The Runes have been an interesting and often times confusing topic of study for quite a few years, but perhaps that is as it should be. The word Rune means "mystery" and occasionally "secret" or "secret council" and is found in most Germanic and Celtic languages. It seems to occur only there in the form that we have come to know it in English or similar variants; in Old Norse and Old English, it was run; in Gothic, Old Saxon, and Old High German, runa. For each of these variants, the meaning is similar. We also find the word run in Old Irish, meaning mystery and rhin in Middle Welsh with a similar definition. A number of people have argued that the word was, in fact, borrowed from Celtic to German, though more have argued the reverse, since it is found in more vigorous, widespread meanings in the German tongues. It is quite possible, however, that both of these language groups have the word from the Proto-Indo- European reu or gwor-w-on. The former, reu, means to roar and to whisper, whereas the latter would connect to the name of the Greek and old Indic gods Ouranos and Varuna - both known for their power to bind and create. Both of these attributes are also widely associated with the god Odin (also found as Wotan, Odhinn, Wotanaz, Gautr and a few other variations). In any case, it seems clear that the word has, from the beginning, had as its meaning something that is a mystery or secret. The first systematic and historically documented use of runestaves, denoting runes used as letters, dates to 50 C.E. which is the approximate date of the Meldorf Brooch. From that point on, the Runes, used as both magical incantations and as runestaves, are found with greater frequency. Scholars have proposed a number of theories over the years to explain the historical origin of the Runes, and these theories each have strengths and weaknesses. Almost certainly, no one of these theories is absolutely correct but rather, the Runes arose as a combination of all them. The theories named by scholars are the Latin theory, the Greek theory, the North-Italic (or Etruscan) theory and the indigenous theory. Each explains how the Runes came to be and most scholars usually embrace a combination of the lot of them. The best combination that I have found is that the indigenous peoples of the area had a symbolic, ideographic set of symbols which, as they began to run into other peoples that made use of letters as phonetic place holders, began to elide. The Germans, often a very practical people, simply took what was best of both and kept what they liked - really a system not too much unlike what many Pagans today do when searching for their own system of magic and path to religion. I might go so far as to say that this is a trait common to almost all indigenous humans, taking what works and getting rid of what they don't want. All of this history aside, there is a much more important meaning to the runes and probably the one most appropriate to this forum, that being their use as a means of divination and their meanings as symbols for communication with the divine and the web of Wyrd. So before we jump into the runes themselves and some of the meanings that are commonly used with them, we should probably look to the meaning of Wyrd. Wyrd is the Norse term for the complex and interconnecting web that binds all things together, whether those things be "living" or not, "sentient" or not. This web is more complex than any other thing, and it is the barest portion of Wyrd that we witness in the relations between humans - which are often too complex for us to handle well on their own, much less as only a small subset of a much larger and more complex force. Guarding, creating, fine- tuning this web are the Nornir, three sisters much like their Greek cousins the Fates. The Nornir shape and weave the web of Wyrd and so powerful are their bindings and the mysteries of this web, that even the mighty Aesir and Vanir, the Gods of Norse mythology are subject to it's constrictions. This web is existence, it is the action and reaction of things. By pulling on the web here, pressure is created there. It acts in many ways like the Karma of the Hindu in that by all things being connected, to affect one thing, you affect all. This web also has a name in the Norse mythology; it is called Yggdrasil - the World Tree. Now, you might wonder where the Runes fit into all of this, and I'll tell you. Any time the web strands of Wyrd, of Yggdrasil, come together, they make a shape. Every action is a strand of the web and therefore when two actions meet, two events touch, whether those events are people meeting or a person having an accident or the flight of birds or whether or not the summer will be stormy, they meet in a shape. These shapes, when reduced to the level that we can understand, when placed in the nearest pattern that the human mind can conjure to explain the crossing of these web-strands, are the Runes. And each Rune represents a certain summation for any coming together of Web-strands, for any juncture of events, whether those events are the connections between "living" things or not. When the Vitki, the Rune Magickian, uses the Runes and draws or throws them in a reading, the shapes of the bindings and knottings of Wyrd are represented by the Runes drawn and then it becomes the Vitki's responsibility to interpret their relationships to each other and what threads they are linking in Wyrd. There are a number of ways to draw or throw the Runes for the purpose of divination, but the most basic way is to simply draw one Rune. This Rune will then give the overall knotting of Wyrd involved in this situation. It is often a good way to size up a whole situation, and since it is quick and only one Rune, you needn't worry about many possible interpretations foiling and fouling each other.The second method is still simple, yet allows for a bit more interpretation and complexity. This method has the Vitki throw three runes. The first Rune represents the factors that have led up to this point, the second Rune sums the situation up at the present moment, and the third Rune represents the possible outcomes of the situation. This throwing style allows for the Runes to begin to color each other with their meanings and takes each subsequent Rune and builds upon the picture it started. A further complication of this method is to draw three Runes for each of these three positions. This method is meaningful in a number of ways, as it represents yet more complexity. This last method also reflects on the Cosmology of the Norse, namely that they, like many shamanic indigenous people, believe that there is a Lower, Middle and Upper World. These Runes that the Vitki is drawing therefore represent the forces acting on a situation from each of these realms. The further level of complexity mentioned is demonstrative of the fact that the Norse believed that in each of these three realms, there were three worlds - each governing or producing a certain force of conciousness and power in the worlds. Thus, the Runes would represent the aspect those forces would take for each of the nine Worlds and what bearing they have on the present situation.
| Rune | Rune Name | Meaning | Sound |
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Fehu | Fee, money, cattle, new beginning | ffffff - like the crackle of flames |
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Uruz | Strength, consistancy, vitality, health | uuu - like oo in moon, prolonged and forceful like a bull |
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Thorn | Reactive force, directed force, cathartic | thu - violent explosive grunt |
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Ansuz | Divine inspiration, word power, synthesis, intellect | ah - as a steady rush of wind |
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Raidho | Rationality, action, justice, power, control, good advice | r - a rolled r |
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Kenaz | Artistic or technical ability, craft transformations, offspring, torch | keh - hard at first, volume tapers |
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Wunjo | Joy, harmony, ekstasis, luck, fellowship, prosperity | w - Like the first sound of "where" |
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Gebo, Gifu | Gift, generosity, magickal exchange, honor, sacrifice | geh - even, cyclic repetition |
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Hagalaz | Disruption, change due to ideals, controlled crisis, harmony | h - a powerful aspiration |
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Nauthiz | Need, necessity, resistance, recognition of Wyrd | n |
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Isa | Standstill, ice, self-ego, self-control, unity of being | e - steady, sharp and high |
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Jera | Cycle of year, rewards, plenty, peace, proper timing | y - as in year |
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Eiwhaz | Enlightenment, endurance, protection, initiation (test) | ei - as "I" in ride |
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Pertho | Initiation, mystery, good omen, knowledge of Wyrd, joy, fellowship | peh - full round sound |
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Algiz | Connection with Gods, higher life, protection, awakening | z - buzzing z, like g in rouge |
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Sowelu | Guidance, hope, life energy, success, goals, honor | s |
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Tiw, Tiwaz, Tu | Truth, justice, rationality, victory analysis, victory, self-sacrifice | tiw - rhymes with few |
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Berkano | Birth, becoming, mother, shelter, liberation, maternity | b - can become an almost closed lipped hum |
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Ehwaz | Harmony, teamwork, trust, marriage, loyalty | ay - as in day |
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Mannaz | Mankind, divine structure, social organization, intelligence, awareness | m |
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Lagiz | Flow, life passing a test, sea of vitality, subconscious, growth | L |
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Inguz | Resting, gestation, potency, internal growth, fertility | Ing - hold ng as long as possible |
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Dagaz | Awakening, awareness, hope, happiness, the ideal | dhaa - dh pronounced as 'th' in the |
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Othila | Home, homeland, group order, group prosperity, freedom, inheritance | o - as in oath |
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Aett: One of the three divisions that the 24 Elder Futhare can be divided into Fehu's aett, Hagal's aett, and Tiw's aett. Rune: Literally a mystery, though it has come to mean any form of pictograph writing in general. Galdr: The magick of singing or chanting runes. Gautr: The magickian that is using the runes. |
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