Since March is approaching, I begin to think about St. Patrick’s Day. Pots of gold, green shamrocks and of course leprechauns. I have always been curious about leprechauns and finding their gold at the end of the rainbow since I was little. Now that I am older, I have realized how clever the leprechauns truly are.
Rainbows are actually in the shape of a full circle, because the rainbow reflects the round shape of the sun. Apparently, if you use a drone, you might be able to see a circular rainbow from the sky. The reason we see the rainbow on the ground as an arch is because only part of the horizon can be seen. Since rainbows are circles there is no way a leprechaun could leave their pot of gold at the end of one. Like I said, very clever. I am eager to dive into the world of the leprechauns as well as explore Fae in other parts of the world. Let us begin!
Leprechauns
Who doesn’t want a pot of gold? The trick is getting it from a leprechaun. If you somehow manage to catch a leprechaun, he will bargain to be set free, this is typically three wishes. There is a great Disney movie based on this, Darby O’Gill and the Little People. However, my favorite legend with a leprechaun was about a young man who once was crafty enough to capture one.
There once a young man who caught a leprechaun by surprise and refused to let the leprechaun go unless he revealed where the pot of gold was hidden. The leprechaun chooses to comply with the young man since he could not figure out how to get away. He directed the young man to go into the woods. After they entered the forest, the leprechaun pointed a tree and stated the gold was buried deep underground.
The young man was over joyed, but soon realized he needed a shovel to retrieve the gold. This meant that he would need to leave the forest. The young man feared that after returning with the shovel, he might forget the exact place where the treasure was buried. He came with the idea of tying a red handkerchief around the tree so that he could recognize the spot and made the leprechaun promise not to take off the handkerchief. The young man went to fetch the digging equipment and when he returned with the gear, the leprechaun was no longer there. However, every tree in the entire forest was tied with a red handkerchief.
So, how do you recognize a leprechaun? Leprechaun’s are typically male, solitary fairies dressed in either red or green. There are tales stating they are famous cobblers who make all the fairy shoes for the fairy gentry. Leprechauns’ live-in isolated places such as under the hedgerows or in gullies. The word Leprechaun is derived from the Irish word luchorpan. This word means a person with a small body. Now onto shapeshifters in Korea.
Shapeshifters
Shapeshifters can be found around the world and are prevalent in the legends of Korea, Japan and China. Basically, any being with the ability to undergo a complete change of appearance is a Shapeshifter. Shapeshifters have been known to transform from foxes into beautiful maidens. Typically, the stories do not end well for the men, but once in a great while one of the beautiful maidens turn out to be an innocent romantic. Talk about playing the odds. Sometimes, Shapeshifters take other forms, such as snakes, cats, badgers, and raccoon dogs.
A great Korean tale involves a former magistrate of Quelpart, Kim Su-ik, lived inside of the South Gate of Seoul. He was hungry and asked his wife if she could bring him some food since he was in the middle of his studies. She let him know that they were out of food and just had seven or eight chestnuts left. Kim stated that would work and she went to the kitchen to cook them. A short time later she came back with the chestnuts and brought them in a handbasket, cooked and ready served for him. Kim loved the cooked chestnuts. His spouse sat by his desk and watched him eat.
Suddenly the door opened, and another person entered. Kim raised his eyes to see, and there was the exact duplicate of his wife, with a basket in her hand and roasted chestnuts. As he looked at both of them beneath the light the two women were perfect facsimiles of each other. The two also looked back and forth in alarm, saying, “What’s this that’s happened? Who are you?”
Kim grabbed both women by the hands and held onto them both. Finally, when morning came the women whose right hand he held, said, “Why do you hold me so? It hurts; let me go.” She shook and tugged, but Kim held all the tighter. After struggling, she fell to the floor and suddenly changed into a wild cat. Kim, in fear and surprise, let her go, and she escape through the door. Now on to the Yakshas who are prevalent in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.
Yakshas
Yakshas are nature spirits who are the custodians of treasures that are hidden in the earth and in the roots of trees who happen to have a dual personality. Sculptures of Yakshas were among the earliest of deities to be depicted, apparently preceding images of the bodhisattvas and of Brahmanical deities, whose representation they influenced. They are also the template for the attendants of gods and kings in later Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain art.
A great story of a Yaksha is Dharm-Baka Upakhyan (Legend of the Virtuous Crane). The story is about how the youngest brother discovers his brothers are dead by the lake and due to his thirst bends down to have some water. What he doesn’t know is that the lake is poisonous. Before he drinks the water, the Yaksha calls out and requests he answer 18 questions, in order to drink the water. The Yaksha asks 18 questions with philosophical and meta-physical ramifications. The youngest brother answered all the questions in a satisfactory manner, but the Yaksha only allowed him to choose one of his brothers to be restored back to life.
Scary Fairy Godmother
I hope you enjoyed some of the stories in regards to Fae around the world. If you love stories about the Fae as much as I do then you will love the Scary Fairy Godmother‘s YouTube channel. People will send in their experiences to the Scary Fairy Godmother to read and she will also provide retellings of classic fairy tales and dark fairy origin stories. So, get cozy near a fire and listen to the tales of other worldly beings.
Photo by Alice AliNari from Pexels
