I know what you’re thinking: “Sucks my blood, and reads my mind, got it.” I get what you’re saying, but no, that’s not right. Good guess, though. So WTF is a psychic vampire?
Have you ever known somebody who just kinda sucked the energy out of you? Even if they didn’t particularly do anything to you, but something about their presence is draining to you mentally, and possibly even physically. If you’ve ever felt this way about someone, they may be a psychic vampire.
Psychic Vampires Have Been Around
The concept of a psychic vampire has been around for centuries. Western occultism and esotericism movements of all varieties have included in their teachings some form or another of individual who is mentally, physically, and spiritually draining on those around them.
They are also known as “energy vampires.” Early 20th-century occultist Dion Fortune, who would go on to found the Fraternity of the Inner Light, wrote fairly extensively about psychic vampirism and her interactions with them. In her younger life, she was a student and then a lecturer of psychoanalysis.
Because of Fortune’s necessary work and study in clinics, she encountered many people who claimed to be depressed, manic depressive, or otherwise mentally unsound. She wrote in her book Psychic Self-Defense about how she encountered, on multiple occasions, two people who would have what she called a “morbid attachment.”
One of the pair would be extremely psychologically weak, which would be expressed through their ailment. Fortune says this would most often be seen between mother and daughter. Still, she observed it among all different types of relationships. She says that in these cases, they would often find success in helping the individual with the affliction.
She writes that the relationship the individual was a part of would often become untenable. “The curious point, however, was that the breaking of the morbid rapport caused a marked disturbance. Even semi-collapse of the dominant partner in the alliance.” Fortune stated. What’s happening here is that the weaker partner has had their energy drained by the dominant partner.
This treatment has allowed them to become psychically self-sufficient, which invariably means they are going to block the dominant partner’s capability to “feed” off their energy. Fortune also noted, “I could not help being struck by the curious effect separation had upon the person who was not supposed to be ill, and that as the one went uphill, the other went down.”
Examples of Psychic Vampire
This is an effect we have all probably witnessed at some point in our lives. Imagine a friend of yours who is in a toxic relationship. Maybe they never get their way in the relationship or don’t get to see their family or friends. They always defer to their partner, because their partner is the stronger personality and isn’t seeing how it’s affecting them.
You may have told them to break up with this person, or at least spend some time apart. Then, after taking your advice, you hear that their partner did not take this suggestion well. That person may be a psychic vampire.
Church of Satan founder Anton LeVay popularized the term “psychic vampire” in the 1960s. LeVay characterized such an individual as fundamentally weak. They feed off the energy of others because they cannot sustain their own, and so they need to supplement it.
Essayist Holly DeNio Stephens, a scholar on Russian occultism, has written on the subject too. She describes what a psychic vampire is like in her essay “The Occult In Russia Today.” Writing: “They are egocentric, but frequently portray themselves as altruistic and benevolent; they can not or will not use cosmic energy… and they steal the life force (prana) from the auras of others.” Do you feel you know somebody in life who fits this description?
Stephens also endows us with the fact that “coffee laced with black pepper” functions as a defense against such individuals. You just have to come up with a good excuse for why you’re asking for pepper after the barista gives you your morning latte. Tell them you’re afraid of vampires. Your call.
The Alternative
Not-so-negative views of psychic vampires say that they don’t always bring you down. Some of these individuals, at least those who have learned to use their power for good, feed off of the negative energy of others, allowing them to purge themselves of unhelpful energies.
If, after reading this, you think that you may suffer from psychic vampirism, try reaching out to a friend. See what’s going in their life. Make an authentic bridge between your and their psyches, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll satisfy your needs. Likewise, if you aren’t a psychic vampire, just drink coffee with black pepper.
