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In Pirkei Avos (5:6) the Mishnah states that 10 things were created erev shabbos on the first Friday of Creation. One of the things that were created were demons. On that the Bartinoro says that Hashem was in the middle of creating them but then shabbos came and Hashem stopped and in doing so Hashem only created their spirit but not their physical body. The question comes when you look at the Gemra in Berachos 6a, which states that if you want to know if demons were around you last night, you should sprinkle dust around your bed and if you see chicken feet around your bed then you'll know that demons were around last night. So the question is, how can demons make chicken footprints if they don't have a physical body?!

Benny Bain
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    The Talmud (Gittin 68a) mentions: שידה ושידתין - שד זכר ושד נקבה (male and female demons). The Talmud (Chagigah 16a) also mentions that demons reproduce in a manner like humans do. – IsraelReader May 14 '23 at 16:58
  • @IsraelReader, you should see the Ramban, leviticus 17:7 – Benny Bain May 14 '23 at 21:43
  • Thank you for reminding me of this important Ramban, which explains the sources that I referred to, and also contains the answer to your question. Just as "wind" can leave an imprint, as it passes through someplace, so too, demons, despite being invisible to the naked eye, can still leave physical traces of having been someplace. – IsraelReader May 14 '23 at 21:54

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