Every culture has their own collective tales concerning the supernatural or better said, what goes bump in the night.
One of my favorite places to explore is Romania even though you will see me ramble away in the future concerning much more ancient of cultures such as Egypt.
Romania has built a historical empire on the vampire though. I doubt there is a need to name famous writers who based their vampire novels on this fertile, Gothic haven. But we have to sooner or later realize that there was something more than interesting being whispered upon the trembling lips of villagers for so many to seize this golden writing opportunity. So that is my goal here. To drag you along every wondrous avenue of information that I went down myself especially since this is my chocolate—where all these dark and delicious creatures stem from. I didn’t want to base my novels on what writers’ created though. I wanted to base my characters on actual myths and lore and build from there. After all, Bram Stoker did not give birth to the vampire as I like to say. The Vampire gave birth to him. So in this article I will discuss the Mullo who is a vampire based on Roma (Gypsy) belief and lore.
Interestingly enough, Mullo means ‘living dead’. They are restless spirits who rise up from their damp and darkened graves to either avenge their own deaths or have sexual encounters with those they couldn’t have or were obsessed with in life. If a person died who didn’t like you and then became a Mullo, well you could most certainly expect to see them wrecking some horrid havoc where you’re concerned.
The Mullo seem to be invincible except where their lovers are concerned. They have a sexual desire that is insatiable. The Mullo have been known to ask their lovers to join them in the grave or to marry them. Legend has it that the lovers have even been left weak or have become ill by their encounters with them. That’s how truly powerful their passion can be. In fact, women have been known to become pregnant which is where the term ‘DHAMPIR’ comes from. In some lore, a DHAMPIR can only be a male.
In order to destroy a Mullo, one must scream a Romanian curse at it. “God send you burst!” Or you can strike them in the tummy with an iron needle or throw some Holy Water. A DHAMPHIR has the power to kill them by shooting them or knifing them with a dagger. Black Dogs, Black Cocks or White Wolves can also kill a Mullo.
In order to destroy a Mullo though, it has to be done 40 days — 3 to 5 days after burial. After that, they are indestructible.
Written by C.H. Scarlett
Filed under: Articles, C.H. Scarlett, Entertainment, Gothic, Legends, Lore, Myths, Paranormal, Superstitions, Vampires | Tagged: C.H. Scarlett, Mullo, Types of Vampires
