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The Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem

(in Modern English)

Wealth is a comfort to all men;

yet must every man bestow it freely,
if he wish to gain honour in the sight of the Lord.

The aurochs is proud and has great horns;

it is a very savage beast and fights with its horns;
a great ranger of the moors, it is a creature of mettle.

The thorn is exceedingly sharp,

an evil thing for any knight to touch,
uncommonly severe on all who sit among them.

The mouth is the source of all language,

a pillar of wisdom and a comfort to wise men,
a blessing and a joy to every knight.

Riding seems easy to every warrior while he is indoors

and very courageous to him who traverses the high-roads
on the back of a stout horse.

The torch is known to every living man by its pale, bright flame;

it always burns where princes sit within.

Generosity brings credit and honour, which support one's dignity;

it furnishes help and subsistence
to all broken men who are devoid of aught else.

Bliss he enjoys who knows not suffering, sorrow nor anxiety,

and has prosperity and happiness and a good enough house.

Hail is the whitest of grain;

it is whirled from the vault of heaven
and is tossed about by gusts of wind
and then it melts into water.

Trouble is oppressive to the heart;

yet often it proves a source of help and salvation
to the children of men, to everyone who heeds it betimes.

Ice is very cold and immeasurably slippery;

it glistens as clear as glass and most like to gems;
it is a floor wrought by the frost, fair to look upon.

Summer is a joy to men, when God, the holy King of Heaven,

suffers the earth to bring forth shining fruits
for rich and poor alike.

The yew is a tree with rough bark,

hard and fast in the earth, supported by its roots,
a guardian of flame and a joy upon an estate.

Peorth is a source of recreation and amusement to the great,

where warriors sit blithely together in the banqueting-hall.

The Eolh-sedge is mostly to be found in a marsh;

it grows in the water and makes a ghastly wound,
covering with blood every warrior who touches it.

The sun is ever a joy in the hopes of seafarers

when they journey away over the fishes' bath,
until the courser of the deep bears them to land.

Tiw is a guiding star; well does it keep faith with princes;

it is ever on its course over the mists of night and never fails.

The poplar bears no fruit; yet without seed it brings forth suckers,

for it is generated from its leaves.
Splendid are its branches and gloriously adorned
its lofty crown which reaches to the skies.

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.

The joyous man is dear to his kinsmen;

yet every man is doomed to fail his fellow,
since the Lord by his decree will commit the vile carrion to the earth.

The ocean seems interminable to men,

if they venture on the rolling bark
and the waves of the sea terrify them
and the courser of the deep heed not its bridle.

Ing was first seen by men among the East-Danes,

till, followed by his chariot,
he departed eastwards over the waves.
So the Heardingas named the hero.

An estate is very dear to every man,

if he can enjoy there in his house
whatever is right and proper in constant prosperity.

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.

The oak fattens the flesh of pigs for the children of men.

Often it traverses the gannet's bath,
and the ocean proves whether the oak keeps faith
in honourable fashion.

The ash is exceedingly high and precious to men.

With its sturdy trunk it offers a stubborn resistance,
though attacked by many a man.

Yr is a source of joy and honour to every prince and knight;

it looks well on a horse and is a reliable equipment for a journey.

Iar is a river fish and yet it always feeds on land;

it has a fair abode encompassed by water, where it lives in happiness.

The grave is horrible to every knight,

when the corpse quickly begins to cool
and is laid in the bosom of the dark earth.
Prosperity declines, happiness passes away
and covenants are broken.

Meditations on the Anglo Saxon Rune Poem

 

 

The aim of this section is to present a series of mediations based around the old Anglo Saxon Rune Poem.

 

This is a very interesting and powerful poem, with many different aspects to it.  Firstly, it is based around the old FUÐORC or Germanic alphabet and at one level simply records this alphabet with a short verse for each letter.  As with our modern alphabet, each letter represents a specific sound of the language.  However, unlike our modern alphabet, each letter also has a specific meaning.  At one level, this is something simple such as a plant, animal or an action such as riding.  However, embedded into this is a much deeper symbology that speaks of ancient wisdom and knowledge.

 

Whilst the ideas inherent in this poem undoubtedly have pre-Christian origins, the poem itself is thought to have been written down in the eighth or ninth centuries AD, placing it well into the Christian era. Indeed, it was rediscovered in a monastery and the written version we have has been Christianised.  As such, it is an extremely valuable resource to the English Folk Christian wishing to connect with his or her distant ancestors and with the culture they lived in.

 

The poem is organised into three sets of eight verses, or aetts, with letters derived from the elder FUÐORC held in common with other Germanic ‘alphabets’.  In addition to these, are a further five characters added into the Anglo Saxon language to accommodate new sounds resulting from greater contact with other peoples and especially the Latin tongue.

 

It is suggested that a Rosary could be used to help in this meditation.  Remember that the Old English word for prayer is ‘bede’ – each rosary bede is therefore a prayer offered to God.  The rosary would be divided into three sets of eight beads with an additional fourth set for the more recent five runes.  Each bede should be inscribed with the appropriate Runic character.  As you pass each bead through your fingers, you should say the sound of the Rune (either mentally to yourself or out aloud as you prefer) and between each bead ponder on its meaning.  A meditation is given below for each runic character.

 

Tony Linsell’s ‘Anglo Saxon Mythology, Migration & Magic’ is specifically acknowledged as a source of inspiration for this project.

 

 

 

 

First Ætt

a

feoh

feoh byð frofur fira gehwylcum

sceal ðeah manna gehwylc miclun hyt dælan

gif he wile for drihtne domes hleotan.

 

wealth is a comfort to all men

yet everyone should freely give it

to win glory and honour before God in heaven.

 

In its most literal sense a (feoh), means money or wealth and is related to our modern word 'fee'.  Traditionally it is associated with cattle, as this is how our ancestors often saved and increased their wealth, much as today we put it into a bank.  At face value, we may think it is about wealth, perhaps about saving it up or the importance of having and not having it.  But it is actually telling us much more.  The verse is composed of two different statements:

Firstly, "wealth is a comfort to all men".  Here we have a clear statement that wealth is not in itself bad.  It is a 'comfort'.  This does not mean "comfort" in the lazy, luxurious sense, but rather 'security'.  It is the ability to not have to worry where your next meal is coming from, where you might live, how you will keep warm in winter and so on.  We still say "I'm not rich, but I'm comfortable".  With the security of a degree of wealth behind us, we can actually become less concerned with material things and turn our attention to more spiritual matters.

Secondly, "yet each must give freely to win glory in heaven".  This is both advice and a warning.  The warning is that whilst wealth in itself is not a bad thing, we should not become obsessive about it.  In particular, we should not become obsessive about acquiring it and hoarding it.  It is what we do with our wealth that is important, not what we have.  There are many myths and stories about dragons guarding great hoards of treasure.  Indeed, the dragon in this sense can be seen as the greedy and avaricious side of our nature.  Anglo Saxon Christians associated dragons with evil and the devil.  Unnecessary hoarding of our wealth will invoke a greedy and mean spirit within us.

The type wealth embodied in feoh does not have to be money.  It can be happiness or contentedness.  But it also refers to spiritual wealth.  Our spiritual journey is to learn and to develop and to move closer to God.  Our Lord guides us on this journey and as we progress we become more whole or holy; literally more spiritually healthy. 

The final part of the verse tells of winning dom, or glory and honour before God in heaven.  At one level, dom refers to how we are remembered in this world.  Glory, in this sense, is the outward manifestation of our earthly courage and fame.  But it is much more than this.  The poem does not refer to winning glory on earth, but rather in heaven.  In the Christian tradition, glory actually refers to the transcending of our earthly bodies into a higher plane as we enter heaven.  Earthly wealth can provide comfort for us in this world.  But it can also tie us to this world.  The poem here is not just telling us how we can be remembered in this world, but is telling us that our true ‘doom’, or destiny, is to transcend this earthly life, and earthly material, in order to advance towards a higher state of spiritual existence in heaven.

 

u

ur

ur byþ anmod and oferhyrned

felafrecne deor feohteþ mid hornum

mære morstapa þæt is modig wuht

 

The aurochs is determined and horned above

Fierce and bold this beast fights with horns

A mighty stepper over moors, it is a courageous creature.

 

The Aurochs was a primitive ancestor of the wild ox which is now extinct.  This sense of primitiveness is embodied in the word 'Ur' which means 'primal' or 'ancient' in Germanic languages.  An initiation rite for young Germanic warriors involved hunting and killing an Aurochs armed only with basic weapons such as spear and knife.  The Aurochs was a formidable foe and victory in the hunt was by no means assured.  Hunting it required courage, stamina and patience.

u (Ur) teaches us about facing life with courage and determination.  It encourages us to never give up when the going gets tough.  It also teaches us that to achieve our goals we may need to put much effort into it and be patient rather than expecting quick results.  A 'quick fix' is not always possible and that greater rewards can be achieved by doing something properly and carefully. The old English saying goes "if a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well"!

u also teaches us to be firm in the face of adversity.

"Fight the good fight with all thy might".

Our Lord showed courage and determination.  Allowing himself to be crucified was not the act of a meek victim, but one of great courage in meeting great adversity head on.  He did not cower on the Cross, but faced this cruel test with dignity and strength.  This is an important facet of Germanic Christianity and one that is strongly reflected through our early literature and mythology.  Our folk faith does not teach us to cower in the face of hostility or turn the other cheek and let people walk over us.  Our ancient warrior tradition has been absorbed into biblical Christianity and we know when we must stand firm and fight against that which would do us harm.  We still value the characteristics of strength used to a good purpose, of honest toil and endurance in the face of all sorts of difficulties.  These characteristics were clearly shown by Our Lord on the cross.  Yet through this dreadful trial of courage, strength and endurance, he has emerged the victor over death - the victor over darkness.

 

T

þorn

þorn bið þearle scearp þegna gehwylcum

anfengys yfyl ungemetum reþe

manna gehwylcum ðe mid him resteð

 

Thorn is very sharp for everyone

Evil to take hold of immeasurably severe

To everyone who reside with him.

 

In mythology, the 'Thurs' are giants, representing the forces of chaos; the raw uncontrolled energy that existed before the cosmos was brought into being.  It was these energies that the Gods used to bring about the creation of the cosmos.  The actual act of creation could be described as a sudden burst of cosmic energy, akin to the theory of the 'big bang' or a clap of thunder.   This is expressed mythologically as the slaying of the 'primal matter' (Ymir) by Woden, Will and Weoh.  Thorn represents the cosmic energy unleashed by this creative and protective power.  Our ancestors called this power Thunder and attributed the personality of Thunnor or Thor to it.  Left uncontrolled, these destructive energies continue to work against the order of creation and would ultimately return it back to the nothingness of the Ginnungagap.  Thunnor is depicted in the mythology as constantly battling these forces in order to hold them in check and maintain the order of creation.   

T (Thorn) therefore reminds us of Christ the Pantokreter, or the Cosmic Christ.  This title signifies his all-powerful rule over all things and his role of holding all creation together.  The Gospels teach that it is Christ who brought about creation and it is he who holds it together against the forces that would return it to the void.  In Thorn, we therefore see a powerful foreshadowing of a central part of Christian theology and in Thor a foreshadowing of the role of the Cosmic Christ as Pantokreter. 

St Paul teaches that through the Pantokreter, God not only holds all things together, but also draws the created universe back to himself.  We are thus reminded of the mystical body of Christ.

 

o

os

os byþ ordfruma ælcere spræce

wisdomes wraþu and witena frofur

and eorla gehwam eaddnys and tohiht

 

God is the source of all speech

Wisdom’s support and comfort to councillors

And for everyone a blessing and hope

 

Originally meaning God, 'Os' came to be translated in Christian times by its Latin meaning, 'mouth'.  However, this could have been a deliberate play on words as we shall see.  Infact, the word is derived from the proto-Germanic word 'Ansus' meaning ancestor and the Rune is still called Anzuz in the Germanic Fuþarc.

The connection between God, ancestors and mouth is an important one and is most unlikely to be coincidental.  Our pre-Christian ancestors saw the Gods as literally their own ancestors.  They were created by them and were part of the same family.

o (Os) also reminds us of God as the Word - the mouth piece.  It was the divine Word, or Logos, that brought everything into existence out of the void of chaos.  It was the Word who breathed life into our inert, earthly bodies.  Through o, we can start to understand the nature of the Word who is the source of not just all speech but of all creative thought and expression.  The Word is the means by which the thoughts and the will of God are expressed in a tangible form.

o is therefore about the ability to communicate, but it also represents the hidden body of ancestral wisdom - ancient knowledge stored up for us to explore.  It encourages us to think about the way Our Lord teaches us about God, how we come to know God by learning from him.  The Word is a blessing and inspiration to us because He shows us the way through the spiritual darkness along the path of light towards an ever closer union with God.

But o also teaches us about the Word as our ancestor.  Our folk religion teaches that different peoples develop different relationships with God and that the Word has been made known to them in different ways over the years.  Although fulfilled through the incarnation as Jesus Christ, the Word has been revealed to our folk in different personas before this.  Our mythology teaches us of how God, in the form of Woden, Will and Weoh breathed the spirit of life into us; gave us a will and blessed us with holiness.  Our relationship with the Word is unique and our understanding of God different to that of other peoples.

Our mythology associates Woden with wisdom, speech, communication and inspired word craft such as poetry.  It is Woden who hung nine long nights from the world tree and passed through to the very depths of the cosmos to receive the knowledge of all things which is locked in the Runes.  In this story, lies a very powerful reflection of Christ crucified – not simply to wash away our sins, but to take us with him into a journey of greater wisdom about God and eventual union with the Godhead.   

 

r

rad

rad byð on recyde rinca gewhwlcum

sefte and swiþhwæt ðam ðe sitteþ on ufan

meare mægenheardum ofer milpaþas

 

Travelling seems easy to a warrior in his own hall 
For those who cover the mile-paths on a sturdy steed.

 

When we are undertaking a long and difficult journey, it often seems so much easier if we were able to do it from the comfort of our own homes.  We long to be back in familiar and comfortable surroundings. Conversely, a long and difficult journey can seem easy when we are just thinking about it at home!

We make plans at home, but actually carrying these plans out is much more difficult.  It is easier to make plans than to take action.  It is easier to think than to do.  And yet both are necessary.  There is no point in a well planned course of action if we do nothing to bring it about.  But it is better to make sure that our actions are well planned and difficulties thought through and prepared for as best we can.

r (Rad) represents the point at which we translate thought into action, the point at which thinking becomes doing.  It seems to be too much of a coincidence that this Rune comes immediately after o (Os) which embodies the power of thought and expression.  After the thinking comes the doing!

But the message carries a deeper meaning.  There is a tension in the verse between our home - our comfort zone - and the hard ride in the wilderness.  To achieve real results we often have to move beyond the comfortable and familiar and stretch ourselves somewhat.  When we are hard pressed in the outside world though, we can draw comfort from our familiar world and the thought of returning to it.

Another interesting thought on the relationship between r and o is that o (God or mouth) is often associated with God as Woden.   In mythology, he rides on an eight legged horse called Sleipnir; symbolising his shamanic journey to the depths of the cosmos to recover the Runes themselves.  Thus not only does thought lead to expression and action, but action leads to further thought and learning.  Woden is strongly connected to the quest for knowledge and understanding.  He is the embodiment of divine wisdom.  His journey brought us the Runes, which are sacred windows into the wisdom of God.  We believe that the Logos or Word of God draws us closer to the Godhead through the wisdom and knowledge embodied in the Runes.  This wisdom underlies the real teaching and message of Jesus ofNazareth, who was the Logos born into our world.  Rad therefore represents our own mystical journey through Christ and the Runes towards union with the Godhead.

At the heart of this journey and at the heart of the Runes is the mystical body of Christ.

c

cen

cen byð cwicera gehwam cuþ on fyre

blac and beorhtlic byrneð oftust

ðær hi æþelingas inne restað

 

the torch is known to all living creatures by its fire

pale and bright it burns most often

where princes rest within

 

c (Cen) is usually translated as 'torch'; but is related to our modern words 'ken', 'canny' or even 'cunning', which imply a sense of 'knowing', sometimes through a sixth sense or intuition.  The torch represented by Cen is the inner light that burns within and enlightens and informs us.  It is part of our intuitive skills and suggests divine guidance and enlightenment.  Our Lord is described as 'the light'.  It is this light that breaks through the darkness and leads us to a greater understanding of God and ultimately to wholeness in the unity of the Godhead.  The inner light within us is a spark of the divine flame or energies.  It is this spiritual part of ourselves that is instinctively attracted to the Godhead and which seeks to transform the limitations of our earthly human condition.  It is the light that is the way, the truth and the life.  As this suggests; Christ lies within us, just as much as he is around us. 

c also implies the gift of being able to think clearly and to focus on information we need to solve a certain problem or make a certain decision.  It is the power to be able to use the information we have, relate it to what we know and thereby to learn.  We see this most clearly expressed through Woden who is driven by this flame.

But the torch is also the divine flame around which we can unite with our kith and kin.  It can form the basis of community or common action.  It can be the burning passion of common goals or a collective course of action to meet our needs.  In Cen, we know God is with us when we struggle for what is right.

 

 Second Ætt

g

gifu

gyfu gumena byð gleng and herenys

wraþu and weorþscype and wræcna gehwam

ar and ætwist ðe byð oþra leas

 

Giving is for everyone glorious and praiseworthy

A measure of worthiness

And for the needy

Help and sustenance they would not otherwise have

 

Giving is a good thing to do.  Giving is better than receiving.  Our culture places much emphasis on the act of giving, be it charity or exchanging presents.

Those of us with sufficient wealth can help those without.  This is the basis of community and civilised society.  But people have different things to give and have different needs.  One person may be rich in one thing, perhaps money, and can give to those who are not materially well off.  Another person may be poor in terms of wealth, but be endowed with gifts of being able to sing, or make us laugh or offer spiritual comfort.  Thus the act of giving can be reciprocal.  That a gift should be returned by a gift is a very old North European maxim.  Thus we have the basis for exchanging presents at Geoletide, 'returning a favour', or being indebted to someone.

In Voluspa, we read of how God, in the form of Odin, Hoenir and Loður (or Woden, Willa and Weoh) gave the first humans of our folk the gifts of life.  This transported us from the primal world of Hel into the realm of Middengeard.  Whilst on earth, we seek to honour God with loyalty and troth in return.  But the gifts offered to us by God go well beyond this.

Giving is at the heart of sacrifice, which really means giving up something we value for the sake of something more important.  This lies at the heart of the Christian faith.  God offered himself as a sacrifice in order to show us that there is life after death.  As Christ's earthly body died on the cross, he was reborn in a new form - his glorified body.  The resurrected Christ continues to show us the way to God and gently draws us in.

In Havamal, we read a similar story of how Woden (Odin) offers himself as a sacrifice for the benefit of humankind.

"wounded with a spear, dedicated to Woden, myself to myself".

Though Woden did not physically die on the Irminsul, he did give up an eye in return for inner sight or a knowledge of the mysteries of the Cosmos as contained in the Runes.  In other words, he offered his old self as a sacrifice and was changed into a higher state through this act.  This is what 'glorification' means.  The Logos, through the earthly life of Jesus and through our folk god Woden is offering us the gift of understanding how to walk the path of light to God.

g (Gifu) is therefore a symbol of the holy Eucharist itself.  It is the means by which God has shown us humans how to reach our own ultimate journey of glorification.  God has offered himself as a sacrifice to present us with this gift.  In return, we offer ourselves, our loyalty and love, as a sacrifice and gift to God.  This is why we call this a communion.  It is a two way process, reflecting this wonderful mystery of the ultimate gift God offers us.  The Runes themselves offer us a unique insight into the way of light we must walk to reach our journeys end.

 

w

wen

wen ne bruceþ ðe can weana lyt

sares and forge and him sylfa hæfð

blæd and blysse and eac byrga geniht

 

Joyful is he who does not know suffering

Pain and sorrow

But has for himself wealth and happiness

And a nice home

 

At face value, w (Wen is telling us that those of us who have everything we need and do not know pain and sorrow are, or should be, full of joy.  Conversely, although it is not spelt out, those of us who know poverty, pain and sorrow are less likely to be full of joy.  We are being taught that we should be joyful when we recognise our good fortune and thankful of it.  This applies to spiritual good fortune as much as to material things.  We should recognise and rejoice in our friends and family, our happiness and health just as much as in being able to live a comfortable life.

To have wealth and happiness is a good thing, but we should recognise our good fortune.  It is something to strive for, to work towards - not just for us but for other.  Conversely, pain and sorrow is something we should not strive for!  We may have to deal with pain and sorrow, and should do so with courage, but it is not something we should seek out - again either for ourselves or for others.

But w has much more to teach us than this.  The actual word in Old English is Wenn (Wenn) which also means hope and expectation, or 'wish'.  It is related to the German 'Wonne' and proto-Germanic 'Wunjo'.  Thus 'joyfulness' is related to our ability to hope or wish.  Happiness can be attained by a belief that we can improve our lot and that things will get better.  In a spiritual sense, joy comes about through the hope that we will attain everlasting life through being closer to God.  Indeed, 'Wunjo' can mean 'fulfilment' or 'perfection'.

God, as Woden, is sometimes called Oski, the fulfiller of wishes.  The mythological stories tell of him granting wishes to people, sometimes ensuring they get precisely what they ask for rather than what they meant!  The moral in these tales is not so much that we should be clear about what we request, but that God is telling us that often what we think we want is not what we really want or need.  But as fulfiller of wishes, Woden reflects the notion that God will ultimately draw us to perfection or wholeness.  It is natural for our souls to desire or wish this and it is natural for God to grant us it. 

This is our hope and our joy.

 

h

hægl

hægl byþ hwitust corna

hwyrft hit of heofones lyfte

wealcaþ hit windes scura

weorþeþ hit to wætere syððan

 

Hail is the whitest of grains

It swirls down from the heavens above

It is tossed about by stormy winds

And then turns into water

 

A hailstorm can be extremely destructive.  Rather than giving much needed water to thirsty plants, it can destroy them.  But then the hail will itself turn into the very water they need!

In mythology, h (Hail) embodies the power of eternal ice and reaches through the primal world into Nifelham, or the land of eternal cold and darkness.  It is a window into the underworld, the world of shadows, the place where souls reside who have gone backwards in terms of spiritual evolution.  It can be frightening and dangerous and warns us of what that world of Nifelham is like.

But it also returns to its original state of water, the source of life and the mixing of eternal ice with primal fire.  As such, it teaches us that the coldness of Nifelham can be overcome and warmed through.  Souls residing there can be lifted back towards heaven through the unconditional love of God. 

As a consequence of this, h is associated with protection against bad weather and the potentially destructive forces of nature.  It was placed on people's front doors as a sign of welcome and that the home was a shelter from the elements.  The word 'hail' implies a greeting, a warm welcome.  It also implies a blessing and is linked to words such as whole, holy and health.  Outwardly representing the dark and frightening force of the worst part of the underworld, it also offers protection and eventual release from that world.  It is therefore a symbol of the ultimate place of safety and shelter - that of heaven itself. Heaven means 'haven', a place of safety.  In Christ we have the eternal hope that we will be raised out of the darkness and cold up into the shelter of heaven.  Christ, through his passion on the cross, reaches down into the very depths of the cold underworld of Nifelham and gathers us up to heaven.

We too can display the Hægl rune as a sign of welcome and safety.  We can place it at the entrance to our home, Church or anywhere else we feel appropriate.  As a sign, it represents more than just a shelter though.  It is a symbol of our journey to heaven and our trust in Christ.

 

n

nyd

nyd byþ nearu on breostan

niþa bearnum weorþeþ hi ðeah

oft to helpe and to hæle gehwæþre

gif hi his hlystaþ æror

 

Necessity grips the heart

And yet it can often be a help and salvation

To the children of men

If they address it soon enough

 

n (Nyd or Need) is one of our most basic human instincts.  We know that we need food and drink to survive and that we need to keep warm in the winter.  It is an instinct that drives us on and keeps us going. Necessity and hardship can be very difficult and depressing, but it is often when the going gets tough that our survival instincts are at their strongest.  'Necessity is the mother of invention', they say.

One of our primal needs, especially in northern climes, is fire.  n looks like two sticks being rubbed together to make fire – the Nyd Fyre.

Primal fire represents one of the two equal and opposite forces that permeate the cosmos from which all matter is derived.  Thus fire is not just a basic need, it is a part of the primal cosmos.  Unlike the other primal energy, represented by ice, it is vibrant, active and full of energy.  Potentially dangerous, it can be harnessed to bring warmth and life.  On its own, unpredictable and powerful.  But when controlled properly, absolutely essential to life and evolution.

Fire represents the spark of divinity that courses through all things.  The fire that gives rise to the light, the Word of God who leads us out of the darkness to the Godhead.  It is the spark of divinity that came amongst us in human form.

In the olden days, our ancestors used to make a Nyd Fyr (Need Fire) by rubbing two pieces of wood together and the runic character represents this action.  The Nyd Fyr ritual involved two children creating a fire at opposite ends of a sacred enclosure.  This would be the first act of a religious ritual and symbolically cleansed the area.  Cattle would sometimes be driven between the two fires in order to ensure their health and fertility; a practice we know about because it was expressly banned by the Anglo-Saxon Church!  Traditions of jumping over fires have survived into the present day.

n also teaches us the importance of friction as a means of turning needs into positive outcomes and weaknesses into strengths.  It teaches us about the need for self sufficiency and self preservation; the strength of resistance and defiance.   It teaches us how to overcome stress through developing our inner strengths - or inner fire.

Hardship and necessity can come about through the random acts of chaos depicted in our mythology as the work of Giants.  People often refer to these as 'acts' of God, although they are no such thing. They are just random occurrences brought about by the forces of chaos that result from the continuous process of creation.  

 

i

is

is byþ oferceald ungemetum slidor

glisnaþ glæshluttur gimmum gelicust

flor forste geworuht fæger ansyne

 

Ice is very cold immeasurably slippery

It glistens as bright as glass as though it were gems

A floor wrought with frost fair to behold

 

i (Ice) is cold and solid.  It is the opposite of fire, which is hot and lively.  It can represent inertia, the tendency not to do anything and to resist change.  Yet when brought into contact with fire, it melts and produces water - the very basis of life itself.  Fire and ice represent the cosmic opposites that come together to produce the basic material of existence as we know it.  Interestingly, it is positioned next to Nyd in the poem.

i is a binding force; it holds things together.  It holds things tight as it freezes water solid.  It appears to be still, calm and has an inner strength of solidity.

Yet it is not static.  There is movement within it that we cannot see.  Icebergs move, but very slowly.  The force of these movements is irresistible and can create huge natural features such as valleys.  This is not the quick force of fire that can flare up without notice and be extinguished almost as fast.  This is the slow, constant movement of change that we may not at first notice, but which will eventually have profound effects upon our lives.

And so it is with our relationship with God.  The relationship is a little distant, perhaps a little cold.  We do not know God as well as we should and as well as we would like.  i reflects the natural tendency to stick with what we know.  What we know is often not what leads to spiritual evolution.  Inertia in our everyday lives slows down our spiritual progress and reflects the wastelands of Nifelham.

We need the light and the fire of God to break through this inertia and use its properties to help our spiritual evolution.  Warmth is what makes Ice dynamic – the slow but solid growth of faith. 

i glistens bright as though it were precious gems.  It can be beautiful to behold, but very dangerous.  It looks very solid and yet will easily slip out of your hands.  That which may look alluring can be very dangerous.  It reminds us to be wary of false promises and easy paths to God.  These may seem alluring on the outside, but they are cold and sterile within.  The Kingdom is revealed through the light - the fire of Nyd - the Word of God.  The light dispels the cold and the dark.

i also represents the slow, but sure advancement of the kingdom of heaven and of our own steady spiritual growth.  Outwardly, it may gleam with bright symbols.  We may misunderstand the importance of these - attaching an overtly worldly value to them.  But inwardly, it remains solid and firm and provides the basis for true spiritual development.

i therefore teaches us to be wary of what might seem bright and alluring.  It teaches that superficial beauty and allure may mask a cold interior.  A bright surface does not always mean a warm interior.  But, it also teaches us that the kingdom of heaven is a solid reality behind all the glitz and glamour we may build up around it.  We need to focus on this solid reality and not the shiny surface that so easily slips away when we try to hold it.

 

j

ger

ger byþ gumena hiht ðonne god læteþ

halig heofones cyning hrusan syllan

beorhte blæda beornum and þearfum

 

A fruitful year is joyful to everyone

When God, the holy king of Heaven,

Brings forth the gifts of our mother earth

Bright crops for both rich and poor

 

Sometimes, j (Ger or Year) is translated as 'harvest', but is more literally 'year'.  The term ' a fruitful' year' recognises the yearly cycle of planting and tending crops, then eventually harvesting them.  God brings forth the gifts of our mother earth.  This verse reflects the Ercebot, an early eleventh century charm for unfruitful land, which contains the following words:

Erce, Erce, Erce, Earth Mother,

May the Almighty Eternal Lord grant you fields to increase and flourish

Fields sprouting and thriving, flourishing and bountiful

Bright shafts of millet crops, broad barley crops and white wheat crops

And all the fruits of the earth

May you be well, earth, mother of men,

May you grow in the embrace of God, filled with food for the benefit of men

These are Christian poems, yet both contain the seeds of an earlier understanding.  The spirit of God interacts with the material of our mother the earth to produce the new life - the gifts of our mother.  In some respects, it is hard to think of a Christian verse that better encapsulates the spiritual thinking of the older faith our ancestor's held before their conversion.

These gifts include the birth of Our Lord.  The spirit of God comes together with the earthly mother to produce the son who is both fully God and fully human.  He embodies the fruit of the earth; our spiritual and physical nourishment.  He is our guide to a deeper spirituality and to progress towards God.  In the Eucharist, we offer back to God the fruits of the earth and in turn are nourished by the very body and blood of Christ.  Through this sacramental process, we are brought to God through Christ.

We are reminded that the various activities of the agricultural year are intended to achieve a specific goal.  We fertilise and prepare the fields, plant the crops, water and nurture them before we harvest.  In the same way, there is a Church year, one that plots the main events of the life of Our Lord.  This also leads to a specific goal; the glorification of Christ, his conquest of death and ascension into heaven.  The Church celebrates this cycle of events each year and looks to the risen Christ to raise each one of us up to glory in God through his own body and blood.

In the olden days, our ancestors honoured Ing Frey (Ingeld) as the god of peace and plentiful harvests.  He was born of the spirit father and earth mother and in mythology ‘died’ in winter and was reborn each spring to represent the new life and he victory of life over death.  He was also the protector and progenitor of the Western Germanic people and was believed to have dwelt among us.  He was seen as a friend of the people, a beacon of light pointing towards his father. 

Ing is, for our folk, an early revelation of Christ as Logos.  Our ancestors had an understanding of Christ even before the Word was preached to them, even before his physical birth in human form.

 

 I

eoh

eoh byð utan unsmeþe treow

heard hrusan fæst hyrde fyres

wyrtrumun underwreþyd wyn on eþle

 

The yew is an unsmooth tree on the outside

Held firm in the earth, roots twisting beneath

Guardian of fire and a joy on the land

 

I (Eoh or Yew) is one of the trees used to symbolise the mystical Irminsul, the world tree our ancestors saw as a metaphor for the cosmos.  On its surface, it is just a rough tree.  But in its upper branches lies the kingdom of Heaven; the realm of God, the Ælfe or Angels and the Saints.  Situated at the top of the tree, this is the highest spiritual level - the place we all aspire to as we make our spiritual journey.

In the lower branches of the tree lies the kingdom of Middengeard or middle earth, our own mortal realm.

The three roots of this great tree pass through the earth, down through the primal world of Hel which our ancestors saw as a land of brightness and healing rather than of eternal damnation and torment. Within the realm, lay the place of eternal cold and darkness.  This is the place that our ancestors saw as the realm of darkness and shadows.  Those of us who are spiritually undeveloped or who have actually gone backwards during our time on earth will live in this cold place until ready to move into the primal world of light we call Hel.  But we can live in confidence that Christ will lift those souls out of Nifelham into the light and indeed raise them up into Heaven itself.

Yew is an evergreen.  As such, it symbolises longevity and the concept of eternal life and salvation.  Interestingly, its leaves and berries are poisonous and can lead to death.  Yet, it is also said that a powerful herbal remedy can be made from these same leaves.   

It was from the Irminsul that Woden hung for nine long nights, passing through the primal world of Hel into the very core of the cosmos.  From here, he retrieved the Runes, the sacred windows into the meaning of all things.  The Christian Cross became for our ancestors another way of looking at the Irminsul.  Through the Cross, Our Lord died to this world, descended into the land of shadows and the cold of Nifelham to raise up the dead.  Through the Cross, and the passion of Our Lord, we are all heirs to this promise of rebirth and everlasting life in Heaven.

 

p

peorþ

peorþ byð symble plega and hlehter

wlancum ðær wigan sittaþ

on beorsele bliðe æt somne

 

Peorth is always play and laughter

Where proud warriors sit

In the feast hall cheerfully together

 

p (Peorth) may have been some form of game we no longer know.  Or it may have been just a term used for general merriment, story telling, joking and riddle making in the feast hall.  The Anglo Saxon English loved feasting and used the event as a means of binding together their communities as well as discussing serious events.  Most of the time, they just enjoyed themselves, toasting successes and making resolutions (called boasts) about what they would do next.  Interestingly, the word for such ritualised feasting was 'Symbel' (pronounced sumbel), which is the third word of this verse.

Symbel is more than just a ritualised feast.  It is a religious event in its own right; a form of the Eucharist.  Drink and sometimes food is consumed and toasts and boasts offered to God and comrades.  It is a two way communion between God and the tribe.  Through Symbel we hallow the bonds between our people and Almighty God.

p can be seen as symbolising the benefits of strong communities, of bonding and comradeship.  This spirit of communal activity lies at the heart of strong societies with a common identity and a common sense of purpose.  It is something that our modern society tends not to do well, with its emphasis on individualism and distorted concept of community.  But Peorth teaches us the importance of working as a team - more than a team - a tribe.  Strong, well bonded communities work better together and will be more successful.

p also teaches us the importance of looking for the positive wherever we can.  Sometimes, Symbel would have been held at difficult times.  Serious matters would have been discussed and serious oaths made in support of the clan.  But even these events should as far as possible be undertaken cheerfully.  This is a fundamental Christian message - to do what needs to be done cheerfully.

The poem 'Dream of the Rood' tells of how Christ cheerfully strode up to the Cross to battle with evil and to overcome death.  This is the way of the warrior, the way of our ancestors’ society - even when they were not feeling particularly cheerful!  It lies at the heart of the English character - laughing and joking in the face of adversity.  Not because a person is over confident.  But as a means of belittling the adversity; reducing it to something less frightening.  p tells us of the importance of communal activities to reinforce this, build up our confidence to face the enemy more confidently than we might otherwise do.  But, most of all it tells us to do this as a strong community, a band of comrades supporting each other and supporting the folk.  This is the basis of Germanic Christianity.

 

Third Ætt 

z

eolhx

eolhx secg eardað hæfþ oftust on fenne

wexeþ on wætere wundaþ grimme

blode brendeðþ beorna gehwylcne

þe him ænigne onfeng gedeð

 

Elkgrass usually makes its home on the fen

Growing in water it can inflict grim wounds

Burning with the blood of all

Those who in anyway dare grasp it

 

z (Eolhx) actually refers to Elk rather than to a type of marsh grass used in the poem.  Its shape resembles the antlers of an Elk, which are a symbol of protection and defence.  Elks were important to our ancestors because they were a principle source of food and clothing; basic elements of survival.

Survival is a primal human instinct and defensive action is a tried and tested means of protecting ourselves.  Eolhx is a symbol of divine protection and represents a focus through which the loving embrace of God can offer us safety and comfort.  It has the power to ward off evil and concentrate our energy on a positive pathway to the upper world of Heaven.

The shape of z can be seen as a representation of a human figure stretching their arms upwards towards Heaven, reaching out to God.  It is also a symbol of the world tree or Irminsul, its branches pointing upwards to Heaven.  As such, it reminds us of our spiritual journey towards an ever closer relationship with God and God's revelation to us through our folk Gods.  It is infact an extremely holy symbol, representing life, the world tree, the upper world, our spiritual quest to rise up into this world and the protective powers that emanate from it.

Turned upside down,  z an be seen to represent the three springs that lead down through the primal of Hel and into the underworld of Nifelham.  In this form, it is a symbol of regression away from God and represents death rather than life.

z was often engraved on tombstones; the right way up to indicate the date of birth (life) and upside down k to indicate the date of death.

Although the author of the poem has for some reason chosen to substitute the older meaning of z for a reference to Elkgrass, the underlying meaning in the verse remains much the same.

Elkgrass is a tough marsh plant that survives in harsh conditions and has razor sharp edges to its leaves.  It represents a stubborn and tenacious spirit that guards its secrets with great strength.  It too is a symbol of defence and protection.  Furthermore, the grass is inextricably connected to the marsh, binding it and protecting all manner of life forms from the dangers of their environment.

It must be treated with great care.  It may seem to offer a firm hold in otherwise treacherous waters, but it can cause a serious injury if not handled correctly. Our Lord himself tells us that the road to Heaven will not be easy and many will fall by the wayside.  It is through him that we learn this path and through him we learn how to walk through the marsh to eternal life in Heaven.

s

sigel

sigel sæmannum symble biþ on hihte

ðonne hi hine feriað ofer fisces bæþ

oþ hi brimhengest bringeð to lande

 

The sun always brings hopeful joy to seafarers

When they journey over the great fish-bath

Until the sea stallion brings them to land

 

s (Sigel pronounced seal) is a symbol of the sun, its warming light and energy.  The sun allows growth and healing.  It is essential to agriculture and its annual cycles formed the basis of our ancestor's earliest religion.  Our northern sun is one of gentle, welcome warmth; not one of harsh, scorching heat. 

Sunlight brings joy and hope.  In the depths of winter, we await its return with eager anticipation.  A lack of sunlight for long periods of time can lead to depression and illness.  Upon its return in spring, we see the land spring back to life.  It is a powerful symbol of regeneration, rebirth and of hope.  It reminds us that whatever darkness or shadows befall us, through the passing cycles of life, there is always light and hope waiting for us - whether in this world or another one.

Sunlight also allows us to see where we are going, whether we are crossing the sea or just walking along a road.  As such, Sigel is associated with seeing clearly, both in the sense of seeing what we are doing and in the sense of understanding things more clearly.  It represents an ability to see through things to identify what is really there - or what is really meant.

In this sense, it represents an 'inner light', the radiant energy of our souls known as our Scima in Old English.  This is a divine energy, literally the spark of divinity that lies within us.

Christ is this light.  He shows us the way to God.  He enables us to see things clearly and to understand.  He is our guide and our hope - the hope we all have to lead fulfilled lives and to advance spiritually towards the Godhead.  We can strengthen our relationship with him by meditation and reflective prayer through the Runes. 

s resembles a bolt of lightening, which is associated with thunder.  Traditionally, it is associated with Þunnor (Thor) and his magical hammer Mjolmir (which probably means lightening).  In this sense it is related to Thorn, representing the power of God battling the forces of evil and chaos - depicted in our mythology as Giants seeking to undo the work of creation.

s also means victory.  This can be considered as the victory of summer over winter or light over darkness, as the sun always returns.  Again, it is a powerful symbol of the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.  It represents the victory of Christ over death, the victory of the light of Christ over the powers of darkness.  The victory of order over chaos.  It is a very potent symbol because it acknowledges that this victory involves the use of forceful energy, symbolised by the lightening bolt and Þunnor's hammer.

Through s our folk religion gives us a very important understanding of the nature of Christ as the Word of God.  It was the Word who brought about creation.  And it is the Word who fights against evil powers that would seek to return it to the chaos of the Ginnungagap.  In this, we see Christ as a powerful warrior for order and creation, a powerful warrior for righteousness and protection.  His warming embrace is full of light and love.  But he can strike forcefully at his enemies and those powers of darkness that would seek to return us to the night. 

The energy of s should be carefully guided, through the love of Christ to do the work of God.  It is a great pity that such a potent symbol of light was misused during the last great war so that now it is most often associated with death and savagery - the very opposite of its true meaning.  In time, its true meaning will hopefully be restored.

 

 t

Tir

Tir byð tacna sum healdeað trywa wel

wið æðelingas a byð on færylde

ofer nihta genipu

næfre swiceð

 

Tir is a sure guide

Keeping troth with princes

Keeping watch above

Over the mists of night

Never failing

 

t (Tir) is the earliest name for God used by Anglo Saxon English people.  It is derived from the Germanic name Tiwaz and is related to the Latin Deus and the Indo European word Dayaus, simply meaning 'God'.

Our ancestors saw Tir as the original Sky Father - he was Allfather before Odin.  He may have been Mother Frigga's mysterious first husband, reflecting his likely role as the first Sky Father complementing the first Earth Mother.  In this sense, he may have embodied all the aspects of the supreme deity that our ancestors gradually began to relate to as individual personalities.

Tir is a warrior.  The shape of this rune is that of a spear, an arrow or the sharp point of a sword.  He embodies the qualities of bravery and self sacrifice.  He teaches us to act with courage and honour in all our affairs; being just and decent - but standing firm for what is right.

Tir is not associated with war for the sake of it.  He is just and honourable, looked to for inspiration in negotiations and arbitration at tribal assemblies.  His inspiration is to find a just and peaceful solution to disputes wherever this is possible.  As such, Tir is also strongly associated with law and order.

The modern Judaic Christ is portrayed as a pacifist and a passive victim.  But this is not how our ancestors saw him.  It is unlikely that they would have converted if that was the only vision of Christ that was on offer.  Christ to them was a just warrior and tribal king, reflecting their understanding of God developed over many generations.  Yet the biblical stories of Christ's life and teachings have helped us to develop the concept of the 'ethical warrior', embodied in Tir.  We understand our ancestral religion better through an appreciation of the earthly life of Our Lord.  This fusion of the two traditions led to the development of our folk Christianity and ultimately to the development of the medieval tradition of chivalry.  Tir is very much the patron of the ethical warrior - or Knight.

Christ emphasised the futility of the Old Testament 'tit for tat', 'eye for an eye' response which only tends to escalate the cycle of violence.  This was the point of Christ's message to turn the other cheek. Where possible, the situation should be defused peacefully, which is precisely the real message of Tir.

There are, however, times when physical force is needed to defend ourselves and our property; when negotiation and arbitration are not enough.  Only a fool would stand aside whilst their wife and children were being murdered.  Sometimes, it is better to act decisively sooner rather than later.  Tir, then, embodies the concept of a 'Just War' - one that can be morally and ethically justified as being necessary to prevent a worse evil and where other options are not available or unlikely to work.

t is not only associated with the warrior spirit in the sense of someone who physically fights battles.  He shows us to act as an ethical warrior in all our doings.  We should stand firm for what we believe in; act justly and face the world bravely and with honour.  The way of the warrior is not an easy one.  Again, the code became part of our folk Christian culture as the basis of the chivalric orders.

As the original Allfather, Tir is strongly associated with the heavenly Father.  In many ways, we have simply swapped the name Tir for Jehovah and continued to think of Tir as always.  He is portrayed as a father figure in our mythology.  He looks over us from the heavens as our heavenly father.  He sacrificed his hand to the Fenris wolf as part of a deception to overcome the power of evil.  This reflects the sacrifice a father will make for the sake of his children.

Tir is a sure guide, because he is our heavenly Father.  He is even handed, fair and just.  He keeps his word, not just with princes, but with everyone.  His judgement is binding and he is sometimes called the binding God.  The phrase 'keeping watch above' is not an exact translation of the Old English, which refers more to a sense of moving over something.  But keeping watch is intended to portray the sense of this meaning.  It is the sense of the Sky Father, moving over the earth and watching over us from 'somewhere up there'.  Again, the phrase 'never failing' reinforces the traditional view of Tir as the dependable Allfather, one who looks after his children and acts in their best interests.

Hael Tir - Allfather

 

b

beorc

beorc byð blæda leas bereð efne swa ðeah

tanas butan tuddre byð on telgum wlitig

byð ðeah on helme hyrsted fægere

geloden leafum lyfte getenge

 

Birch is without fruit it sends out shoots rather than seed

Splendid are its branches and its crown richly adorned

Laden with leaves reaching to heaven

 

Despite the obvious similarity of the Old English beorc with the modern word birch, this verse is most often translated as poplar.  The reason for this is uncertain, yet the reference to the tree sending out suckers seems to suggest a reference to poplar rather than birch.  Yet, in other Runic systems, it is clearly linked to the birch tree and this association is maintained in the translation above.

It is usually seen as a feminine Rune, of child bearing and motherhood.  It has been associated with the Goddess Berchta who was venerated in parts of what is now Germany and was seen as a patron of children.  She is said to appear as a ghost known as the white lady when a person of royal birth is about to die.

b (Beorc) is also associated with Mother Frigga and indeed to any of the Goddesses associated with motherhood.  It reminds us of how our mother brings us into being, feeds us, clothes us and protects us.  It is a quality of fertility and fruitfulness.

And yet, the verse makes the point that the tree is without fruit' and 'sends out shoots' rather than seed.  Poplars certainly send out shoots.  Furthermore, neither poplar nor birch produce fruit in the sense of apples or pears.  Yet they do produce small catkins containing seeds that detach themselves from the tree and float away in the breeze to land in the earth nearby.

The poem goes on to describe the beauty of the tree's branches and its richly adorned crown rising to heaven.  This could be a hidden reference to the world tree or Irminsul.  The richly adorned crown of the tree is not just reaching to heaven but actually represents heaven - the golden crown being that of Our Lord himself.  Associated with femininity and motherhood we are reminded that he crowned Our Lady as Queen of Heaven.  As Our Lord's earthly mother, she embodies all the qualities of motherhood and nurturing traditionally associated with this Rune.

 

e

Eh

Eh bið for eorlum æðelinga wyn

hors hofum wlanc ðær him hæleðas ymb

welege on wicgum wrixlað spræce

and byð unstyllum æfre frofur

 

The horse riden by warriors is the joy of princes

A hoof proud steed where heroes abound

Rich men on horseback exchange speech

To the restless, ever a comfort

 

Horses have always been sacred to the Germanic peoples.  Tacitus tells us they believed that the behaviour of horses before a battle could predict its outcome.  Bede also tells us that Germanic priests were only allowed to ride a mare and not a stallion.  Indeed, when the High Priest Coifi decided to profane the heathen shrine of his own faith in Northumberland, he did so partly by riding a stallion into it.

Horses were used as a means of travelling around the land.  They were the main mode of transport and communication of their day.  They were also ridden into battle, though they were not usually used by the Anglo Saxons as cavalry.  A mounted prince or house Carl would be an impressive sight and the horse a prized possession.  A 'hoof proud steed' would carry his rider mile after mile, at an impressive pace, without tiring.  There would be a strong bond between the warrior and his steed.  Horses, like people, are capable of forming relationships; likes and dislikes.  The two would get to know each other well, forming a partnership based on mutual loyalty, trust and understanding.

These are the two great mystical principles behind e, communication and partnership.

e (Eh) symbolises the need and ability to communicate ideas, thoughts and information.  'Rich men on horseback exchange speech'.  This is one of the corner stones of our ability to learn, understand and develop.  At one level, it can be simply exchanging news or giving an instruction.  At a deeper level it is part of the process by which we evaluate new information in the context of what we already know to produce new knowledge.  This is the basis of learning and learning is the basis of development.  We cannot underestimate the importance of communication!

The horse has long been a symbol of shamanic journeys between this world and others in the Germanic tradition.  Sleipnir, Odin's famous eight legged horse is perhaps the best known metaphor for this. Yggdrasil, the Norse name for the Irminsul or world tree, is made up of two words meaning awesome (Ygg), a name for Odin himself, and horse (drasil).  The horse is a symbol of our ability to travel to other worlds, to learn through meditation and prophecy and to develop spirituality here in this middle world.

Partnership is an underlying principle of early Germanic culture; being based on principles such as leof (pronounced love, but meaning something more like respect), treow (meaning troth - 'my word is my bond' and the unswerving two way loyalty that existed between a King and his gesiðas or companions.  This mutual partnership is symbolised in e by the unique bond between a warrior and his horse. Together they can achieve things that neither could do alone.  It symbolises a strong community, the very basis of a successful society - one that the modern world can learn much from.

As a metaphor for partnership, e also reminds us of the powerful partnership between man and wife; the basis of family and the building blocks of a strong community.  e can be seen as two Lagu Runes back to back - symbolising the partnership of equal and opposites - male and female which in turn create a new whole.

Lastly, these two principles are themselves related and brought together in e.  Good communication is vital to successful partnership.  This is also true the other way round, good partnership is vital to successful communication.  Working together, these two principles allow us to interact with each other, ensure that we can be properly understood, that good ideas are taken on board and that bad ideas are collectively recognised and discarded.

 

m

Man

Man byð on myrgðe his magan leof

sceal ðeah anra gehwylc oðrum swican

forðam dryhten wile dome sinum

þæt earme flæsc eorðan betæcan

 

Man in his joy is dear to his kin

And yet each is fated to let others down

Because the Lord's will, his final judgement

Returns the poor flesh back to the earth

 

e (Man) is the Rune of the human condition, of folk communities and what we call society.  As with other Germanic languages, man actually means 'human' in general and is not referring specifically to a male person.

It encourages us to meditate on human relationships and how these can affect communities.  It symbolises the perfection of those relationships.  It recognises that simple pleasures like laughter and happiness are desirable and valued by humankind.  It is telling us that life should be joyful and is to be enjoyed.  It is no coincidence that the Rune is formed by two w Runes back to back.

But it also telling us that we must not forget that all these things will ultimately pass away, returning to the earth from which they come.  Life, whilst it is to be enjoyed, should not be frittered away.  There are higher things to be pursued and the highest thing to attain in closeness to God.  Furthermore, we should not trust in our mortal flesh, as it is weak and will ultimately let us down.

Whilst the previous Rune, e symbolises communication and partnership, m symbolises the intelligence behind these attributes.  It is our intelligence, our ability to reason and invent, that separates us from the animal world.  In this sense, it is linked to the two ravens Huginn (mind) and Muninn (memory) who sit on Odin's shoulders in the Norse mythology and travel the world for news and information.  These two ravens symbolise our ability to think and reason (mind) and our ability to remember (memory).  Together, these are the attributes that enable us to learn - the basis of our ability to develop and create what we call civilization.

Mannus is one of the three earth born Gods Tacitus tells us our ancestor's believed in.  Mannus brought civilization to our folk and is generally recognised as the Germanic name for Heimdal.  In Norse mythology, Heimdal is the bringer of culture.  He is said to have visited the earth and lived amongst men as a man, hence the Germanic word for him.  He visited three families, representing the three social classes of the Germanic world; the warrior elite, the free born farmer and the thrall.  To each of these families he fathered a child, a symbolic expression of how 'culture' was brought into the world of men by a god who became man.

The myth is reflected in the English tradition of Scyld Scefing, who can be seen as the bringer of agriculture (the sheaf) and technology (the shield).

Mannus was born of Tuisto, who may actually just be another name for Tir (Tyr) - or the heavenly father.  This would make sense, as Tir is seen as the father of the other gods, although this role was taken over by Odin in the later Norse mythology.

As Mannus is the son of Tuisto (Tir), so Heimdal is the son of Odin.  The similarity of the Norse and Germanic traditions strongly points to an underlying belief of God becoming human to give us culture and civilization.  This is a mythical preview of the incarnation itself, a recognition of God's interaction with our folk which has been fulfilled through the birth and life of Christ.  This helps us to understand the context of how the early Germanic converts to Christianity would have understood the mysteries of the incarnation.

 

l

Lagu

lagu byþ leodum langsum geþuht

gif hi sculan neðan on nacan tealtum

and hi sæ yþa swyðe bregað

and se brimhengest bridles ne gymþ

 

The mighty meer seems unending to folk

Who have to travel on an unsteady ship

Where mighty waves smash into them

And the sea stallion heeds not the bridle

 

l (Lagu) refers to a large lake, meer or the sea.  The sea has always been an important feature in the lives of the northern and western Germanic peoples.  It is a source of food and a major means of communication.  It is a vast area with long horizons and endless, often tedious days.  The sea faring life can be extremely dangerous and many good people have lost their life to it.  It is no surprise that the sea holds such an important position in our folklore.

Water is an absolute essential to life.  Our bodies are mostly made of water and we will die of lack of water long before we do of food.  It has therefore often been used to symbolise life.  Given its fluid nature and the running waters of rivers and streams, it represents not just life in general, but the transition from one form of life to another - death to rebirth.

Mythologically, l represents the Hevergelmere, the great body of water that nourishes the roots of the World Tree or Irminsul.  It is the source of all rivers, seas and water.  It is the water of life and symbol of the new life we can expect as we transcend one world to another.  Mythically, we can see Christ walking on the waters of Hevergelmere demonstrating that this new life comes through him.

l therefore represents the waters of baptism through which we enter into the body of Christ and of his Church.  An outward symbol of the inner life in Christ.

Our journey through Christ is not always plain sailing!  The seas around us can be rough and seem never ending.  Mighty waves crash around us from time to time, whilst at other times our journey can falter in a calm with no apparent wind sending us on our way.  Yet through all of this, Our Lord will be there for us, guiding us to our destination which is the haven of God.

The imagery of this verse is captured in Song 35 of the Heliand, dealing with the miracle of Christ walking on water.  This well known story is transferred to a northern sea and the ship is of the 'high horned' variety used by Germanic and Norse peoples of that time.

 

N

Ing

Ing wæs ærest mid East Denum

gesewen secgum oð he siððan eft

ofer wæg gewat wæn æfter ran.

ðus heardingas ðone hæle nemdon

 

Ing was first seen by men amongst the East Danes

Until he departed again

Over the waves, his wagon behind him

Thus the warriors named the Saviour

 

N is a Rune of rebirth and renewal.

Tacitus tells us that the North Western Germanic peoples saw themselves as the physical descendents of Ing, calling themselves the Ingævones - followers of Ing. Old English writings refer to the 'Ingefolc' - people of Ing.  Indeed, the word 'English' is probably related to this name.  He is our physical, but divine, ancestor; the progenitor of our people.

He is better known by his title, Frey in English and FreyR or Yng FreyR in Norse.  Frey and FreyR simply mean 'the Lord'.

Ing is the Lord of agriculture, peace, plenty and fertility.  In mythological terms, he is the son of the Sky Father and the Earth Mother, the bringing together of spirit and earthly matter to produce the new life. Each year he dies to the cold harsh winter (symbolised by him crossing the sea) and is reborn the following spring as the earth springs back to life.

This reflects the human birth of Our Lord in the Christian stories.  Ing was particularly important to the Anglo Saxon English and it seems as though the Church was able to use much of the people’s understanding of him to introduce the new faith.  Conversely, people’s understanding of Christ must have been heavily influenced by that of Ing.  This view is reinforced by the reference to him as ‘Saviour’ in the final sentence of the verse.

This does not mean that Jesus of Nazareth is the same as Ing or vice versa.  It means that the Word of God has been revealed to us through both.   This is an early folk understanding of the mystery of Christ's passion and resurrection, of his ministry and underlying message.  To understand Christ through Ing Frey, and Ing Frey through Christ, is to understand the full picture of the Word as revealed to our folk.  

As Lord of the harvest, it is Ing we particularly look to at the time of the Loaf Mass or the Hlæfmæse.  This is the festival of the First Fruits, the start of the harvest period where we thank the Almighty for all He provides through our sacred land.  Ing Frey is the Lord of life, of peace, plenty and happiness.  He represents the coming together of the sacred male and sacred female to produce the new life, whether this be in terms of agriculture, human reproduction or in terms of our spiritual progression towards God.  He is patron of fertility and prosperity, of marriage and the family.

He is not patron of wanton lust or activities that do not lead to growth and new life.

Hael Ingeld;

 Lord of Life, Lord of Peace!

 

E

Eþel

eðel byþ oferleof æghwylcum men

gif he mot þær rihtes and gerysena

onbrucan on blode blædum oftast

 

A homeland is precious to all people

If they can live in rightness and honour

Fulfilled through their blood, eternal riches

 

E((Ethel) is better known as the Odal Rune and is the Rune of our homeland.  Our homeland is very dear to us.  It was won and defended by our forebears.  It is our duty to treasure it, defend it and pass it on to our own descendents.

We can be secure as a people within it, able to live our lives in peace according to our ways and traditions.  Each folk group has a right to such a homeland, somewhere they can survive and prosper.  Each folk group has a right to exist and maintain its individual identity.  A homeland is an essential part of this right.

We enjoy its riches, the security and fulfilment it gives us.  But we should treat our folklands with respect and not exploit them for greed or selfishness.

It is interesting that E is very similar to N (Ing) and that it immediately follows this Rune.  This seems to reinforce the bonds of common blood and soil that exist between our folk, our homeland and Ing Frey as our progenitor and patron of fertility and prosperity.  The fact that both Runes contain g (Gifu) emphasises that these are gifts to us - from Ing Frey.

We should respect and honour the land wights that dwell within it, remembering that they too can be our spiritual ancestors.

In this sense, we should see E as representing more than just our homeland.  It also represents our spiritual ancestry, those sacred bonds between us and our forebears - and those who will come after us. They walk with the gods, but are still with us in a spiritual sense.  They can help us and give us strength.  It is our duty to protect these bonds.  This means ensuring the survival and prosperity of our folk group.  Maintaining a viable homeland is an important part of this.

 

 d

Dæg

dæg byþ drihtnes sond deore mannum

mære metodes leoht myrgð and tohiht

eadgum and earmum eallum brice

 

Day is the Lord's messenger dear to mankind

The creator's glorious light

A joy and comfort to both rich and poor

Useful to all

 

"O Lord, our heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day; Defend us in the same with thy mighty power; and grant us this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance, to do always that is righteous in thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

This is the Third Collect (for grace) taken from the Morning Prayer liturgy of the Anglican 1662 Book of Common Prayer.

Dd represents the dawn of a new day, a new beginning and awakening.  It is the coming of the light that shines through the darkness and banishes the night.  We are reminded that Christ himself is this 'light' and that he leads us towards God.

Christ is the power of light, the light that came into the world.  It is he who brought light out of the darkness in the act of creation.  It is he who chases away the power of night, the fear and ignorance that this represents.  It is he who brings order out of chaos.

Through Christ we are made more fully aware of the world around us and of the will of God.  Daylight means that we can see.  By seeing, we can understand and by understanding we can learn and grow. Through Christ we can learn how to become more whole and how to walk the path to God.  It is Christ who lights the way of this path and Christ who is the beacon that draws us to God.

Christ is not simply the Ruler's messenger, but rather the message.  He is the Word of God, the Logos.  He brings joy and comfort to all people.  Through Christ we are reborn into a new day and through Him we have a fresh start.  We do not need to live in the fear of the night, but can live in the light.

This Rune is linked to that of N (Ing).  From that verse we understand not only a reference to the cycle of the year, but also the cycle of the day.  Ing rises in the east moves in his chariot across our lands and then disappears westwards over the sea.  This story itself has parallels with the myth of Sunna, (Sun) who rides across the sky in a chariot bringing daylight.  Ing (Yng Freyr) is a revelation of the Word unique to our folk.  He is the shining one and the bringer of peace and prosperity. He is a joy and comfort to all.

In later Norse mythology, it is Balder who has particularly strong associations with Christ.  There is little, if any, evidence that Balder was actually known in earlier heathen religion such as that of the Anglo Saxons.  The cult of Balder may well have developed out of the cult of Ing Frey, each being a folk understanding of Christ, the Word of God. 

 

 Additional Anglo Saxon Runes

 

a

Ac

ac byð on eorðan elda bearnum

flæsces fodor fereþ gelome

ofer ganotes bæð garsecg fandaþ

hwæðer ac hæbbe æþele treow

 

The Oak is on earth to the children of men,

Food of the flesh. It travels often over the gannet's bath

Where the ocean tests if it holds true faith.

 

a (Oak) is the symbolic tree of England.  It represents a sturdy, reliant product of the earth that we can trust and use to good effect.  It forms a vital part of our English landscape.  It provided food and forage for the wild boars that used to roam our land and which were held to be a sacred symbol of Ingeld.  It was used to build sturdy houses and quality English furniture.  It is the nourisher of our land and its inhabitants.

In years gone by, it was used to build the great ships of the English navy that beat the Norsemen, the Spanish Armada and the French.  We have placed our trust in oak to defend and protect us.  It did not let us down in the past and we should place our trust in its symbolic protection today.

We use the phrase, from tiny acorns do mighty oaks grow.  In this we recognise that if we place our trust in what we believe to be right and honourable, we will be successful and our cause will prosper.  It might seem that we are fighting an uphill battle, but small advances in the beginning will lead to major victories in the future.

In short, the mighty oak is a symbol of the true English spirit; solid, dependable, honourable and trustworthy.

 

A

æsc

æsc bið oferheah eldum dyre

stiþ on staðule stede rihte hylt

ðeah him feohtan on

firas monige

 

The ash is very tall and dear to men,

Firmly rooted, it holds its place,

Though many attack it

 

A symbolises the will to stand tall and proud against all the odds and to withstand everything that tries to destroy us.  It represents endurance, perseverance and determination. 

In mythology, the first man was formed from an Ash tree.  This represents man as the protector of and provider for the family, standing firm in defending his family and community.  A represents the will to remain rooted to our native land, not to give in to those who would take it away or try to up-root us.  It represents the stubborn will to survive and to stay where we are!

A has a secondary meaning of ‘spear’.  The spear also stands firm in battle and protects the man who shelters behind it.

Although the Rune poem does not include a verse for Elm, this is an appropriate place to comment on it.  As the first primal man was fashioned from an Ash tree, so the first primal woman was fashioned out of an Elm tree.  Elm should be seen as representing the life bearing and nurturing characteristics of women, the whole basis of family and community life. 

 

y

yr

yr byð æþelinga and eorla gehwæs

wyn and wyrðmynd

byð on wicge fæger

fæstlic on færelde fyrdgearewa sum

 

The bow is a joy and honour

To nobles and all men alike

It looks splendid on horse

Reliable when travelling

Part of war gear

 

y (bow) is an important part of the warrior's war gear.  It allows him to fight at a much longer range than the sword or axe and gave the sort of advantage that modern day missiles and long range rifles do today.  The English long bow wrought havoc with French forces in the middle ages as they could hit the enemy whilst being out of range themselves.  Archery became an important skill and every Englishman was required by law to practice it at least once a week - a law which is now so old it has never been rescinded!

y represents the ability to remain one step ahead of the game.  It is an in born advantage born from superior equipment, knowledge or skill.  We are reminded that our ability to survive and prosper is dependent on creating and keeping this advantage.

j

ior

ior byð eafixa and ðeah a bruceð

fodres on faldan hafað fægerne eard

wætre beworpen þær he wynnum leofaþ

 

The beaver is a river fish

Although it eats its food on land

It has a fair home, surrounded by water

Where it lives joyfully

 

The beaver was declared a fish by the early church because of its scaly tail.  This may have helped overcome Old Testament dietary laws and allowed the animal to be eaten.  Although there is little or no evidence it formed a regular part of the English diet, its classification as a fish may have been important in times of famine and hardship.

The beaver swims like a fish but feeds on dry land.  It is industrious and works hard building and maintaining its home, creating river dams and generally beavering away!  It is happy in its work.

Sometimes the river breaks through the dam and destroys its home, but the persistent beaver just picks itself up and rebuilds. 

The beaver reminds us of the importance of hard work and self reliance.  Things rarely come to us for nothing and hard work is usually needed.  We should be self reliant wherever possible and not become dependent on others who may seek to take what is ours.  We need to stand firm against the odds and not give in when things get tough.  The gods want us to be joyful in our work and we should be content with this and happy; always striving for the common good of our family and folk.

Like the beaver we need to learn to survive in different environments; living in this world but living apart from it too.  We need to learn to live in the wider community, but also to build and strengthen our own communities within it.  To live contented, joyful lives in our own communities, we need to work like the beaver and never give up.

 

q

ear

ear byð egle eorla gehwylcun

ðonn fæstlice flæsc onginneð

hraw colian hrusan ceosan

blac to gebeddan bleda gedreosaþ

wynna gewitaþ wera geswicaþ

 

The grave is a terror to all men

When the flesh grows cold

And the pale corpse

Chooses the earth as its companion

Wealth comes to an end, joy fades away

Friendships end

 

The grave is a cold, dark and lifeless place.  The verse is stark and a little morbid, reflecting the realistic and somewhat fatalistic character of our ancestors.  It is fitting that it appears as the last Rune. 

But it is not the end of a linear sequence, but rather part of a cycle that represents the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.  This is reinforced by the resemblance of q to z which represents life, rather than k which represents death.  So q is not simply about the grave.  It is another lesson that whilst our earthly death must come to pass, we have the promise of being reborn into a higher state of existence through the Logos, Christ.

Even as the joys, hopes and friendships of this world pass away, so does pain, hurt and loneliness.  Whilst our souls are reborn, our earthly body returns to the earth from which it came.  But our accomplishments live on within this world.

Our dom (doom) is the fame and glory we are remembered by.  It is good to lead a decent, honourable life and to have achieved positive things for which we can be remembered.  These do not have to be on a grandiose scale like the Saints, but can be small scale and may even be known only to God.  As St Matthew says:

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven."

Anglo Saxons called death forþferan or faring forth - recognising a journey from this world to the next.  The wealth and joys of this world are of no more consequence as they are replaced with a different type of wealth and joy as we anticipate the kingdom of heaven.

Life is a precious gift of God.  We should use our lives wisely and positively to his glory.  And we should have faith in the promise that Christ will raise us out of the cold grave and draw us into the light of eternal life through him.  This is the doom we should all yearn for, our Christian Domgeorn.