401 - Rune Rituals - Calm and Relaxed

As many of you know, I am engaged in a solstice to equinox passion challenge related to my writing.  So far, things are going well, almost too well.  I am finding myself so wound up and excited about this endeavor that, when it comes time to relax and go to sleep, my brain has other ideas.

Since I am in a very active stage right now, I decided the best way to approach this issue was to conduct a ritual around the theme of calming down.

Isa was the first Rune that came to me.  It seemed the logical choice to include in this ritual given its state - ice.  However, it goes beyond that.  When I think of cold, icy places, my mind moves north to the lands I love, which brings me peace and puts me mentally in a place I long to be.  With this to frame my thoughts, I began gathering the other items I wanted for my ritual journey.

As I went through my Runes, looking at each one, holding each one and considering its meaning, I gravitated to three more - Nauthiz, Eihwaz, and Algiz.  I also considered Tiwaz, but decided against it in the end, because, despite my strong connection with Tyr, this Rune invokes too much energy in me for my intention here.

I looked at Nauthiz in detail a couple of weeks ago and, last month, it was Eihwaz.  I find it interesting that these two Runes keep coming up for me lately.  Algiz, by comparison, comes up maybe once every few months.

Besides the Runes, I turned to my primary element - water - but opted not to include Laguz in this ritual as it is about calming and relaxing, stillness, and a Laguz has strong association with movement through the flow of water.  However, river rocks, which lie still on the river bed, while the water flows over them, seemed the perfect complement.

For this ritual, I staggered the Runes over a pile of river rocks  along with four ice cubes (one for each Rune, though they are hard to see in the picture).  I sat and thought of each Rune and noticed two very similar aspects they shared.  First, I noticed their shape.  Each one contains Isa as its center and is evenly balanced on either side of it.  Second, each Rune represents a form of strength in its meaning - Eihwaz standing one's ground or standing up for yourself, Algiz is the Rune of self defense and protection, and Nauthiz gives us strength by reminding us to look at what we need, what is necessary.

With this ritual, unlike the ones I did with Ansuz and Fehu, there was no chant.  Instead, I sat in quiet contemplation, realizing that not only did my action signify a key aspect of Isa - stillness - but that the other three Runes are giving me subtle strength to take what I need, which is a time to calm and relax myself so that I may sleep well.

As I sat quietly, allowing my mind to wander around these Runes, the most interesting thing occurred. Idunn's essence came to help me through my ritual.  Instead of looking at her as the goddesses who tends the apples for the gods and goddesses, I looked at what the apples do.  They keep the gods young, essentially invigorating or revitalizing them.  And, that is what I seek - a good night's sleep to revitalize me, which in turn, will help to keep me on track with my passion challenge.

By embracing the intention of this ritual and sitting in quiet contemplation of its meaning, I got what I needed.  I knew I needed sleep and this ritual reminded me why; it connected all the pieces and showed me that this endeavor is entirely in my control and part of a larger aspect of who I am and what I want to accomplish.  This ritual reinvigorated me and I am sure I will sleep soundly for the next while.

Wishing you peace and relaxation until next week...