Out of all the branches of paganism discussed on this site, the Illyrian branch is the least talked about and well-known. To be quite fair, this is unsurprising. There is no evidence that the Illyrians had a unified cosmology1, and too little is known about their deities, some of which were only locally worshipped. Much of what we know comes from Greek and Roman writings and inscriptions in archeological findings throughout Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia.
When it comes to specifically the Slavic branch of European polytheism, very little of the polytheistic tradition, or our history as polytheistic tribes and states, was physically recorded. The Slavs did not use their runic writing system (runica) much, nor were they in contact with Roman historians to do the recording for them. The Slavic tradition was oral - passed down in spoken word form as stories, songs, proverbs/sayings, or other folk wisdom. It is important to note that a lot of ritualic practice has been appropriated by Christians and thus survived in a way, but this is a subject for another time. Some of this wisdom was preserved completely untampered with, such as the story of the Drekavac (screecher, screamer) – the Banshee of South Slavic myth – but cases like this are present everywhere.
Read more: Overlook on Pagan Remnants in South Slavic Oral Tradition
The Serpent, Lord of the Underworld, the Musician, the Magician, the Bear, the Wanderer…. These are some of the titles academics and pagans would use to describe this remarkable and highly controversial deity. In this brief article I will go through some of these titles and explain why Veles is known by them today.
Ullr "Wulþuz" (the glorious one) is a beautiful god within the Æsir that would best be described as a warrior and ruler among gods. Associated with archery and snowshoes/skiis, Ullr is a major god, however, much of his lore is lost. His ring is an ultimate symbol to swear oaths upon; his place of refuge Ýdalir the holy forest of Yew trees; and the number of places named after him within Norway and Sweden give credence to his place within traditional germanic paganism. The son of Sif and stepson of Thor, Ullr is invoked in times of glory: a duel, a silent place in the forest, a grand hunt.
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania emerged as a pagan regional power in the 1200s and 1300s, when most of Europe had already been Christianised. It slowly became the biggest country in Europe, all while fighting the Teutonic Order, a Christian force which had support from the entire Western world. Due to their strong pagan state tradition, geographical isolation, and stubborn character, the Lithuanians have preserved the most conservative Indo-European language still spoken, as well as many great relicts of the lost past in traditions and folklore.