Vila Wolf's Dyslexic Folklorist Ranting

“Tanecznice”, “Leśne spotkania”, “Mama Niawka”

© Karolina Matyjaszkowicz

Viktor Korolkov “Leshy" In Slavic mythology, Leshy (also called lesní mužík, borowy, lesovik, lisovik, lesnik, lesovoj, lešak, laskowiec, boruta, ljasun) is a male woodland spirit who protects wild animals and forests. He looks like a man with unnaturally pale face, but can also transform into the form of forest animals (like a bear, wolf or an owl) and a gale. Some sources say he’s tall, some say he’s short. He usually isn’t malevolent, but can be - it depends on people’s attitude towards forest and its animals. Angry Lešak is dangerous, but if you respect his forest and its fauna and flora, he can even help you. In almost all Slavic countries Lesní mužík survived in folk beliefs till the end of the 19th century.

Chort by ~Monopteryx on Deviantart In Slavic mythology, Chort was a demon of evil. It could send bad weather and diseases to people and also persuade them to suicide. Chort could take the form of a snake, dog, pig or black cat. It lived in swamps and forests and liked to appear in whirlwinds. After christianization Chort became a synonym for word “devil”. In Slavic languages: Russian: Чёрт Ukrainian: Чорт Polish: Czart Czech and Slovak: Čert