Vampire

Time begins in flesh

left soul-less after death

yet living through the essence

of those who believe.

In a lunatic’s soul

The vampire gives birth

to circulating qi

that winds through sucking tunnels

connecting the limbs and mind.

we feel the toll

You have killed one man,

so what’s another

in a night that’s black

with waters of abyss?

the hangman’s noose

You can’t murder a man

who’s been dead for centuries,

for there is wisdom in the dead,

and a blind burning in love.

we struggle loose

And in our veins there is life,

the blood of Abraham

that carried a people starved

and stabbed by men of war.

But there are things that are worse than death

when the heart is drunk

and secrets leak from the grave

and what we see is the illusion of flesh.

Note: Qi or chi (both the same, just romanized differently), in Chinese medicine, is something like energy of life, a vital force that circulates through the body along pathways, analogous to the body's bio-electricity and heat. Practices like Chi Gong (qigong)  attempt to improve the flow of qi for health benefits.

Allusions: Garrett Fort, Sylvia Plath, Guy Endore, various old Dracula movies.

This is written for today’s dVersePoet’s prompt, “vampires,” which I am guest-hosting.

Please see my translation of Charles Baudelaire's "Vampire" for his take on the subject.