The Ala is a Turkish term, borrowed by Serbs and Greeks, for an ECLIPSE vampire. The ala replaced the names of VARCOLAC and VUKODLAK as the sky creature who eats the sun and Moon. Ale (plural) assume human form and drink boiled milk, wine, and vodka like water. They bring storms that ruin crops. According to a Serbian folktale, a peasant who lost all his money because his vineyard was plucked clean by an ala is told how to kill the vampire: he must wait under his pear tree with a shotgun loaded with pellets of lead, SILVER,GOLD, and steel. The peasant replants his vineyard, which produces an abundant harvest. The ala comes to eat the grapes, and the sky becomes dark and menacing, with lightning, thunder, and hail. The peasant loads his shotgun and waits beneath the pear tree. Soon the alaarrives in the form of an eagle. The peasant shoots it and it falls to the ground; he kills it. The sky immediately clears. The peasant regains his wealth.
FURTHER READING:
- Perkowski, Jan L. The Darkling: A Treatise on Slavic Vampirism. Columbus, Ohio: Slavica, 1989.
From: the Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters – Written by Rosemary Ellen Guiley -a leading expert on the paranormal -Copyright © 2005 by Visionary Living, Inc.