Runes 302 - Interviews - Kelley Harrell

I am especially pleased to share with you an interview with Kelley Harrell, owner of Soul Intent Arts.  Kelley has been sharing her rune work with me (and many of you) for at least five years, though her practice extends well beyond that.  I hope you enjoy getting to know her a little bit better.  I know I did.

How did you discover the Runes?
I read about them in 8th grade literature, like so many of my generation did.  I was introduced to the Elder Futhark as living items of power by a friend when I was 19.  It was love at first cast.

How long have you been working with them?  How do you use them?
I started working with the Elder Futhark enthusiastically at 19 years old.  I worked with the runes for years, though the resources that were available were very limited and very limiting.  I felt connected to the staves, though not to any interpretation of them that I read.  I thought that meant I was doing something wrong, so I walked away form them as a formal study for a few years.  They popped up in my mind and life, continually, so when I decided to commit to the staves and forgo texts on them, everything came alive.  I'm so glad there are better resources of them now.

What is your favorite way to connect with the Runes?
My path is animistic and shamanic, so asking the spirit of the stave I'm working with to step into my form is very powerful.  I find that embodying them is more sustaining and informing on personal needs than using them in a more traditional divinatory way.  For me, divination isn't about predicting outcomes, rather it's about gathering as much insight as possible about present dynamics, so I can make more informed decisions about how I go forward.  When I hold an intention in mind and embody the stave, I feel its counsel on how to hold my awareness.  It gives me a focus to sustain throughout whatever I need.

How do you use the Rues in your everyday life?  For guidance?  To guide others?
I find that I use them differently for self, as opposed to using them on behalf of others.  For personal use, I connect with them best through galdr, one at a time, and shapeshifting with them as I noted before (in the previous question).  When I work with another person, I ask Heimdallr to oversee the session and give him and the runes access to my awareness, so that when I draw runes for the person, I feel the needed connection to each one as I touch it.  I see the story it wants to relate to the intention that was set forward.  The hardest part of working with others using runes is that they don't sugar coat anything and they are more about giving a perspective on the intention, rather than dictating how to go forward in the intention.

Is there one experience that you've had with the Runes that was especially rewarding, engaging, moving or unexpected?  Will you share it with us?
It wasn't a singular experience, rather a life dynamic that persisted about a year and a half.  I worked with the runes frequently to understand the various currents that were happening during this really difficult time.  I asked them for insight about the true intentions, the best focus I could hold at specific points of the progression, the best focus to take into various meetings, the best way to deal with specific people involved.  Prior to this dynamic, I went tot he runes for insight about diverse needs, usually immediate in timing and short-lived involvements.  There was no longevity to watch how the insights would play out.  This particular dynamic lasted so long and provided such detailed insights over a continuum, I came away even ore convinced of the power of the runes.

The runes were frank, as they always are, though they warned me about hidden motives, things that weren't at all evident in the face-to-face interactions, but became evident as things progressed.  They informed me that the direction was going away from the intended focus of the dynamic.  I truly felt more informed going into meetings because of what the runes taught me along the way.  I sustained my relationship with them as part of a difficult time and they helped me stand in my power throughout it.  They didn't change the outcome; they changed me and how I interacted with the whole ordeal.

What else would you like to share with us about your work with the Runes?
I undervalued the runes for a long time.  Though they spoke to me immediately upon meeting them, I didn't realize their value through everyday life until I committed to them, so to speak.  In shamanism, everything is about direct relationship and that been no less true about the runes.  I really do take them everywhere with me.

Thank you, Kelley, for taking the time to share with us.

Kelley's Bio
Kelley is the author of Teen Spirit Guide to Modern Shamanism, Gift of the Dreamtime, and several other books.  Her shamanic practice is Soul Intent Arts, through which she mentors others on the path of modern shaman.  She has written The Weekly Rune, since 2012.

Runes 102 - Book Reviews - Icelandic Magic

Icelandic Magic: Practical Secrets of the Northern Grimoires, by Stephen Flowers, left me wanting more, but not for the reasons you might think.  The book is divided into two parts.  The first part provided a backdrop into which Icelandic magic occurred and it was informative.  But, it was the second part (beginning with chapter 9),which is supposed to be "a unique book of magic in the traditional Icelandic form", that I felt was lacking guidance and that is where I really wanted more.

In Part One, Flowers provides an overview of the world in which Icelandic magic developed and existed.  He covers some chronology and includes information on how Christian and southern magical influences played roles in it as well.  It was interesting to see how they merged in many regards; for example, he talks about a medieval Rune stick (yes, carved in Runes) that uses "a Christian magical formula to allow for easy childbirth".  Even though the words were carved in Runes, the words themselves were Latin and talked about Christ, Elizabeth who gave birth to John the Baptiste, and the Lord.  Flowers also notes that single spells included references to Norse gods and goddesses, alongside the Christian god and Christian demons.

During his chronology, he highlights a few key Icelandic magicians, all of whom had ties to the church as bishops, vicars or predating Christianity and serving as goði (priest, chieftain) and whom are described in greater detail later.  This leads into a discussion of the Icelandic books of magic, which I felt was the most enlightening pieces of the book.  If you read only one chapter of this book, choose this one.  Although it is just an overview of magic books, it helped to paint a picture of the important historical magic books and their influences.

After this, the book began to get confusing for me, but I thought things would fall into place when I got to chapter 8, which covers preparation and inner work and they begin to.  Flowers claims the outer preparation - setting the ritual space - requires less effort than the inner preparation.  This made sense.  With regard to inner work, he says, "These skills of concentration, visualization, and memorization that are the ones that the ancients took for granted and that modern people almost entirely neglect."  By taking them for granted, he means that the ancients understood that they had to undertake these preparations.  It went without saying.  When we don't do that today, the result is "magical failure".

Chapter 9 is the last chapter before part 2 of the book and it is also where I began to lose interest and feel like I am being deprived of some pivotal information that would help me understand his overview of the process better.  I found many of his explanations lacking and his focus on invoking Odin incomplete.  I confess that I work with the Elder Futhark and acknowledge that the ancient magicians would have used the Younger Futhark, but that is secondary to my ability to understand the process that he lays out in terms of the inner work.  While I understand Odin's role in the Runes, when I invoke a god for Rune work, I choose Heimdall.  So, what does it mean to use another god or even the goddess Freyja and incorporate aspects of seiðr?

The final piece, Part Two - Gray Skin - was really disappointing.  Flowers states that it is a unique book of magic in the traditional Icelandic form and it contains work done in the Rune-Gild, a group that he formed in 1980.  The struggle that I have with this piece is that he doesn't provide a single example as to how these spells were derived or arrived at or how to enact them.  It is that understanding that I need where this book falls short for me.

This book is not the kind of Rune work that I do or am interested in and, with a few exceptions, was not for me.  That doesn't mean that you would not find some benefit in it.  I did find the historical context to be helpful.

Runes 401 - Rune Rituals - A Simple Blessing

Back in May, my kids and I went for a bike ride and stopped at a beach by the lake.  I don't usually pick up shells or rocks or things like that to bring home; I'm of the take only pictures, leave only footprints frame of mind most of the time.  However, I was drawn to this piece of drift wood that I just couldn't put down.  I knew I had to have it and I knew I had to have my name and my Rune (Jera) carved into it.  My carving skills aren't great, so I asked a friend to do it for me, which he graciously did.  Nothing fancy.  Here's what it looked like when he gave it back to me:

It was the perfect starting point.  Then, I went through a ritual, similar to when I made my own Runes.  It needed to be painted and sealed.

First, I thanked Njord for providing the wood to me.  Soaked by the lake, smoothed by being rolled around near the shore, and left to dry on the beach.  It is perfect.

After I selected my paint, I invoked Heimdall and Odin, because they gave us the Runes.  Then, I pricked my finger and put nine drops of blood into the paint.  The sacrifice was to them.  As the drops fell into the bowl, I thanked Heimdall for sharing the Runes with Jarl and thanked Odin for his nine-day sacrifice to obtain the Runes, all their secrets and mysteries.  The blood was also my way of making the carving my own. 

This process strengthened my connection to the carving and to the gods.  Even though there wasn't enough blood to noticeably alter the color of the paint, I know that a piece of me now resides within the wood.

I let the paint dry over night, then sealed it with a non-toxic varnish, but not before I expressed my appreciation to all of the gods and goddesses.  This piece of Rune art and the process to create it was important for me in strengthening my connection to the mythology that I love.

I was especially pleased that, when I drew Runes as the final piece of this ritual, I got Perthro, Jera, and Berkana.  Simply put, Perthro represents my friend in this process who did the initial carving for me.  Jera is my guiding Rune; that's why it's on the carving.  And even though Berkana comes at the end, it symbolizes for me that this work of art represents a new phase in my relationship to the gods and the Runes.

Runes 101 - Runes in History 8

In the last Runes 101 post, I wrote about the 1955 Bergen fire.  This time, while I complete etching the Runes on my wooden staves, I thought I would figuratively head to the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea and write about the Manx Crosses in general, and one in particular.

The Manx Crosses are actually Runestones, displaying both Celtic and Norse roots and blending early Christian imagery with Celtic/Norse ones.  This group of more than two dozen stones, dates back primarily to the 10th century, the height of the Viking Age.  There had been a long Celtic tradition of raising crosses to the dead (nearly 200 such stones have been found), prior to the Norse influx, but it is with their arrival that the two cultures merged to create some very interesting and artistic works.  For example, where the earlier crosses had wonderful Celtic knots carved into them in a variety of styles, the later ones build on that idea, twisting animals around each other in a similar fashion.

Another interesting aspect to these crosses is that there are multiple styles of Runes used on them.  There are Anglo-Saxon, elder Futhark, and short-twig or staveless Runes found on different crosses, though none together on the same cross, as far as I can tell.  In addition to Runic inscriptions, the first half of the Ogham alphabet appears on one and Ogham letters are visible on both sides of another.

Most of the Manx crosses are carved in memory to someone, a father, a wife, a son or daughter.  Some are dedicated to the person who raised the cross, while others are simply illegible.  At least one cross records a betrayal.

The Manx Cross that interests me the most is one from the Jurby parish in the northwest part of the island.  It is ornately carved (images above and to the right) and includes other ornamentation along with an Old Norse runic inscription:

"[s]on sinn en annan reisti/retti [hann] eptir Thorb" 

The inscription translates into something like the Rune carver has raised a stone for his son and raised another in memory of someone whose name began with Thor - Thorbjorn, Thorvald, etc.

I confess that it is not the inscription that intrigues me about this cross, rather the fact that this cross includes an image of Heimdall, the Norse gods' sentry, who happens to be the main historical character in my novel, The Son of Nine Sisters.   Although Heimdall is carved on this cross, no evidence exists to support the idea that there was ever a culture, tribe or group that worshiped or sacrificed to him.

I believe this image actually supports that idea and represents the call to the beginning of Ragnarök, the final battle of the Norse gods, rather than highlighting Heimdall as a deity.  As you can see in the enlarged image (left), Heimdall is clearly blowing Gjallarhorn to signal the battle's onset.

Across the Irish Sea, in Cumbria, England, another cross (The Gosforth Cross) depicts another Norse image of a god, which has been identified mistakenly as Heimdall, because he holds a horn in one hand while fighting a beast in the other.  I do not believe this is Heimdall, rather, if it is a god, it is Thor killing the Midgard serpent.  That aligns better with the final battle and Thor's own personality as being able to drink enough mead to lower sea level.  Besides, there is no record or story of Heimdall battling anything other than Loki.

Getting back to the Manx Crosses, The Isle of Man Manx National Heritage Museum is a great resource for learning more about these fascinating stones, including having replicas of some of the stones and a database of illustrated images of all the Manx Crosses.

Long ago, I added the Isle of Man to my places to visit.  How about you?  Have you traveled to the Isle of Man?  Did you see any of these crosses?  If so, please share your experience with us.

Runes 101 - Runes in Mythology 4

In my last installment of Runes 101- Runes in Mythology, I mentioned Rigsthula.  In this myth, Heimdall is credited with establishing the three classes of humans - serfs, freemen, and nobility.  However, this myth tells an important story about the Runes too.  In the myth, after Heimdall, going by the name Rigr, establishes the classes, he goes a step further with his nobly-born son, Jarl.  Stepping out of the woods one day where Jarl is, Heimdall greets him as his father and teaches Jarl the Runes.  Then Rigr tells Jarl that, by his birthright, he is entitled to primogeniture lands.

Heeding this knowledge, Jarl goes to battle and, victorious, rules over eighteen estates.  After a time, Jarl marries a woman named Erna and they have eleven children.  Of those children, it is Kon the Young, the youngest child, who learns the Runes from his father Jarl.

Here is where this story gets interesting, not only in the mythology, but in the etymology as well.  Let's do the latter first.  Rig has its origins in Irish/Celtic culture and means "king".  In Old Norse, konr and ungr, which are Kon and Young, together make konungr, the Old Norse word for "king".

Given the boy's name, he is destined to be king.  The important thing to point out here is that he becomes king because of his knowledge of the Runes.  This returns us to the mythology.  As the story goes, after some time Kon's skill with the Runes comes to rival his father's.  He learns life-Runes, birth-Runes, fate-Runes, how to dull sword blades, calm the sea, talk to birds, put out fires, ease sorrow, and he possesses the strength of eight men.  One day, Kon's Runic wisdom surpasses his father's, earning him the title of Rigr or King.

So, why am I telling you this?   For a couple of reasons.  First, it's a great story.  If you haven't read Rigsthula and the other Norse myths you should.  Second, it shows the importance of Runes in Old Norse society.  They were more than letters; each one held magical powers.  Moreover, it is the nobility that receives the gift of the Runic secrets from the gods.

Although I offer free readings to people, I can assure you that I am not of noble blood.  Maybe that is why the readings I do never have anything to do with dulling swords or calming seas, at least not literally.

Runes 101 - Runes in Mythology 3

Welcome back to Runes 101.  Who, in Norse Mythology, knows the Runes?  We know that, for the Aesir at least, Odin grabbed the Runes and learned them.  The poem "The Sayings of Har", also called  "The Sayings of the High One", tells us this.  What happens once Odin has the Runes and gains insight and knowledge from them?  Does he share this information with the chiefs of the other kingdoms in the world of Norse Mythology or do they acquire the knowledge in some other way?  The former seems unlikely to me; Odin does not strike me as wanting to share knowledge with other chiefs.  After all, he was willing to sacrifice his eye so that he alone would have the knowledge held within Mimir's Well of Wisdom.  The latter option - the other chiefs learning the magic of the Runes in another way - remains a mystery.  We don't know how they came to understand the Runes; we know only who they are.

In verse 143 of the same poem, it says that Odin among the Aesir, Dain for the elves, Dvalin for the dwarfs, and Alvith/Asvid for the giants.  These lines suggest that these are the "Rune Readers" for each of these kingdoms.  The last line of this verse says basically, "I carved some for myself."  Based on the other references to "I" in the poem, it appears as though this is Odin saying he carved his own Runes.  There is no mention of how the other three gain their knowledge of the Runes.  Interestingly, no Vanir (the other kingdom of gods) is mentioned as having this ability.

The Vanir are defined, typically, as fertility gods, gods/goddesses who have the ability of seidr (a form of witchcraft and trances).  They can see the future.  Can they, too, read the Runes?  This is a question I cannot answer, but I can offer some food for thought.  Some scholars and researchers suggest that Heimdall may have been part of the Vanir kingdom.  We know that Heimdall knows the Runes, because the Rigsthula myth tells us how he comes out of the forest and greets Jarl, his son.  Rig, who is Heimdall, teaches Jarl the Runes.  So, could Heimdall be the Vanirs' Rune Reader?  One last bit of fodder for those of you who don't know Rigsthula - Jarl is a human, a king.  Who gets credit for giving the knowledge of the Runes to humans then?  Heimdall or Odin?