THE SECRETS OF THE RUNES
Alex Belojica
No-one can now be sure of the origin of the Runic alphabet with which many of us
will be at least vaguely familiar.
The ‘stick like’ almost primitive looking symbols often appear in an article or a
fantasy tale in magazines or novels, they seem to hold a fascination that lies deep
within the consciousness of many of us.
Visit ancient churches in Sweden, Norway maybe even northernmost parts of
Britain and you may see Rune images carved on walls or gravestones.
So what about the history and meaning behind them? Even the word ‘Rune’
provokes debate amongst scholars. In Old Norse, a ‘run’ was a secret, in Old
German, it is connected with the ‘raunen’ to whisper, and in Welsh the word for a
secret is ‘rhin’ or ‘rin’. By the Middle Ages to ‘roon’ a person meant to whisper in
somebody’s ear. Little wonder the Runes have acquired a mystery all of their
own!
We know the Norsemen used them, did they bring their carved stones with them
on their frequent visits to Britain?
Or did the Celts have them first and was it the old inhabitants of Britain that gave
them to the world? There is some evidence that the people of what is now Alpine
Italy read with the Runes and some antiquarians argue that the Etruscans or even
the Ancient Greeks knew the meanings long before they were used in the
Northern lands.
Certainly the Runes were used as an alphabet just as ours is today but the
Shamen or wise men of the tribe or group knew they were central to the arts they
practised. Anxious people would consult the old wisdoms and have the past and
present explained and the future laid before them.
Runecasters will generally use 24 stones or possibly 25, the extra one being blank.
I use the additional one and if it is selected I interpret this to mean that the
querent has more opportunity than is normally the case to change, grow and take
a new direction.
The actual names for the stones vary depending on whether the Runecaster
favours the Nordic, Germanic or Celtic variety but they are close enough in name
and symbolic meaning for this to be a minor issue in the overall scheme of things.
Arranged in three groups or Aetts (clans or tribes), most of the Runic symbols are
based on earthy, primeval concepts. The societies in which they were revered and
central to the culture largely lived closer to nature than we can imagine. A crop
failure was likely to mean starvation, life expectancy was far lower than in or
westernised, sanitised world today. The people who used the alphabet symbols
were focused fiercely on a lifestyle that is beyond our real understanding. They
had much more down to earth, basic attitudes towards life, death, sex, all that
destiny had to offer them.
It is worth taking a detailed look at the Os rune, symbolising as it does the God
Odin.
He was also known as Wodin, Wotan and if he travels in our world may take the
names Vak and Valtam.
Odin was very far from the benevolent forgiving deity that we associate with the
Christian religion. He is usually depicted as a somewhat scruffy looking old man,
wearing a dark cloak and a soft felt cap, maybe dark blue in colour, pulled across
his face to try to disguise the fact that he has only one eye! Legend tells us he
traded the eye to the Giant God Mimir in return for a drink from the well of
wisdom to gain knowledge and he also hung in agony pierced by his own sword
on the cosmic tree Ygddrasil to prove he was immortal. But some claim Odin cut
off Mimir’s head and carries it with him and that is the real source of his wisdom.
He rode Sleipnir, an eight- legged steed.
There is little dispute though that he learned 9 powerful songs and the Runes
were given to him in a dream. He has the power to change shape into any animal
and roam the countryside in these guises. However, it is in his human form he
more commonly appears at crossroads often accompanied by two ravens and a
wolf to strike terror into the hearts of lonely travellers. He can raise the dead,
calm the winds and make his enemies go blind and deaf but it is his cunning and
trickery which mark him out in history. He may offer ‘deals’ to mortals which
usually meant the bargaining of their souls, indeed some believe the tales of
mortals being tricked into selling their souls to the Devil may originate with Odin!
How this Rune is interpreted is a story in itself but as with every stone, the
interpretation is dependent on the context in which it appears and set against the
other Runes selected.
As A Runecaster of many years experience, I am of the opinion that it is the very
primeval, ancient and basic nature of the runes that has allowed the art of casting
to survive in our modern technologically obsessed world. Deep within us all, there
is a feeling, a desire to explore our inner selves and perhaps a belief that only by
drawing on our collective past can we can really hope to move forward to our real
future.
When I work with people, I explain to those that consult me that there is no
‘magic’ in the stones, the only magic is within all of us. The Runes work with the
two-way participation between caster and client, a joining together of hearts and
minds. The process works because the societies that used the Runic alphabet
were so much more in tune with life, the earth and the world beyond. Their
animals and the elements were almost a part of them in a way that our modern,
gadget and technologically obsessed world could never comprehend. I see the
Runes as a bunch of keys that open the door to a real world, a way of learning
about life and self. We all habitually have our eyes closed but in the time we see
the Runes and read their message our eyes are opened. The stones contain
knowledge, truths, even secrets and casting Runes is the most dramatic,
emotional and passionate experience for the reader and hopefully, some of that
feeling envelops the one for whom the caster works. All it takes is belief in
yourself.
For more information on the art of Runecasting, please contact me on:
a.belojica@sky.com or telephone 01656 654103