Basic rune understanding
Posted by TaraCraft on Jan 31, 2010
Runes are system of magic and divination the we got from the Teutonic people of the ancient north. Teutonic paganism thrived in Viking Scandinavia, Iceland, and Germany. The earliest runic forms were rock-art symbols that represented the cosmic and spiritual insights of the Bronze Age Shamans.
Around 500-400 B.C the Eruli developed a sacred code of magic signs and connected them with the sound values of the North Italic(Nordic) letters. Thus we have the runic system we use today.
Runes became widely used for wizardry, communication, oracles, and inscriptions. Many different cultures developed there own sets which is why you see so many.
There are also witches runes which are not to be mistaken with the original Teutonic divinatory tool.
Today runes take two forms, runic cards which are like tarot cards, runic stones which are small stones with runic symbols on them.
Runes are not usually used as an alphabet because as most runes masters agree that while it can be done it creates a magical vortex that you hopefully did not intend, meaning the magic created does not match its translation.
Although there are many ways to read runes the most powerful and easiest is casting the lot of them onto a mat. Those in the center define the significant energies of the reading, while those far away are considered as supporting information.
Runes are popular because they are a quick and easy way to read the energies of a situation. There are only twenty-four of them to memorize. You can even make your own set with clay, wood, or stone. Preferably the material you use is blesses or cleansed. Each glyph alone or combined with others creates powerful energies when invoked properly.
However like all tools the require study. But unlike most they are user-friendly and will work for new students in their capacity to understand them. And as your knowledge grows so does your expertise with them.
Here are the runes with their basic meanings:
FEOH- money, wealth, sense of worth, ego, karma
UR- strength, healing, mental powers, internal transition, spiritual strength
THORN- protection, unfortunate event, self discipline, organization, purification, meditation
ASA- promotion, leadership, information through the spoken or written word, careful planning, divine wisdom
RAD- traveling, short errands, moving ahead, change in thought, new spiritual path
CEN- documents, letters, books or other recorded information, insight, ideas, solutions, success, creativity, enlightenment, finding an opening
GYFU- partnership that you enjoy, generosity, ones oath, divine gift or skill
WYN- the group mind, celebrations, holiday activities, success, fulfillment, harmony
HAEGL- disruptive physical event, disillusionment, spiritual struggle, protection against enemies
NYD- material, emotional, or spiritual need
ISA- material, mental or spiritual inactivity
JERA- improvement of physical circumstances, relationships, improvement on mental outlook, drawing closer to physical attainment.
EOH- sudden change in physical location, return of an old friend or enemy, death, confronting your shadows, process of spiritual initiation
PEORTH- magic, the result of ones magical applications, secrets revealed, occult, divine intervention
ALGIZ- help from the outside, ethics and values, protection, divinity, the path of enlightenment, intuition, information from a divine source.
SOL- success, healing, achievement, combining ones energy with divinity, finding the right path, knowing your own true will
TYR- justice, winning battles, finding mental and emotional order, building ones faith
BEORC- birth, conception of child, relationships, emotional well being, feminine mysteries, protection for women
EH- movement, cooperation?s between two parties, negotiations, meeting of the minds, drawing divine and psychic power
MAN- issues, groups of people, organizations, friendship, connecting with divinity
LAGUS- heightened sensitivity, unconscious activity, dreams, love, collective unconscious, psychism
ING- nature, the world around you, passion, balance, conclusion to something that is bothering you, finding harmony in all things
ODAL- structure, lineage, protection of ones property
DAG- satisfaction with any situation, having a positive outlook or one is required of you, finding balance and harmony in ones spirituality, transformation
Here are the magical applications:
FEOH- advance projects, send the energy of other runes, temporary changes
UR- enhances strength, sends courage
THORN- breakthroughs, defense, change
ASA- wisdom, eloquence, inspiration, sending information
CEN- creating an opening, banishment, illumination, fire magic of all kinds
GYFU- creating balance, healing, bonding energies, air magic of all kinds
WYN- wish rune, success, sends projection of authority, binds group energies in a positive way
HAEGL- overcoming obstacles, banishing, blessing, defense activities
NYD- seeking freedom, finding liberation, turning a bad situation into a good one, turning away enemies
ISA- blocking negative energy, freezing a situation, finding clarity, binding negative energies
JERA- gentle change, harvesting what you have done, bringing rewards to you that you have earned, improving a situation, building
EOH- attuning energies, hunter rune, achieving true aims, finishing projects, laying fears to rest, closure
PEORTH- understanding the underlying energies of a situation, initiation, secrets, vision questing, shamanistic work, fate
ALGIZ- protection, luck, defense, opening ones psychic abilities with divine guidance
SOL- bringing about victory or healing, making wise choices
TYR- justice, honor, victory, faith, order, personal security, defensive movements, courage
BEORC- starting a new project, spells for birth, purification, motherhood, reincarnation and protection specifically for women and children
EH- making something move, creating a partnership between yourself and another, overcoming obstacles, psychic abilities in connection with other people
MAN- creating singular thoughts and sending them, intelligence, arbitration wherein you will be treated fairly
LAGUS- strengthening occult work, interpreting dreams and other psychic phenomena, fascinations, glamouries
ING- learning to focus, grounding and centering work, finding opportunities, overcoming mental illness, calming domestic issues
ODAL- prosperity, fortunate influences
DAG- finding and promoting spiritual enlightenment, making choices that affect your spirituality, changing you outlook from negative to positive, increasing happiness and wealth, finding good luck
As I said before there are only twenty-four to memorize and those who say there is a blank rune are wrong, there is no recordings of an actual blank rune in any of the original runic systems.
Posted by ginseng on Feb 01, 2010
Thank-you ,yes they are hard to understand at the moment for me , i have a handbook and mat with mine , memorizing them all is hard so i keep referring back to the book , the mat is good because it shows you the different spreads you can use , i will stick with it as i realy want to learn them , i only brought my set last week :)
Posted by TaraCraft on Feb 01, 2010
i use to have a nice set but i let my exroommate take them with her so she can further herself my dad is making me a new one.
Mat spreads are the best and the easiest to understand. And as for memorizing them and all there meanings. I have been reading runes for roughly ten years and am still iffy on a few.
Posted by ginseng on Feb 02, 2010
Yes it would be good to have a set i carved myself they would feel more personal to me , but i simply dont have the time to do this , your lucky :) to have a great father to do them for you :)
Posted by TaraCraft on Feb 02, 2010
yeah my dad is pretty awesome when he aint in a bad mood from workin all the time
THE RUNES AND THEIR LORE
Posted by CorpseWood on Oct 28, 2009
I will be discussing each rune individually;then in later posting about the magickal applications of each rune afterwards.
There is a table of the shapes of the runes in my profile pictures. If there are any questions, please ask.
The Runes
Fehu : Cattle,Gold
Letter Equivalent: F
Tree(s): Birch,Alder,& Flax
Color: Golden-Red
Totem(s): Cow,Linnet,Boar,& Horse
Treasure(s): Gold/Amber tears,& Fiery Sword
Divinity(ies): Freyja,Audhumla,Surt,Niord,& Frey
Element: Fire
Stone(s): Carnelian,Green Tourmaline,Amber
Keywords
Physical: Money,Wealth,Sexual Passion
Mental: Sense of Self-Worth,Ego
Spiritual: Karma
Lore of Fehu
This rune represents fertility,wealth,cattle,and gold which are the riches/treasures of the land and the people. It represents movable wealth,and at times, sexual energy. At one time,cattle was considered a form of barter and trade. For peoples of the Northern Way, how many cattle one possesed shown how wealthy the person was and his status within the community.
In later times, cattle were replaced by inaniamte,material objects like silver and gold.
This rune is the primeval golden fire of creation, and symbolizes the fertile force of the goddess Freyja.
Also, this is the World-Fire,initiating and energizing the creative process, but if it is blocked or constricted, it can be destructive, becoming the Fiery Sword of the black fire-demon Surt. He appears at the Ragnorok, with the fire-giants.
Fehu represents the spark of all manefestation, which, in time, will consume all at the end of the Cosmic Age.
Uruz : Wild Ox, Bull, Auroch
Letter Equivalent: U
Tree(s): Oak
Color(s): GreenBrown
Totem(s): Bull
Treasure(s): Thor's belt of Might, the Girdle of the Goddess
Divinity(ies): Fiorgynn, Thor
Element: Earth
Stone(s): Tiger Eye, Hawk eye
Keywords
Physical: Strength, Virility, and Healing
Mental: Mental prowess, and the Will
Spiritual: Internal transition, and Spiritual Strength
Lore of Uruz
This is the rune of firm establishment, and solidification. It represents the great bull or ox that pills the plow, tilling the soil for planting.This rune is sacred to the Goddess Fiorgynn. Her worship is especially connected with the hills and mounds. The God Thor is her son.He draws upon earth-might(jardar-maginn) from the depths of her to perform his great deeds of strength and might.
The European bison(auroch) was hunted at one time by young men to prove their manhood.
Uruz represents the warrior within us, and sacred to the Celtic Lord of the Hunt, and may be associated with Kernunnos, Herne, and the Green Man.
Thurisaz : Thurs
Letter Equivalent: TH
Tree(s): Hawthorn, Oak, Houseleek
Color(s): Red
Totem(s): Goat, Cuckoo
Treasure(s): Hammer(Mjollnir), Thunder-Weapon
Divinity(ies): Thor
Stone(s): Agate, Bloodstone, Hematite
Keywords
Physical: Protection, unfortunate event, small irritations
Mental: Self-discipline, organization
Spiritual: Purification,meditaion
The Lore of Thurisaz
This rune is the fertilizing bolt of lightning, crackling forth from heaven to earth. It cuts through every barrier with its piercing power on both the material and spiritual levels. Thurisaz embodies the the mystery of the Thunder-weapon, Mjollnir, which is used by Thor to destroy giants.
The runes' meaning is sometimes coupled with the words demon or giant, but this meaning comes from the medieval texts in which all Pagan gods were considered evil.
It is a harbringer of regeneration, in an aspect which was invoked in Norse wedding rites; A hammer was placed upon the brides' lap to awaken fertility and to banish barrenness.
Also in the Northern lands, Neolithic stone axeheads(thunderstones), were hung from the plow when it was time to plant to ward off infertility of the land and impregnate the fields.
Thor is described with Mjollnir holding back the attacks of the giants(thursar), and thus protecting the domains of Asgard and Middle-Earth. Thursar are the titanic chaotic forces; but Thor's Hammer protects the livelihoods of humans and gods and defends order in the worlds. Mjollnir can destroy, but also brings rebirth and regeneration from beyond the grave. Thor had to slaughter his goats for food, then he held his hammer over their bones, thus resurrecting them.
Ansuz : God
Letter Equivalent: A
Tree(s): Ash, Hazel
Color(s): Dark Blue
Totem(s): Raven, Adder
Treasure(s): Ashwood Spear(Gungnir), Meadhorn
Divinity(ies): Odinn, Huginn, Muninn
Stone(s): Lapis Lazuli
Keywords
Physical: Promotion, leadership
Mental: Planning carefully
Spiritual: Divine wisdom
The Lore of Ansuz
This rune represents forces of the divine order, and is the god Odinn's rune. He is the great god of occult wisdom, inspiration, and poetry.
He has two ravens, Huginn(thought),and Muninn(memory). They fly around the world each day then come back at dusk and speak their knowledge to Odinn. These ravens are the aspects of his soul in which he projects to learn of things that are far away. They are the swift-flying powers of the enlightened mind.
The rune represents the numinous vital breath---the soul of the universe. It is the spirit-breath that gives life to everything in the nine worlds.
There are three magick drinking horns which contain the magick mead of inspiriation, named Odhroerir, Bodn, and Son. Odinn shapeshifted into a serpent to go under the enchanted mountain where the giantess Gunnlodd guarded the mead. He made love to her then drank the mead, and afterwards shapeshifted into an eagle and carried the mead to Asgard. The magick mead represents his gift of ecstasy, from states of profound mystical trance to poetic inspiration. This also is a rune of the Aesir(the high gods), and is very symbolic of the Odinnic field of divine consciousness. Ansuz is often associated with the air element, and governs language, speech, communication, and incantation.
Raido : Ride, Chariot, Thunderclap
Letter Equivalent: R
Tree(s): Holly, Oak
Color(s): Red
Totem(s): Horse, Robin
Treasure(s):Solar Chariot,Wagon, Wheel
Divinity(ies): The Driver Thor, Nerthus(and her sacred wagon)
Stone(s): Turquoise
Keywords
Physical: Taking a trip, short errands
Mental: Change in thought patterns
Spiritual: New spiritual path
Lore of Raido
This rune stands for the element of ordered travel. It is the chariot wheel that runs upon the the straight path of sovereignty, a royal road that is the rightful road of the order of the cosmos. Raido is the chariot of the sun; it rides in triumph of the kings and queens, every day of the year.
Shamanic tradition denotes that it carries the initiate from the world of the physical beyond the veil to the world of the ancient ones. Also, in some initiations, the initiate is carried over the threshold of the circle.This symbolizes the journey across the veil for the petitioner.
This rune is also the primortial cosmic arrangement, as it is identical with the Indian concept of Rta. Raido governs the order of the time of day and night, midsummer and midwinter,and the rightful arrangement of the universe that ordains the path of all heavenly bodies. It also represents the divine king, who is the living embodiment of cosmic order, seated in the center of his kingdom where roads converge.
The ethos of the shamanic sovereign or ceremonial king is exemplified by Raido as well.
This rune shows us the right way to live and divine truth, representing the transfomative life-journey along which we all travel to achieve wholeness.
It also shows how to evolve and move in the perfect harmony of the gods, which are the very powers that order the procession of the sun and the stars in the universe.
Kenaz :Torch
Letter Equivalent: K
Tree(s): Pine, Maidenhair
Color(s): Orange, Amber
Totem(s): Lynx,Falcon
Treasure(s): Fire-Necklace(Brisingamen), Feather Cloak
Divinity(ies): Freyja
Stone(s): Flint, Smoky Quartz, Fire Agate, Amber
Keywords
Physical: Letters, documents, books, or other recorded info, sexual power, enthusiasms
Mental: Creativity, insight, solutions, success, ideas
Spiritual: Enlightenment
Lore of Kenaz
This rune represents the bright flame that burns in the hallway of an evening, and symbolizes the tempered, safe fire of the hearth. It represents the feminine creative force, Seid-Fire or Seith-Fyr, the magickal-sexual heat of Freyja, which slumbers within us,waiting to be kindled. Humankind's oldest fire ritual, the tree of fire, is present in today's Yule or Christmas tree. Shaman(written Flaman in older times), actually means ''keeper of the flame or burning fires''. Kenaz is the rune of the Goddess Freyja. She wears a cloak made of falcon feathers and a fire-necklace called the Brisingamen, which was forged by four dwarves in their smithy deep in the caverns. In order for her to gain this necklace she had to enter into a short marriage with each dwarf. Brisingamen embodies the circle of a sacred fire, and created when the sun passes through the four seasonal quarters, bringing with it warmth, light and fertility.
It is a rune of magickal heat, shaping and begetting new creations, all acts of art, magick and craft.
We all see and feel this rune in the fire for cooking, fire for forging, and also in the flames of lust. Arousing this fire brings inner and outer change, and its light grants the far-reaching of seership so that we may ''ken'', or have knowledge of hidden matters. Kenaz is the feminine creative principle existing in the universe and humankind.