The magic of the runes

 Magical runes and their meanings.

In the Edda, it is stated that Odin gains knowledge of the runes through great suffering. He was wounded, hung upside down, and received no food or drink for nine days.

Despite this, the price seemed worth paying considering the immense knowledge, magic, and power that the runes brought. 

Our ancestors communicated with signs, and the belief was that the runes possessed magical powers. These characters were their writing system.

Runes were the first alphabet of the Norse people. The letters, or rather the runes, were carved into wood, bone, or stone. The oldest runestones in the North date from the beginning of our era (in Sweden from the 2nd century) and are carved with an older runic alphabet that had 24 runic characters. These older writing characters are sometimes called Urnordic runes because the language spoken in the North at that time (around 150-800 AD) is usually referred to as Urnordic.

The runic row is called "futhark." Each rune has a name, and the row is named after the first six runes. Thus, the Futhark got its name in the same way as alphabet , after the first writing characters in the alphabet.

Runes were the writing system of the Norse people; they were used, for example, to convey events, deeds, meetings, write love letters, resolve disputes, various kinds of divination, e.g., it could be good to know how the harvest would be that year, love, spells, and everyday magic.

Divining with runes was, and still is for many, a simple tool to use when you want quick answers, advice, where your focus should be here and now, current and upcoming events, or your current life situation.

“Runa” means secret.

The 24-character, oldest, Urnordic runic row is still in use as a divination tool. 

Often it was the Völva in the village who had the knowledge. 

Here you can read more about the Völva: https://historiska.se/upptack-historien/artikel/volvans-spadom/

In Norse mythology, they have strong associations with wisdom, magic, and health.

There are several runic alphabets from different cultures; it is the Elder Futhark that is described here.

It contains 24 runes and one blank rune. 
The runes served as writing characters but also as symbols with special magical significance.

How old are the runes?

The runes were created about 2000 years ago, around the time of Christ's birth. The oldest preserved runic inscriptions are from the 2nd century AD. 

The historian Tacitus wrote about the consultation of the runes in his work Germania. The book was written in the year 98 AD.

Tacitus, Germania, chapter 10: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/tacitus1.html

www.tacitus.nu.

The oldest runic inscriptions found in Sweden date back to the 2nd century.

Below you have names and short versions of the meanings of the runes used for consultation and divination.

FEHU

Wealth, fortune, quality of life, profit.

URUZ
New life, positive change, good health, overcome obstacles, courage.

THURISAZ
Protection, good news, relationships.

ANSUZ
Inner wisdom, receive good advice, communication.

RAIDHO

Realize dreams, change,
Plan a trip, good luck, inner balance.

KENAZ
Inner glow, creative actions,
Time for action.

GIFU
Happy day, appreciation,
Happiness is expected today.

WUNJO/WUNJA
Tears of joy, enjoyment, friendship, vitality, give a gift.

HAGALAZ
Lay low, no quick decisions, rest,
Gather strength, recharge spiritual batteries.

NAUDHIZ
Fate, source of power, dare to speak up, inner strength.

ISAZ
Lay low, no hasty decisions, look towards a bright future.

JERA
Hurt no one unnecessarily, swallow your words.

PERDRHA
Enjoy your day, be happy, new beginnings. Unexpected gift.

EIHWAZ
Protection, right path, new beginning, positive future.

ALGIZ
Protection, something new is happening, be open!

SOWILO,SIGIL
The sign of the sun, good health, power, rekindling, vitality.

TIWAZ

The rune of the spiritual warrior. Wholeness, Tyr. Courage, struggle, willingness to sacrifice, balance, concentration, justice, honesty, motivation, willpower, truth, victory. The Tyr rune was carved on weapons as a bringer of luck. 

BERKANAN,BIORK

The rune of Mother Earth. Earthly feminine power, nurturing, maternal love, care, humility, supporting others, growing development – spiritual and magical. It is a symbol of fertility and birth. The birch rune is also a relationship rune.

MANNAZ

The rune of humanity. It stands for self-awareness, development, wisdom, and self-knowledge. It symbolizes the development of one's innermost personality.

Mannaz is the rune of the enlightened person. Social competence, the rune of ancestors.

EHWAS

The rune for our strengths and weaknesses. Use your strengths and accept your weaknesses. Stop downplaying yourself to highlight others' egos. It’s your turn to shine.

LAGAZ

The rune for instinct and the subconscious, time to listen and trust your gut feeling.
Lagaz is the rune for water and intuition and guidance.
The rune helps to find detours and flow around stones in the way. It can also sometimes create excessive flexibility and softness. Inability to show firmness, even when needed. The rune is associated with unpredictable turns of fate, with intuition guiding the mind in the right direction. Rune of intuitive perception of reality.

INGWAS

Personal time, leisurely, calm, still waiting, endurance and patience while moving towards a goal. A dream. Visions and daydreams.

DAGAZ

Implementation of plans, quick decisions, powerful rune, breakthroughs in negotiations or plans.

OTHALA

Represents cultivation and harvest, for family, home, kin.

Security, experience, experiences, self-awareness, accumulated knowledge, wisdom, prosperity, possessions. The true value of things. Wealth can be measured on many levels.

TOM RUNA

Contains nothing as well as everything as it is filled with the power of fate. A leap into the unknown.