Pop culture, particularly fantasy and horror, draws heavily on cultural folklore and mythology, exploiting human fears and dreams for superhuman beings. Fantasy shows, in particular, go to great lengths to represent mythological and mythical creatures and entities. When you look at incarnations on the big screen like Thor, Loki, Poseidon, and Zeus, all types of mythology have taken centre stage, with some of the most popular being Greek and Norse Mythology. However, there are many more mythologies that are now being explored.
The Leshy is one such figure from Slavic mythology that is a crucial influence flowing through the show, as seen most recently in the popular Netflix series ‘The Witcher.’ The Leshy is a masculine forest spirit that protects wild animals and woods in Slavic mythology. Leshii translates to “forest king” from the Slavic word “les,” which means “forest.” Boruta is also tied to the Slavic terms bar, which means beehive, and bartnik, which means bee-master, a person who served shamanic duties in several civilizations. Leshy is also known by a variety of other names and spellings, such as Lesiy, Leshii, Leszi, and Lesovik.
The leshy is a sportive spirit who enjoys pulling pranks on others, but when furious, he can be nasty. Although he is rarely seen, his laughter, whistling, and singing may be heard all around the forest. Despite having the appearance of a man, the leshy lacks eyebrows, eyelashes, and the right ear, his head is rather pointed, and he is without a cap and belt. When the leshy is in his native forest, he grows as tall as the trees, but when he leaves it, he shrinks to the size of grass.
He is roughly comparable to Western Europe’s Woodwose and the Basque Country’s Basajaun. The Church transformed him into a terrible beast with demonic traits, also known as Boruta. Let’s see what exactly is this spirit deity and is it really dangerous?
Who Is Leshy In Slavic Mythology?
He is the spirit of the forest, and he is one of the most well-known Slavic mythological characters. The origins of the Leshy are disputed, and it’s difficult to define if he’s nice or bad, as is customary in Slavic folklore and fairy tales. In Leshy’s situation, it would depend on his temperament. He is a benevolent ghost who guides persons who are stranded in the jungle, according to certain stories.
In other accounts, he dupes tourists into following him further into the woods, leading them to dangerous bogs. Leshy, as the forest spirit, will go to any length to safeguard his realm. Thus, his views on people are frequently influenced by how people treat the forest and its creatures.
Different sources describe him differently, just like anything else in Slavic lore. Some believe he’s a giant who can walk across a river with ease, while others portray him as a small green man. As a result, it’s safe to infer Leshy has the ability to change his size and look at will. Despite this, most stories and fairy tales agree that Leshy looks and dresses like a man, with a few minor differences.
He can have moss on his clothes, a green or blue beard, and he doesn’t cast a shadow. He also possesses blue blood, according to some, and lacks the right ear, eyebrow, and eyelashes on his right eye. But it’s the fact that he buttons his clothes on the left side, that is the weirdest thing of them all.
Leshy, on the other hand, does not always take the shape of a human. He can transform into a bear, wolf, or owl, as well as tame animals like black cats. A tremendous wind surrounds a Leshy as he wanders throughout his realm, anticipating his approach and following in his wake.
He makes a lot of noise for a forest creature, with whistling, laughter, clapping, roaring, and crackling noises announcing his presence. You definitely won’t miss the pandemonium of sounds that surround a gigantic man with a green beard, even if you didn’t notice him.
According to adaptations of the leshy, it looks after the forest’s animals and birds, letting them know when it’s time to migrate. He has the ability to shapeshift into a variety of different forms. He has the appearance of a peasant, with flashing eyes and sideways shoes. The mysteries of magic can be learned by befriending a Leshy.
To protect their harvests and livestock, farmers and shepherds would establish pacts with the Leshy. The Leshy has a variety of tricks up his sleeve, including leading peasants astray, sickening them, and tickling them to death. They’ve also been known to hide woodcutter’s axes. When Leshy crosses their path, they become lost in the woods. Turn your garments inside out and wear shoes on the opposite foot to locate a way out.
Leslie is a nefarious creature with horrifying cries and the ability to impersonate the voices of persons who are familiar to wanderers in order to entice them back to their caverns, where the Leshies will tickle them to death; they also remove signs from their posts.
Although Leshies like leading humans astray and snatching young women, they are also notorious for preventing grazing livestock from going too far into the woods and becoming lost. Cowherds may sometimes establish pacts with Leshys by delivering him their crosses and sharing communion with him after Christian church gatherings; these pacts are claimed to bestow particular powers on the cowherds. When there is more than one Leshy in a forest, they will struggle for dominance, knocking each other down.
Leshies have also sometimes been regarded as demons. Under this interpretation, a Leshy is a Dictionnaire Infernal demon or spirit. He’s a Slavic forest being, similar to Polevik sprites in appearance. He defends the forest’s birds, trees, and animals, appearing as a human with blue skin, two enormous horns, green hair, and a long green beard over his face, and wielding a club or whip to show his command of the forest.
Leshies also have a team of assistants. Turosik and Stukach, or little leshachki as they’re known in Slavic folklore. Turosik enjoys taking on the appearance of a deer with golden antlers. He guides hunters into the deep of the woods, toward the worst marshes, in a malevolent and cunning manner. Stukach can accurately imitate the sound of an axe as if he were a woodcutter. People who get lost in the woods can follow the sound of the axe’s chops for hours.
What To Do To Avoid Leshy’s Wrath?
Every time someone got lost in the woods, Leshy was always blamed. So, if you’re planning a trip to the woods near you, you’ll need to know how to avoid provoking the forest’s protector’s dark side. First, pray to the forest’s owner and defender and beg his permission to enter before starting a trek along the murky route in the deep woods.
Second, it is definitely forbidden to punish children or dispute with anyone while passing through a forest, according to Slavic folklore. That is unless you don’t mind a quick meeting with Leshy. The fourth and probably one of the most important points is to avoid mentioning Leshy at all.
Don’t bring him up, don’t even mention his name UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE. The woodland ghost will appear before anyone who summons him, and I don’t think you’ll appreciate the encounter. Fourth, do not, under any circumstances, shout in a forest. Don’t respond to the echo.
You are probably wondering, what if you did everything right but slipped up and now the Leshy is in front of you. Or maybe you are just someone who likes to be prepared in case you do run into this forest spirit in its gigantic form. There are a number of oberegas or amulets that can be used to defeat a Leshy.
You can use salt or a linden tree branch that has been stripped of its bark to make a circle. Leshy is very vulnerable to fire. Leshy is also allergic to dogs and tricolor cats. Lastly, the leshy is terrified of firearms, particularly if copper bullets are used.
Finally, if you didn’t follow the guidelines above and Leshy led you into the thickets of a forest, you’ll need to take off your clothes and put them on inside out or switch your footwear from the left leg to the right leg and vice versa, in order to find your way back.
Our advice? Don’t go to random forests because humans don’t come out of situations like this unscathed, not all of us can be like Geralt of Rivia.
Leshy’s Relationship With Humans & Blud (An Evil Deity]
![Leshy’s Relationship With Humans & Blud (An Evil Deity]](https://marvelousvideos.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Leshys-Relationship-With-Humans-Blud-An-Evil-Deity.jpg)
Because a peasant’s life was always intertwined with the forest, folk tales are full of tales about leshy and the relationship of the spirit with humans in intrinsic to note when learning about the Leshy. The forest provided food for the peasant and his family, but it was never in his control.
As a result, the woodland was always tinged with a sense of mystery. Humans have to respect leshy in order to avoid issues with him. For example, before visiting the forest, obtain permission, and do not cut trees or hunt without leshy’s consent. Furthermore, being noisy or blowing a whistle in a forest was not a smart idea.
Such contempt may result in catastrophic consequences – leshy could frighten the poor human being, bring him bad luck, or even kill him in the worst-case scenario. It was also risky to enter the woodlands if a relative had cursed anyone who did so previously. Leshy believed that a cursed person was his property.
Shepherds have the chance to negotiate a bargain with Leshy in exchange for the safety of their livestock. Leshy took care of his herd and grazed them after the shepherd consented to an unseen contract.
There were, however, a number of regulations to follow, like remaining out of the forest and not harming other animals or plants, as well as witnessing babies or dying creatures. Leshy might kidnap the shepherd’s herd and hide the animals in the forest, where no one would ever find them. An irresponsible approach always resulted in problems and punishments.
With this hot and cold relationship with humans, comes a third party, Blud. Leshy and blud, an evil deity from Slavic mythology who tried to harm humanity by leading them astray and making them wander around well-known sites without finding their way out, are linked in several folk stories. Leshy is said to be capable of falsifying trail signs or posing as a person to lead a wandering in the wrong direction before vanishing and leaving the individual befuddled.
Leshy has also been accused of luring and kidnapping persons who have gone missing. There could be a variety of reasons for this. He had the ability to abduct woodland inhabitants who had been cursed by their families, particularly their parents. The goal was sometimes to kidnap and marry a young girl.
Then he’d treat her well and look after his wife. In other situations, though, leshy had the ability to turn a human into his personal slave. Christian rituals and insignia like the cross sign or prayers and paganism practices, as well as numerous gifts to leshy — pies, cereals, or a piece of lard — provided a way out for the kidnapped ones.
When a human returned from the captivity of a leshy, it was assumed that he was a different person who had difficulty reintegrating into society. The human’s mental condition shifted, he acted strangely, and he had to relearn how to communicate. He was an antisocial entity who was enticed by the prospect of returning to the wilderness. Leshy encounters also resulted in the acquisition of various magical skills, such as the ability to foresee the future or communicate with ghosts.
Leshy Powers And Weaknesses
Leshy has a variety of skills and abilities, making them deities who should never be angered, even if it is by accident. Leshys have the ability to morph into any woodland animal or plant, and they may even choose how tall they want to be, effectively shapeshifting. “They can be as small as the forest’s tiniest halm or as tall as the forest’s tallest tree.”
They can also command any creatures in the forest to perform their will, as well as mimic human voices, which is one of their most terrifying talents. Leshys frequently create contracts with humans, preventing them from doing anything in the forest without Leshy’s permission. In exchange, the Leshy will defend their animals against all woodland predators.
They’re frequently regarded as having the direct capacity to get you lost in the most improbable settings, producing bewilderment and disorientation, as a popular Russian proverb goes, “A Leshy can get you confused among three pines.” Finally, they have the ability to construct illusions and trap humans within them.
However, they are not completely fool-proof and without any weaknesses, if you know what to look for, you will be able to spot and hopefully avoid a Leshy during your stroll in a forest. Leshy’s do not have a shadow, so remember to look at the ground and look hard to see whether the gigantic tree in front of you is giving off a shadow, if not, run and don’t look back.
Secondly, their eyes glow in a green light in whichever form they take, so keep an eye out for a human who approaches you in the middle of a forest, look deep into their eyes, if they are glowing green, it is too late, you’re too close to the Leshy to run away anyway.
Does the Leshy scare you? Let us know in the comments below!