We are all familiar with the hollywood type of vampire.  The blood drinking undead.  Historians usually consider Vlad the Impaler as the primary source of the vampire legend.  While Vlad is certainly one of the sources, they need to consider what is meant in this legend.  Blood, to many, is the source of life so a creature that drinks blood is stealing life.

There is a spiritual equivalent of these vampires.  They suck life energy out of the people near them.  The vast majority of them are totally unaware that they are doing it.  Those trying to develop spiritually should try to avoid such people. 

So how do you recognize them?  If there is someone who makes you feel weak and tired when they are around you and you didn't do anything to make you weak and tired, that person is probably a spiritual vampire.  These are not evil people trying to kill you.  They are unaware that they do this and wouldn't know how to stop if they were.