In my home state of Kerala in southern India, there is the legend of the Yakshi. Often depicted as a beautiful woman wearing a streaming white sari (traditional Indian outfit) and her long dark hair left open. Usually she is someone who was murdered or committed suicide. She is supposed to hide among the branches of huge trees during the day time and after dark stops unsuspecting wayfarers and asks them some random a question, like how to get to such and such a place. When the victim (usually a man) stops to answer this beautiful woman he is devoured by her. Different stories depict the Yakshi in her feeding frenzy as this woman with her face gone all ugly and scary ... red eyes and vampire like sharp teeth. The stories are so ingrained in our pschye that even today one gets scared to walk down a lonely tree lined road or street in Kerala.