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Lechies

posted by Krista | 3/30/2003 11:30:33 PM | Permalink | Stumble It!

Leshy (aka Lesiy, Lesiye, Lyeshe, Lyeshy, Lesovik, Miehts-Hozjin) is a Slavic forest faun/satyr, similar in nature to the Polevik sprites. He protects the birds & animals of the forest, & his protection is the bear. In terms of appearance, his shape is human, his blood & skin tone are blue, his eyes & beard are green, he wears his shoes on the wrong feet, & he doesn't have a shadow. Sometimes he appears with horns, goat's feet & finger claws, similar to the devil. It is thought that his parents were a mortal woman and a demon. His wife's nave is Leshacikha and his children are known as the Leshonki. Leshy isn't always evil, though he enjoys misguiding humans & kidnapping young women. He can be thwarted if one wears their clothes backwards.

Dictionnaire Infernal - Collin de Plancy (1863) (paraphrased)
Lechies were Russian demons that lived in the woods. They had human bodies from the waist up with the horns, ears, and beard of a she-goat. From the waist down, they had a goat's body. They would shrink themselves to the height of the grass when marching through fields, but would grow to the size of the tallest trees when they ran through the forest. They had horrible cries, but could imitate voices familiar to wanderers & could lure them back to their caves, where they would tickle them almost to death.

Reference

• DeliriumsRealm Store: Buy Leshy Merchandise
• Book: Dictionary of Ancient Deities