Harnessing the Phylactery: Tools for the Psychic Vampyre by Ozymandias

A tool in every psychic Vampyre’s arsenal that often goes unused is the Phylactery, which Father Sebastiaan, in his Black Veils, refers to as a potentially endless source of energy for the Vampyre to draw from. In both magickal and religious traditions, the Phylactery is sometimes referred to as a reliquary, a soul jar or vase, or an amulet into which the practitioner places a piece of themselves.

These are of course some of the forms which it can take. To the Vampyre somewhat versed in the magickal or occult arts, there can be a much wider variation and such a vessel can indeed vary. It can be said that the Vampyre’s primary Phylactery is their own physical body. 

But perhaps I can illustrate this point further by going into what other forms it can take.

For the more art-oriented individual, their work may be infused with their own life-force, as it is no small feat to create something. When we use the expression of pouring one’s own soul into something, this is not just a turn of phrase. There are works of art such as sculptures or complex paintings that simply appear to come to life and be imbued with something beyond that which is physical. Therefore, a Vampyre can very well store some of their own energy into such a piece–into music, drawings, paintings and so on.

Music I believe can stir strong emotions and tell a story of its own. It is not just the words but the melody that weave such an amazing spell as to simply bewitch the senses and instill such a sense of awe as to almost be religious ecstasy. It is no mistake that places of worship count on their own hymns and melodies to take the mind from the mundane to the etheric and that which lies beyond the material. Can then the Vampyre not enact in a similar act by creating their own melody and thereby give rise to such collection of emotional or otherwise psychic fuel?

In traditions that make use of thought-forms such as servitors, Egregores or Tulpas ( a somewhat culturally charged term perhaps divorced from its original intent and which seems inaccurate to use in the Western occult tradition) the practitioner can indeed more than project a purpose onto the entity of their own making and give them not only a semblance of awareness but also turn them into storage of their own life-force. In my own experience, thought forms can become so advanced as to have experiences and even awareness of their own outside of my own consciousness, and in some way I can say that they are imbued with my own energy—and the more I interact with them the more alive they appear to the point that they may go on to have their own existence elsewhere, but also continuously in a sort of feedback loop give back their energy to me.

I am a firm believer that the adept of the occult and spiritual arts is able to in their mind or some noospheric realm create a sanctum where they may perform these sort of feats and make whole worlds of their imagining that at some vibratory level are as real to our minds as the very physical world and can alter our moods and outlooks in similar ways. It is then an act of creation and something which I can count on providing me with endless supplies of energy.

The way in which a Vampyre may take from a willing donor or a crowd of people I and others can similarly do from our thought forms and mental/astral worlds we have shaped. 

I would be remiss if I did not mention what is perhaps an overlooked form for this vessel to take: the physical or otherwise etheric body of a donor, friend, or sympathetic Black Swan. In the past, I have been able to leave some of my own energy or etheric body in the bodies of other individuals, allowing them to slowly draw on this life force. In my opinion, this should be a consensual act, as it is not just an act of creation but something deeply intimate. This connection may evolve from a simple donor relationship to an extension of one’s own life force, akin to what some would refer to as a soul mate—a soul split into two bodies, two halves of a whole. There should be clear intent when engaging in this practice, as there is a real danger that a piece of oneself may not only predate but also cause harm to both parties involved.

Ultimately, the form that the Phylactery may take—whether etheric, physical, or auditory—as a person, a song, a work of art, or even a poem or sigil, is entirely up to the Vampyre. I will not classify any one form as superior to the others, as we work with whichever tools we feel most comfortable with.

As I mentioned, it is an unused tool—and for good reason. The intent must be absolutely clear, and the practitioner must be prepared for every possible outcome. To give one’s very life force away for storage or temporary residence to draw on later is a commitment. Can one place it inside something that can break down or be broken? Can one place it inside a person who may not be around much longer or whose intentions may not be true? These are questions we need to consider carefully before proceeding.