth originated in Vampire FICTION

eh nonsense, plain and simple. you tell a starving dog to stay put after a bowl of food is placed before it....whats it gonna do? same goes for vamps I would think. If they want it bad enough, theyre comin in like it or not.

I think that the engery given off by the living is enough to stop the undead in their tracks until invited in

I still must say that it is purely a hollywood theatrical addition made to a vampires image, more than likely taken from the idea that if you let evil into your home, you embrace it. It's not more real than flying pigs.

I must say that respect has a lot to do with it I do not enter a home unless invited not because I cant but because I choose not to . Vampires are beings of power and respect if we do not have this what makes us different from the mortals.

Personally I do not think it is true....

Well I have no problems entering peoples home..But isnt it rude to just barge into peoples homes without invitations anyway.

Ive been curious on this as well. just another myth that is written out. im not quite sure. interesting question though.

I ran across this interesting theory on the invitation theory. "The house ia a metaphor for our subconscious mind. When
we invite a vampire into our house, we are symbolically invoking it into our
personal subconscious, where it is then free to feed upon our spiritual
vitality. This is why the vampire visits us during night, when we are asleep
and dreaming, and most vulnerable to entities in the subconscious mind."

its one of thoses old wives tales told to scare the masses..Nothing to it..

Yes I do follow the tradition. Its not that one can't enter the home its just if you have any type of up bringing at all you'll ask to be let in. Unless of course you were raised by wolves. Geesh I mean the mundane knock don't they then they are greeted and asked to come in. I believe it comes from the story line that most vampires are suppose to be hundreds or thousands of years old and very old fashion and back in those days people had codes and rules that they lived by and would never break just out honor. Personally I hold moral and honor above all so I do my best to be ask and be polite.

i've only heard references to that theory... never believed it.
unless the movie did less justice to the book than it did to being a movie, Bram Stoker's Way of the Vampire hints at it.

Joli-

I understand exactly. you let them into your home, you let them into your life/universe.

I agree its like an invitation into your life and soul. But the basis of inviting a vampire in....is probably hollywood again.

oh the wilderness of hollywood. tsk tsk tsk :)

I 've only heard this in the movies and on the Buffy/Angel series. I think if a vampire wanted to get in he would most certainly find away.

I personally don't believe that a vampire has to be invited into your home, but I also don't see vampires as being "evil", so the concept of inviting evil in doesn't wash with me...

Not exactly on target for this conversation, but assuming an invite was needed to enter, how long would the invite be good for. Would the vampire need to enter within a few minutes or so? Would it be an open invite until revoked?

I believe it was a myth of old. When people view vampires as being evil and from hell. In times past a family would ask the local church to bless there new house and in this would keep evil out. So in order for some thing of evil would have to be let in from the occupants own free will.

But it is a myth.

i believe that a vampire who intends to do harm must be invited into a home but one who is friendly and has no ill intentions can go where ever they like. Or maybe that is just my wishful thinkings lol.

if you have a matt on your porch saying "welcome" you are fair game muaaahhhhh

that is a myth. it was created more mythical by books and movies and tv shows

Isn,t it customery and polite to be invited into someones house before just walking in.

This is all from traditions, especially Slvic myth about the undead, and things have been spread and elaborated from there.

If a vampire is going to feed on their subject (either blood or energy), does it make any difference if it is a willing subject or an unwilling subject?

Continuing the idea that Joli posted: perhaps the invitation into the home implies a willingness to allow the vampire to feed. Willing subjects then being preferred over unwilling subjects.

However, this would not prevent an uninvited vampire from feeding.

It was just a myth to make people feel safer. If you don't invite evil into your home, then it won't befall you.

i dont know if its a good theory.

wish everyone human and vampire alike could adhere to this concept.

This thread has been automatically closed for length.