Veles (god)
| Veles | |
|---|---|
God of the earth, waters, forests, underworld, music, magic, trickery, cattle and wealth | |
| Abode | Nav, Slavic afterlife |
| Weapon | spear |
| Battles | battle of Perun and Veles |
| Animals | wolf, bear, snake, dragon, owl |
| Symbol | willow |
| Festivals | The Festival of Veles |
| Equivalents | |
| Christian | Saint Blaise |
| Greek | Hades, Hermes |
| Indo-European | Welnos |
| Norse | Hela, Loki, Odin |
| Prussian | Peckols |
Veles, also known as Volos, is a major god of earth, waters, livestock, and the underworld in Slavic paganism. His mythology and powers are similar, though not identical, to those of (among other deities) Odin, Loki, and Hermes.
According to reconstruction by some researchers, he is the opponent of the supreme thunder god Perun.: 211–214 As such, he has probably been imagined as a dragon, which in the belief of the pagan Slavs is a chimeric being resembling a cross between a bear and a snake that devours livestock.: 141 : 87, 88 His tree is the willow, while that of Perun is the oak. No direct accounts survive, but reconstructionists speculate that he may directly continue aspects of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon with the original deity Welnos.