Rune Post #25: Othala

Here is the (slightly delayed) final rune post featuring Othala, the twenty-fourth rune of the Elder Futhark, and eighth rune in the third aett.

Othala translates to "homeland," and connects to themes of property/land, ancestral legacy, ancestral streams, inheritance, and home.*

An Anglo Saxon rune poem reads:

An estate is very dear to every man,

if he can enjoy there in his house

whatever is right and proper in constant prosperity.

Questions:

1) What other meanings do you attribute to Othala?

2) How do you utilize this rune in your practice?

3) If Othala has presented itself in your rune work or castings, how have you seen its energy manifested, or experienced its impact?


*It has sadly been misappropriated by some neo-Nazi groups that seek to align heathenry with racist ideology; it's critical to understand that the runes (and heathenry as a whole) have absolutely nothing to do with such ignorance, small-mindedness, and hatred.

Rune Post #24: Dagaz

Happy Wednesday! Today's focus will be on Dagaz, the twenty-third rune of the Elder Futhark, and seventh rune in the third aett.

Dagaz translates to "day," and connects to themes of daylight, breaking dawn, awareness, enlightenment, sudden and powerful realizations, cognition, enjoyment, breakthroughs, clarity, and hope.

Power of the Runes by Voenix; Ostara Tarot

This morning I happened to pull Dagaz (along with a Tarot card - the Page of Swords). Later I realized that Dagaz was today's rune post as well, and so I thought I would share what I wrote about that pairing:

This Page frequently comes up in connection to my relationship with Odin, so I wondered which rune would then appear...sure enough it is Dagaz, the Odinic Paradox, the great awareness, the meeting of right and left brains, the light bearer. There he sits, nursing a vibrant fire as the sun just starts to make its way over the edge of the horizon.

The Page is a seeker, asks questions, pursues knowledge and information and truth. The Page is a student of the universe, curiosity not constrained by age or social norms. We all see the world through different eyes, and yet as different as our experiences may be, there is something true in them all. I value the pursuit of understanding as a precious resource, cradling the reality that two opposites may indeed be part of the same whole.

An Old English rune poem reads:

Day, the glorious light of the Creator, 

is sent by the Lord;

it is beloved of men, 

a source of hope and 

happiness to rich and poor,

and of service to all.

Questions:

1) What other meanings do you attribute to Dagaz?

2) How do you utilize this rune in your practice?

3) If Dagaz has presented itself in your rune work or castings, how have you seen its energy manifested, or experienced its impact?

Rune Post #23: Ingwaz/Inguz

Today's second rune post concerns Ingwaz, the twenty-second rune of the Elder Futhark, and sixth rune in the third aett.

Ingwaz translates to "seed," and corresponds to Yngvi-Frey. This rune connects to themes of agriculture, energy, completion of a cycle, internal development, male fertility, and natural order.

Power of the Runes deck - Voenix

The seed is a powerful metaphor for the energy of this rune... the idea of the potency of climax, the internal machinations that precede a young plant's emergence from the soil; deep potential waiting for the right moment to burst forth.

An Old English rune poem reads:

Ing was first, among the East-Danes,

seen by men

until he again eastward

went over the wave;

the wain followed on;

this is what the warriors

called the hero.

Questions:

1) What other meanings do you attribute to Ingwaz?

2) How do you utilize this rune in your practice?

3) If Ingwaz has presented itself in your rune work or castings, how have you seen its energy manifested, or experienced its impact?

Rune Post #21: Mannaz

Happy Wednesday! Today's focus will be on Mannaz, the twentieth rune of the Elder Futhark, and fourth rune in the third aett.

Mannaz translates to "mankind," and connects to themes of broad community, the experience of humanity, contemplation, the soul, the self in the context of the "many."

An Icelandic rune poem reads:

Man is delight of man

and augmentation of the earth

and adorner of ships.

Power of the Runes deck - Voenix

This rune poem reminds me of stanza 47 of the Havamal:

I was young once,

I walked alone,

and I became lost on my way.

I felt like I was rich when I met another traveler - 

people's joy is in other people.*

I have found Mannaz to be a bit elusive, though it has come up most often for me during times of my own contemplation of the human condition (racism/prejudice, the political climate, my own values and how they relate to others, etc.).

Questions:

1) What other meanings do you attribute to Mannaz?

2) How do you utilize this rune in your practice?

3) If Mannaz has presented itself in your rune work or castings, how have you seen its energy manifested, or experienced its impact?

*Jackson Crawford translation

Rune Post #20: Ehwaz

Happy Wednesday! Today's focus will be on Ehwaz, the nineteenth rune of the Elder Futhark, and third rune in the third aett.

Ehwaz translates to "horse," and connects to themes of partnership, trust, friendship, connection between two entities, and forward movement. It can also connect to topics involving animals, and is often correlated with Sleipnir, Odin's eight-legged steed.

An Anglo Saxon rune poem reads:

The horse is a joy to princes in the presence of warriors.

A steed in the pride of its hoofs,

when rich men on horseback bandy words about it;

and it is ever a source of comfort to the restless.

I have so many funny stories with Ehwaz..... every time I draw it in the morning, I automatically think: "Two cars." In my personal experience this rune always means that I will be traveling with someone in tandem.

For example, I pulled this rune on a day my family was planning to go to a barbecue. I couldn't imagine why we would go in two cars, but sure enough in the afternoon my husband told me that our friend requested he come early to help set up, so we ended up driving separately.

Another day I pulled this rune when my daughter had a school concert, and my husband was running late, and so met us there after work.

Once I pulled this rune when my sister helped me take the car into the shop - she drove behind me so that we could leave together after dropping mine off for servicing.

Now my husband is in Sweden, and yet I pulled this rune last Saturday. I thought "this should be interesting!" My daughter had a volunteer project at a park that morning, so the kids and I dropped her off in my car. Later we decided to pick her up and head straight out to a park by a big lake nearby. Since the highway is the fasted route, I swapped cars to take my husband's as it has the SunPass (for toll routes) in the front windshield.

Even this morning, on the day I am posting about Ehwaz, I pulled Ehwaz. ;) On my way to work I thought I'd like a coffee, but decided to wait until getting to campus, and then I'd walk over to the cafe. In the end I walked over there with a colleague so that we could have a "walking meeting." Not car related, but certainly connected to partnership and movement!

Questions:

1) What other meanings do you attribute to Ehwaz?

2) How do you utilize this rune in your practice?

3) If Ehwaz has presented itself in your rune work or castings, how have you seen its energy manifested, or experienced its impact?

Rune Post #18: Tiwaz

Happy Wednesday! Today's focus will be on Tiwaz, the seventeenth rune of the Elder Futhark, and first rune in the third aett.

Tiwaz refers directly to the god Tyr, and therefore connects to themes of justice, victory, clear judgment, leadership, and sacrifices made for a greater cause.

An Old Icelandic rune poem reads:

Tyr is the one-handed god

and the leavings of the wolf

and the ruler of the temple.

Tyr is best known in lore for having sacrificed his sword hand during the binding of the wolf Fenrir. This rune poem clearly makes reference to that history. Additionally, there is some suggestion that Tyr may have occupied the role of principal "sky god" (as opposed to Odin) prior to the Migration Period (this period occurred roughly during the first millennia A.D., and ended about a hundred years prior to the start of the Viking Age in 793).

In the Eddic poem Sigrdrífumál, Sigrdrífa (the valkyrie) instructs Sigurd to carve "victory runes" on his sword, and call on Tyr two times, in order to achieve victory in battle.

Questions:

1) What other meanings do you attribute to Tiwaz?

2) How do you utilize this rune in your practice?

3) If Tiwaz has presented itself in your rune work or castings, how have you seen its energy manifested, or experienced its impact?