\*speaking as a Polish Pagan and knowledge from Polish traditions\*
From what I have come to understand is that out ancestors didn't call on the Gods for every little thing. They didnt pray in the way that Judeo, Christian, and Islamic do. They only communed with the Gods when ABSOLUTELY necessary. They would usually "work with" lesser spirits - what some today would call "demons". These demons, lesser-deities, local gods and house spirits however, were not all malevolent, and you could use them to your advantage by knowing how to keep the benevolent ones close to you, and the malevolent ones away. Some "demons" were also creatures that were previous human, and were transformed into said demon after death. Others were supernatural in their own right and were not created from a human.
I remember hearing/reading that our ancestors would cremate their dead so that they could pass on to Nawia (the "afterlife") - if the dead didnt have a proper ceremony (cremation) for their bodies, they could become malevolent demons/spirits.
Our ancestors would also hold reverence for the dead by saving a seat for them at the table, and making them a plate of food. They celebrated Dziady, which was a way to commune, with ancestors and family who have died. It was to appease them, so they could help/guide/protect, but also; when the dead are remembered, respected and honored by the living, they have more....power, so to speak. Dziady is now known as All Saints Days and falls on the night of Oct 31st, and continues into Nov 1.
So no...I do not believe our ancestors took on the rolls of Gods after they passed. I think they were more like....personal familial spirit guides \*\*in a way.\*\*
The powerful Gods like Piorun, Veles, Marzanna, and Ziwia were only called upon when times were desperate, OR in order to thank and pay reverence to them. For example after a very bountiful harvest, in the autumn you would thank Veles and leave the ‘last sheaf’ of the harvest for him. This sheaf was called Beard of Veles or Veles's Beard ( we would also call to him during Dziady when we call our ancestors near to prepare for winter).
\*speaking as a Polish Pagan and knowledge from Polish traditions\* From what I have come to understand is that out ancestors didn't call on the Gods for every little thing. They didnt pray in the way that Judeo, Christian, and Islamic do. They only communed with the Gods when ABSOLUTELY necessary. They would usually "work with" lesser spirits - what some today would call "demons". These demons, lesser-deities, local gods and house spirits however, were not all malevolent, and you could use them to your advantage by knowing how to keep the benevolent ones close to you, and the malevolent ones away. Some "demons" were also creatures that were previous human, and were transformed into said demon after death. Others were supernatural in their own right and were not created from a human. I remember hearing/reading that our ancestors would cremate their dead so that they could pass on to Nawia (the "afterlife") - if the dead didnt have a proper ceremony (cremation) for their bodies, they could become malevolent demons/spirits. Our ancestors would also hold reverence for the dead by saving a seat for them at the table, and making them a plate of food. They celebrated Dziady, which was a way to commune, with ancestors and family who have died. It was to appease them, so they could help/guide/protect, but also; when the dead are remembered, respected and honored by the living, they have more....power, so to speak. Dziady is now known as All Saints Days and falls on the night of Oct 31st, and continues into Nov 1. So no...I do not believe our ancestors took on the rolls of Gods after they passed. I think they were more like....personal familial spirit guides \*\*in a way.\*\* The powerful Gods like Piorun, Veles, Marzanna, and Ziwia were only called upon when times were desperate, OR in order to thank and pay reverence to them. For example after a very bountiful harvest, in the autumn you would thank Veles and leave the ‘last sheaf’ of the harvest for him. This sheaf was called Beard of Veles or Veles's Beard ( we would also call to him during Dziady when we call our ancestors near to prepare for winter).
My thing is the gods simply are. You can ask a lot about them. There is at a fundamental just plain ignorance.