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Fehu

This is the name of the Rune that we will be looking at now. It is the first Rune of the traditional Futhark, as you may remember from the last time we were together, when we looked at the Runes.

Fehu is the Rune that tells about our possessions. The traditional meaning is related to cattle, goods and vital community wealth, the worldly goods and belongings that proved status. Of course, in these days we will not be too concerned about our cattle anymore, which in the early days depicted your wealth, and also aided in the prosperity of your village. But see what you have, and consider what you want from it, what you can do with it. We can extend the meaning of this Rune to our spiritual riches. Because that is so much more important these days than the physical riches that we can gather around us.

What have we learned? What do we do with our knowledge? Because, to know something and not put it to any use, that is a waste of the learning process itself. Do we know enough, or do we want to learn and grow more?

So what can we do with all this? What do we know, what can we see, when we pull this Rune to a question? Here are some general guidelines. This Rune can be seen the right way up, or inverted. This also means that there are 2 interpretation guides for it. (When a Rune looks the same in both ways, there is only one interpretation possible, of course.)

Normal: Clearly define what it is that you desire. Is it wealth and possessions, or self-rule and growth of will? Enjoy the good fortune of now but remember to share it, for the mark of a well nourished self is the ability to nourish others.

Inverted: Your arrows repeatedly miss the target, either by an inch or a mile.Your ship has come in, but you are at the stable awaiting a good horse. Observe the situation, and ask "What do I need to learn to further my progress?" You now have the opportunity to see where your true nourishment lies.

This is not something to be taken literally. You will need to learn how to apply this information to your situation. An example to make this clear could be:

George has a good job, a fine family, he is generally happy and then he asks the Runes:

"Okay, now what am I going to get?"

Suppose he pulls Fehu (what a surprise!) and it is inverted. This could be interpreted that George does not realize how lucky he is. He could also need a more open eye to his family and belongings, to see how rich he is. Can you fill in some more things for good old George? Give it a try.

As you can see, Runes are an old means in a new world. They started out as a new thing, when seers and shaman were instructed to carve these symbols in pebbles, wood-blocks and small bones. We can use them in our modern life just as they were useful in the old days, as our lives are just as dependent on the truths that the Runes speak now, as they did thousands of years ago.

Runes are not sweet talkers. They speak the same hard language as they have always done. But that is their strength, and our luck. What better truth than a loud and plain one could we want?

I hope to see you all again next time, when we will discuss the second Rune in Freyr's Eight: Uruz, the Rune of Strength.

blessings to you all,

Paul (Holland)

Copyright © Paul Kater 1998 All rights reserved.

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If you wish to find out more about the Runes you can visit Paul’s web pages:

The Rune page is at http://www.pagan.demon.nl/runes.htm

The Rune image page is at http://www.pagan.demon.nl/runeimage.htm

Or you can email him direct with any questions that you may have at: paul@pagan.demon.nl

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