"Are Hindu Rakshasas Supposed To Be Ghouls Or Vampires?" Topic

I hate articles that explain one foreign name with another foreign name and, after a while they all sound "Greek" to me:

link

So what are the Hindu Rakshasas comparable to? After they were thrown down to Earth, aren't they said to have taken human form?

So are they more like Vampires or Ghouls? Do they have a Sumerian/Chaldean equivalent, with something like the chimera-like Lamashtu/Pazuzu* (or is Lamashtu more like Kali)?

Or are they supposed to be something else that has no comparison to anything else on the planet and, as hard as it is to believe, no relation whatsoever to any other culture's mythologies?

Thanks,

Dan
* Here's the "Lamashtu Plaque", with Lamashtu (Lilith?) holding two snakes and Pazuzu standing to her left and again on the entire back of the plaque:

The cannibalism and blood drinking shows up in many myths around the world, so that shows a connection to other traditions, but Rakhasas also have unique features. I would describe them as more like demons with vampiric and ghoulish traits.

I suppose the feline Rakhasas of D&D fame are mostly artistic license.

I would say that they were closest to demons in western mythology. They would not fit my thinking of vampire (ex human blood drinker) nor ghoul (corpse eater) both of which count as undead which Rakshasa don't really fit.

x42

Well, when Carl Kolchak was looking for one it was "a carnivorous entity endowed with the ability to lure victims by assuming the appearance of friends and loved ones."

Of course, then again, no one ever believes Carl…..

Well, the old Rakshasa hunter on The Night Stalker claimed they lived in another dimension and sent scouts to ours, looking for a good time to invade--so I'd go with x42brown--demons.

The Night Stalker always scared the hell out me as a kid. I mean what person in their right mind would go hunting monsters with a camera in the sewer at midnight, alone….

@Xintao:
What makes you think Kolchak was in his right mind? He had already lost a lot of SAN points before the tv series even started.

@Cacique Caribe:
It sounds like you need a better dictionary!

Oberlindes: "@Cacique Caribe:
It sounds like you need a better dictionary!"

I think you are absolutely right!

Or maybe I need to get hold of a basic Comparative World Mythologies for "Idiots". A primer of some sort, but one that isn't written by followers of Giorgio Tsoukalos. :)

Dan

Most likely the pictures of those horrid-looking creatures were based on actual beings (no doubt with a bit of exaggeration/poetic license thrown in ;-) and the names will all be found to have a common meaning, i.e. "this is my mother-in-law", the tales growing in the commiseration being shared over many rounds in the ancient beer/ale house. Of course, YMMV* ;-)

*Your Mother-in-law May Vary

I think the closest relatives we might have are actually Norse Jotun or Grendel's family from Beowulf.

Then there's the whole lycanthropy thing, where people* were said to be possessed by some spirit or demon with predatory animal (not always wolf) tendencies.

Lycanthropy seems to run through most cultures across the globe, in one form (pardon the pun) or another, from pre-Sumerian times to the present.

Dan
* Those who were either victims of their own mental disposition or who became that way through ingesting bad (ergot-infested) grain or even exotic mushrooms. Can you even imagine what an "angry drunk" would be like on hallucinogens in ancient times, specially one not too well liked by the village to begin with?

D&D is spot on. They love to sit around smoking a hookah in a smoking jacket.

I believe they could adopt any form they wished when described in the Mahabharata.

Aha! So they were generally more like shape-shifters then. Interesting.

Dan

Ahhh, we loved Kolchak! MeTV, alas, just ended their Sunday-night-run of the series. It was so neat reliving the episodes. Now, granted, the series was dated (no computers, no freaking-cell phones, etc, etc) but it was a great series. The made-for-tv-movie that spawned the series "The Night Stalker" that the late Dan Curtis produced was, at that time, the highest-rated tv movie ever. Curtis also did "The Night Strangler" which, I think Richard Matheson did the teleplay. Both excellent films!! Thanks for the brief-trip down memory lane guys!

I just remembered something. The ancient Sumerians' werewolf was called Bau. I wonder if the pups were called Little Bau Waws. :)

Dan

If Lamashtu was a female werewolf … would that explain the Romulus and Remus she-wolf story? :)

Dan

I'm going with Vamps … but I have yet to meet any … so …

Well, you think you haven't. :)

Trust no one!

Dan

Just always carry Holy Water, a Cross and some very sharp wooden stakes. Just to be sure …

And a Flame Thrower could hurt either …

LOL. And U-V light!

Would "Holy Water and Crosses" work on vampires if they were atheists? Hmm.

Dan
PS. And something with silver … just in case they do turn out to be werewolves after all. :)

When in doubt … use the flame thrower … It effects all religions equally/the same. It does not discriminate …

Cacique: ostensibly the power of holy symbols is dependant on the strength of the faith of the bearer/presenter.
And if vampires are humans infected by a certain kind of demon, then it's the faith of the demon that matters, not the merely mortal shell. And since demons have traditionally been at war with Christian belief, holy water, crosses, blessed salt---all good bets.