Bazhov's explanatory note frames Poloz as the huge snake who rules the other snakes and holds command over gold. Within miners' lore collected and reworked by Bazhov, Poloz functions as the nonhuman proprietor of subterranean riches rather than a human ancestor or elemental force; his authority explains uneven distribution of mineral wealth in the Ural mining landscape.
In the narrated encounter in Bazhov's tale, the being first appears in the guise of a man described as "a green-eyed man" dressed in golden clothing (a tunic/kaftan and trousers of gold brocade, a greenish shining girdle, a yellow shapka with red flaps and red boots). In that scene the earth is said to sink under him where he stood. He then transforms into the Great Snake: rearing out of the ground, "tall as a tree," growing longer as successive rings or segments appear from the earth. His emergence is accompanied by an unusual bright cold illumination.
Poloz is credited with control over gold: "All the gold was at his disposal" and he could both "take away" and "bring" gold at his will, acting either personally or with assistance from his snake servants. He functions as guardian of veins and as an arbiter who reacts to human conduct: when prospectors quarrel or when a site is confiscated, Poloz may cause a contended vein to disappear. In the tale he selectively rewards those deemed fit (the poor, uncorrupted boys) and withholds or withdraws riches when exposure to the golden trail seems likely to breed greed.
Weaknesses
- conditionhuman quarrel or official confiscation causes withdrawal of gold (behavioral limitation rather than vulnerability)
Wards
- conditionsecrecy about a find (swearing to secrecy and absence of greed keeps Poloz's favor)
- conditionnon-contention and humility among prospectors (avoiding quarrel or forceful seizure of a site)
- conditionmaintaining composure when help arrives (advice given in the tale to not show fear)
Vassago
Vassago is a named spirit from European grimoire tradition (notably the Lesser Key of Solomon and the Book of the Office of Spirits / Sloane MS 3824). Presented as a princely Goetic spirit who can be summoned to reveal past and future events, locate lost things, and reveal treasures, he also appears in one manuscript as angelic in appearance.
Vasupujya (Vāsupūjya)
Vasupujya is the twelfth tirthankara in Jainism's present age (avasarpini). Tradition presents him as an exemplar of renunciation who attained Kevala Jnana (omniscience) after ascetic practice and later achieved moksha, becoming a siddha; his five major life events (kalyanakas) are located at Champapuri.
Vegoia
Vegoia (Etruscan: Vecu) is a prophetic female revealer in Etruscan tradition credited in later Roman commentary as the author of portions of the sacred book-collection (the Libri Vegoici). She functions as the authoritative source of rules connecting divine order to human practices of surveying, law, ritual, and calendar, and is especially associated with the city of Chiusi (Clusium).
Vehuiah
Vehuiah is identified in the supplied sources as an angel in Kabbalistic thought and is referenced as "Angel number 1" in contemporary esoteric audio materials. The available documentation consists of a Wikidata entry labeling Vehuiah as an angel and several archive.org audio items (talks and recordings) that name Vehuiah but are not transcribed in the provided corpus.
Vel (Hindu tradition)
A divine spear associated with Murugan, the Hindu god of war. (Note: 1. Power tier should be Primordial or Ancient, given its association with a deity (Murugan). 2. Add sensory_cues that are relevant to the entity's presence or use, such as a loud whistling sound when )
Velchanos
Ancient Minoan god associated with vegetation, fertility, and agriculture. (Note: 1. Power tier should be Primordial (as Velchanos is associated with vegetation and has a key role in the Minoan pantheon, suggesting a cosmic or fundamental connection). 2. Abilities should mention hi)
Vellamo
Vellamo is a named water-being in Finnish traditional belief, a personified 'Mistress of Water' associated with lakes, seas, shores and fish. She appears in runic songs and in fishermen's spells as the being who presides over aquatic resources and is petitioned to bring fish into nets.
Velnias (Veles/Velinas)
Velnias (also attested as Veles in Slavic sources and Velinas/Velinas in Baltic references) is a chthonic figure associated with the underworld, cattle and animals, the boundary between life and death, and domains of magic, knowledge, divination and poetry. In pre-Christian contexts he functions as a powerful underworld deity and guarantor of oaths; in later Christianized materials he is sometimes reinterpreted in demonological terms.
Vengeful ghost
A cross-cultural category for spirits of deceased persons who return to the living world to seek redress for a wrong suffered in life. Commonly tied to violent, unjust, or improperly handled deaths and addressed by culturally specific rites of appeasement, exorcism, or corrective funerary treatment.
Vengeful spirit
A vengeful spirit is the spirit of a dead person who returns from the afterlife to seek revenge for a cruel, unnatural, or unjust death; in some cultures the form taken by an 'unhappy ghost' denied proper funerary rites. It functions in narrative as an agent of retribution against those perceived responsible for the original injustice.
Venus
Venus refers to two distinct but historically linked referents in the supplied sources: (1) the astronomical planet Venus, the second planet from the Sun with a dense CO2 atmosphere, extreme surface temperatures and thick sulfuric-acid clouds; and (2) Venus, the Roman goddess associated in summary form with love, sexuality, procreation and pleasure. The sources treat the planet with detailed physical and observational data and give only a brief statement of the goddess's domains.
Vepar
Vepar is a named spirit in the Western grimoire (Ars Goetia/Pseudomonarchia Daemonum) tradition presented as a ducal-ranked operative who governs waters and commands legions; sources attribute to her the power to roughen seas, guide armed ships, and cause putrefying sores that can kill. Descriptions in the supplied summaries emphasize her maritime domain and role within a ranked goetic hierarchy but do not provide detailed ritual protocols or a consistent corporeal iconography.
Community Record
- [1]The Great Snake (Bazhov skaz) — Wikipedia. Wikipedia entry summarizing Pavel Bazhov's skaz "The Great Snake" and including explanatory notes about Poloz's role among snakes and control over gold.wiki
- [2]The Great Snake — Wikidata. Wikidata item for Bazhov's "The Great Snake," linking metadata for the tale.other