Runes 102 - Book Review - The Runes in 9 Minutes

Simple.  Inviting.  Easy to follow.  The Rune in 9 Minutes, by Eoghan Odinsson speaks to its readers in a friendly, comfortable tone.  When you begin, you feel almost like you're having a conversation with the author, which is especially important as the book is geared toward those just starting out with the Runes and provides a gentle introduction to them.

Besides it's friendly tone, there are many things to like about The Runes in 9 Minutes.  For starters, the author provides you with at way to make your own set of Elder Futhark Runes, in case you don't have one.  I smiled as I read his instructions, because they sounded very much like what I did last summer when I was traveling and forgot my Runes, so I made a temporary set.  He also suggests other ways to make a more permanent set.

In addition, Odinsson gives good overviews of some key aspects of the Runes.  He explains some basic or common lay outs for Rune casts.  I especially like his explanation for the three-Rune cast or draw, likening it to the Norns (from Norse Mythology, the Norns represent past, present, and future).  Although I've seen this spread before, I have not tried it, but I'm going to give it a shot now.  The Norn cast idea is a nice follow up to the chapter he writes on quantum physics and wyrd; wyrd is fate.  Odinsson does a nice job of applying the idea of quantum physics to wyrd and linking it to probabilities to demonstrate that, while wyrd shapes our lives, we have the ability to manipulate it through our choices and the probably of outcomes related to them.

Before concluding the book, Odinsson outlines the origins and evolution of the Elder, Younger, and Anglo-Saxon Futharks and offers some insight into books to use for further study - Northern Mysteries and Magick, by Freya Aswynn; The Rune Primer, by Sweyn Plowright, and Futhark: A Handbook of Rune Magic, by Edred Thorsson - with his providing the basic essentials to get you started.

However, the two most interesting aspects of this book are the unexpected Hafskjold Rune casting chapter, and his chapter on how to read Runes.  The former is a truly original experience with the Younger Futhark, taught to Odinsson by his Stav instructor.  Stav is a body, mind, and spirit system that uses Runes and Norse Mythology.  The Hafskjold cast requires repeating the sixteen-symbol futhark three times over twenty-four Runes, so that each Rune has two characters on it, one on top and one on bottom.  This is another Rune cast I am looking forward to trying soon.

The chapter on how to read the Runes, though, might be what makes this book most handy.  Whether you're a beginner or intermediate Rune user, The Runes in 9 Minutes provides a wonderful chapter with each Rune in the Elder Futhark having its own page dedicated to its image and meaning.   While the meanings are minimal, this is an aspect I like, because it allows the Rune user to develop their own personal interpretation of each Rune, based on the original meaning of the Rune.  And, at the bottom of each page, for each Rune, is the Anglo-Saxon Rune poem on which the meanings of the Elder Futhark Runes are created.

If you're just starting with the Runes and looking for a simple and welcoming book to help you get started, Odinsson's book is definitely one to consider.

Runes 102 - Book Review - The Rune Primer

Shortly after I started this blog, someone suggested that I get a book called The Rune Primer: A Down-to-Earth Guide to the Runes, by Sweyn Plowright.  Heeding this advice, I bought the book, because I had been relying on Blum's, Book of Runes.  However, I was already aware of the the issues with that book, but had not found another book that resonated with me.

This book was a pleasant surprise and suited me well, because it deals primarily with the facts about what we know about the Runes.  In fact, Plowright states flat out in his introduction that the purpose of the book is "to keep it brief and to the point, to stick to the known facts and established conventions, and to avoid unnecessary elaborations."  To that end, Plowright fulfilled his goal.

His approach worked well for me, because I sought a deeper understanding of individual Runes.  Moreover, I found that the simplicity of the book allowed me to more openly and confidently interpret the Runes in a way that felt comfortable and accurate and allowed me to grow with the way I understand them.  Plus, as someone whose life has been spent in academia and around academics and researchers, I connected with his focus on factual information without a bunch of detailed interpretations or or his own influences.

In fact,  I use his book as much more of a workbook or reference book, because of the contents.  It contains the Rune poems in two ways.  First, he lists all three together for each Rune.  In the "Resources"section of the book, he lists them again by location (Old English, Old Icelandic,and Old Norwegian).  In this section he includes the original text and the modern translation.  In addition, there is an interpretation section, but, even within that, the details do not overwhelm the reader, rather give broad strokes and allow the reader to development his/her own more detailed sense of each Rune.

Plowright is also what I would consider a purist.  This has both positive and negative connotations.  I appreciate his desire to be as historically accurate with Rune use and interpretation as possible.  As I undertake to make my first set of Runes (Runes 301 - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8), I am trying to make them in the same historically accurate fashion, because it is important to me.  However, on some level, he scorns some of the modern day, new age, uses of Runes, because they are not based on known information or historical sources.  While I appreciate this, I think it is important for there to be some evolution in Rune interpretation to keep them relevant to today's lifestyle.

For example, Fehu translates literally as cattle, but it has evolved into the idea of wealth and, following on that, the reality that wealth has many forms beyond mere financial gains.  My guiding Rune is Jera; it represents the harvest, but for me, the harvest is simply the final stage in a long focused process and it is the process idea where I use Jera, because if we want to have a successful harvest, whether it is growing crops, writing a book or any other endeavor, we must acknowledge the process and work with it.

The Rune Primer is a great resource for those looking for a solid entrance into using Runes and I recommend it for that.  Even with his negative scrutiny of some modern authors and Rune users, Plowright does make some very important points - you should ask critical questions, understand where authors derive their information, and have a basic understanding of the history and origin of Runes - and I recommend it for that too.