First of a two-part introduction to working with the Runes of the Elder Futhark.
(This essay is from the last version of Dancing Down the Moon)
By the time most Witches have been practicing for a year or
two, they have started becoming proficient at one or more forms of divination.
Oracles are among the most useful and important magical tools--provided one
understands what divination can and cannot do.
Most people believe that Tarot cards or Runes and so forth
tell the future. In my experience, the future is not unshakable truth, it is a
matter of probability. Oracles speak in terms of probabilities: given the
current situation and the querant's attitude and history, certain events are
likely to come about, but given enough effort and will, circumstances can and
do change.
It's my opinion that oracles of any kind help us to see and
understand what, deep down, we already know. Anyone can work with divination,
no matter how much of a psychic dud they think they are--the whole purpose of
the cards or stones is to give you a symbolic language with which to communicate
with the sacred, in a way that you are more likely to believe and accept than a
gut feeling or a bit of the future tossed into your brain by the cosmos.
Oracles serve as a sort of contact lens for your third eye, sharpening and
deepening your vision--they don't confer psychic ability out of nowhere. You
already have all the ability you need; all you may lack is the know-how.
I've been working with the Runes of the Elder Futhark
(hereafter abbreviated EF) for about five years now, and in that time they have
become such an intrinsic part of my practice that I often find myself sitting
in front of my altar with my hand in the bag, toying with the stones absently
while I'm puzzling over a situation--sometimes a Rune will jump into my hand in
the bag and when I pull my hand out, without even trying, I have an answer to
my problem. When I cast the Runes I have learned to disengage my rational mind
and just talk, letting the symbols themselves speak through me. That kind of
trust takes time and practice to develop. It doesn't happen overnight.
Over the early years of my career as a Wiccan I tried a
number of different oracles, searching for The One, but always finding
something lacking in every deck I came across. Like most Pagans I am an avid
oracle collector. I have eight or nine decks of various kinds (I know that's a
relatively low number compared with many people, but hey, I'm cheap), ranging
from animal oracles to Tarot to New Agey Crystal Granola type Goddess Cards.
Two of the decks actually speak to me, but the rest I mostly keep to
demonstrate to my students or to loan to other people who are interested in
getting a deck of their own. The decks I use by and large are only for me; when
I read for other people, I cast the Runes.
There's no way I could give a full description of the Runes
and their uses in one website article, but I'll touch on a few high points that
I hope will intrigue you enough to give them a try.
What are the Runes?
The word "Futhark," incidentally, comes from the
first six letters of the alphabet, similar to the word "alphabet"
itself. The EF has 24 symbols, arranged into three groups of eight (each
thoughtfully called an "Aett", the plural of which is
"Aettir.").
(Note: There are 24 Runes in the EF, not 25. The so-called
"blank Rune" is a modern invention and was not part of the alphabet
used by the Norse. Proponents of the blank claim that it represents the space
between the words, but I find that ridiculous--why would you need a letter for
silence? Besides, having a Rune to stand for "fate" makes no sense if
you don't believe in fate, and it always felt like a cop-out to me even before
I found out it was an addition to the original EF.)
From a mythological perspective, the Runes were originally
created by the Norns, the three fates who wove the lives of gods and mortals at
the base of the World Tree. They were later revealed to the god Odin, who
underwent a shamanic ordeal hanging from the Tree on a quest for wisdom. The
story is recounted in the Havamal, one of the poems of the Poetic Edda, a
surviving text of the ancient Norse people. (For an annotated translation of
the Havamal, click here.)
My knowledge is primarily of the EF, as it has always felt
the most "complete" to me--the three Aettir are balanced with an even
number of symbols in each. Unfortunately, the true meanings of the Runes are
hard to come by; there are several surviving Rune Poems, but they were not
based on the EF, and often carry the burden of a heavy Christian influence
determined to squelch the Heathen worldview that created them. There are even
fewer accounts of the Runes being used in divination; the only complete
description was written by the Roman Tacitus, who had never been to Germany and had never actually seen the Runes being cast.
For this reason I often find it amusing when Runic scholars
try to tell me my interpretations aren't traditional. How, exactly, do they
know? We have the literal translation of each Rune's name, and a fairly good
idea of what such a symbol would have meant in the context of Norse society,
but it's not as if the ancient diviners were consulting a book for their
meanings. Also, any reader worth his or her salt will interpret the symbols,
cards, or whatever based not only on the textbook definition, but on the
relationship the symbol has to the others around it, and the person being read
for.
I have a deep affinity for trees. When I read the story of
Odin in the Havamal, I was struck by the image of the god hanging from the
World Tree, staring into its branches after days and days without food, drink,
or comfort. I imagined the branches weaving in and out, forming shapes, forming
symbols; after so many days staring at them, I imagined the symbols beginning
to make sense, revealing themselves not as random patterns or scratchings on
stone, but as the language of the Tree itself. To me the Runes are the language
of the trees, of Nature. This is why my personal set of Runes is carved from
European Ash; many scholars believe the World Tree was a great ash, and it was
a way to honor the roots of the language--if you'll pardon the pun.
Runes are one of my favorites for divination too. My set is made from carnelian (although the store I bought them from called it 'sunstone').
I love the Runes for their 'down to earth' practical advice. I also read Tarot, pendulum, I've done some work with cowries (I need to do more with them!) and scry various and assorted things (clouds, smoke, fire, etc. I can't manage mirror scrying...all I see is my own reflection!)
Runes and Tarot are my two favorites though!!! I am excited to hear your take on them!
Posted by: Danmara | June 26, 2008 at 03:41 PM