Vampire Laws aren’t really laws, they are more considered Standards and Guidelines; while the Rules are largely unspoken… for example it is generally understood as a rule that event organizers do not schedule their events on the same day as another event, this way there is no offensive competition. No one should have to tell you that explicitly for you to understand that, that is just not an acceptable thing to do in the scene; To do so can earn you allot of enemies.
There are allot of unspoken rules like that within the community, and you really have to check your ego, your attitude and arrogance at the door when you enter our spaces. You have to respect the Elders of this community, the Old Masters. Important males will have titles like Father or Lord in front of their name, these titles have to be earned. Important females will be known as Lady or Mistress in title these need to be earned too. Checks and balances are put in place to ensure that those baring these titles are fulfilling their duties. Yes these “Titles” come with big responsibilities.
The Original set of Laws were known as the “13 BLACK VEILS“
The Black Veils were established by Father Sebastiaan and Michelle Belanger in 1998.
The veils helped establish some kind of order in the community in its early years. Since then the Veils have been somewhat controversial. and have been revised many times over the years.
The Original 13 Veils: Discretion, Diversity, Safety, Control, Lifestyle, Family, Havens, Territory, Responsibility, Elders, Donors, Leadership, Ideals. The Black Veils have been considered to resemble rules for a Live Action Role Playing game. Therefore the community has been working towards developing a system more rooted in the reality of Vampire way of things.
The most accepted Revision of the veils is known as “The Vampiric Ethos“
which shortens the laws into five basic principals: Community, Respect, Integrity, Awareness, and Safety.
The Vampiric Ethos was put together by Sylvere ap Leanan, Michelle Belanger, Merticus, Zero, Maloryn, and RedRaven… (If I find out what year I’ll include it later.)
In 2010 The “Totum Lex Vampyrica“ was introduced to the GVC by House Valur of the South African Vampire Community (SAVC). It is a more comprehensive system which includes laws for the Black Swans (Human Affiliates of the VC) and laws for the Otherkin (Other non-humans).
The Totum Lex Vampyrica is broken down into 9 Sections, Each having 4 to 8 sub-laws under them.
The 9 Principles are :Laws of Nature, Laws of Disclosure, Laws of Community, Laws of the Need, Laws of the Blood, Laws of the Essence, Laws of the Embrace, Laws of the Swan, Laws of Otherkin.
The New Black Veils by Father Sebastiaan have been updated many times over the years. In 2020 he released the Veils in the form of a Master Edition book which includes 41 Vampire Virtues, 8 holiday celebrations, 5 “Currents” or Caste systems for adherents to certain Virtues relating to Hosts, Magicians, Warriors, Temptresses, Priesthood. In the book the Black Veils have been changed to a new set of principals and beliefs. The new Black Veils include: Vampyre vs Vampire, Philosophy, Modern Vampire Mythos, The Mortal Coil, Zhep’r/Xepher, Awakenings, Legacy, Dayside, Nightside, Twilight, Sanguinarium, Strigoi Vii ~ Elorathian Magick, The Great Work aka The Quest, Religion. (This one is gonna require an update with a link to a page elaborating on each of the new veils).
Sebastiaans philosophy is heavily inspired by concepts of various other organizations. But the most notable concepts are the Xepher Philosophy of the force of transformation or the Becoming Power, Which is a staple in the Temple of Sets philosophy and practice and that of House Kheperu, a concept discovered in the Egyptian book of the dead. But another key concept he uses are the Dayside, Nightside, and Twilight paradigms of the Temple of the Vampire established in 1999. His system is designed to be more inclusive of people from all walks of life regardless if they identify as vampire or not. Because to him its just about empowering oneself through the Archetype of the Vampire, its not a condition in his view.
I like the philosophy, but I do not support the idea that anyone can claim to be a vampire just because they like vampires so much they want to dress like one. Most Vampires of the Greater community don’t support this ideal. Because many of us came together to form this community based on the fact that we were all experiencing a mysterious condition which could not be named; we took refuge in the Archetype of the Vampire which best fit our symptoms.
Back then the internet was in its toddler years, it was nothing like the super powered stream of eternal information that it is today. So today we have access to medical and mental health information that we did not have back in the day. Now we can draw lines to hypothesis of Mental and Emotional disorders that fall in line with Vampiric symptoms. The feeling of not being Human, Or feeling out of time and out of place. Those things can be linked to ADHD and Autism among other conditions. There are also links to PTSD, OCD, and other kinds of Behavioral and Anxiety disorders.
We aren’t “Normal” and we never can be! being what we are is not a choice; Awakening is the process of discovering that we aren’t “normal”…
Which is why we separated ourselves to be with others who have developed similar conditions to ours. This is Why Vampires embrace Therians and Otherkin, We Embrace Black Swans who support us. But everywhere else in the world we are always “Othered” viewed with caution or suspicion because we don’t think or act the way “Normal” people do. So as outcasts we rejected the Norm (Mundane) and created our own Society a Global Community of Like Minds.
We have systems of ritual practice that aid in teaching our members how to cope with silent struggles, Shadowwork is incorporated in every system, So is meditation, and Grounding techniques, as well as other helpful methods to aid in self empowerment. The core concept within the community becomes one of Transhumanism. The belief that you can transform yourself from something lesser to something greater. From someone who is damaged or broken to someone who is complete, refined, and renewed. We aim to improve ourselves eternally. How you do that is your business. But the general consensus is that some form of a Hedonistic world view is the prevalent ideology. I myself am an Epicurean, which is Indulgence with restraint and delayed gratification. But you might be interested in immediate gratification which is the most practiced form of Hedonism. Those who celebrate life to the fullest are considered “Immortal Minded.”Why Fit In When You Were Born To Stand Out!!!
The Misanthropic Vampire 