Rack & Rune

Welcome to Abbott’s Inn Nordic Rune Corner 8! We’re glad you could make it! Be sure and check out the other 7 Nordic Rune groups. The Runic system we will be discussing here is the Elder Futhark. It is the best known, and the one that is the most information on. There are 24 Runes in the Elder Futhark, arranged in three sections called Aetts. There are 8 Runes in each Aett, but I do not know whether Aett is precisely cognate with the English eight or not. They are called Freyja’s Aett, Hagalaz’s Aett, and Tyr’s Aett.

Do we have books for you! I’ll start with Runic Palmistry by Jon Saint-Germain. Somehow I doubt that his parents gave him that name. It’s way too serendipitous to be believed that that this guy could be related to the Count de Saint-Germain who is one of the Ascended Masters, as well as the hero and main character of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro’s novels about a 2000 year old vampire. This is an extremely interesting book. It made ever so much more sense than other books on palmistry or even my palmistry deck. From this book, I discovered that I have a Feoh-Fehu rune right on my Hoenir mount. That’s right under the middle finger. So that would mean that my wealth lies in my philosophical pursuits. In the Middle Ages and Renaissance, magick was part of philosophy.

Sirona Knight wrote The Little Giant Encyclopedia of Runes, and it is full of treasures. I want to try out some of those rune spreads on friends. It’s 510 pages of magick. Stephen considers this one of the best books on the subject. She also includes a wonderful glossary. She talks about runic dancing. She also talks about runic telepathy cards. She also talks about runic yoga, runic healing and protection, and stadha, the runic circle; making a runic ring, making runic talismans, and using runes to charge essential oils, from almond to violet.

Stephen discovered the runes at age 11, a year after he discovered the Tarot. He taught himself by means of a book whose title he can’t remember. It took a couple to five years for him to embrace the runes.

I was 27 when I discovered the runes, and because I am half Norwegian, and half English, the runes called to my blood. After all, both my Viking and Anglo-Saxon ancestors used runes, perhaps not in a magickal way, but used runes as an alphabet. My friend Layla taught me a technique for making magickal pictures using the meanings of the Hebrew letters. The technique is to make a sigil-picture. I converted the technique into making pictures out of the runes. I taught it at a workshop at Ravenwood one year. That was sure fun.

Here’s how you do it. You’ll need paper, crayons or felt tip markers, and a pencil. Take your pieces of paper, and write a short sentence expressing your desire. Cross out any repeated letters, and convert your statement into runes. Some of them may be repeated, cross these out. Write down the meanings for these runes and on the other piece of paper, draw the pictures that these meanings represent, and form these into a scene. Work with these images until you like the scene they form, then color the scene using your felt tip markers, crayons, colored pencils, or any other method of coloring the scene that you desire. To charge the sigil, do it in your usual way, building up some passionate emotion, have sex, masturbate, or pass it through the four elements. I asked Stephen how to charge a sigil. He asked “Do you have jumper cables?”

Stephen makes bind-runes (he prefers to call them “bound-runes”) by tossing them and if two or three stick together, he makes them into bind or bound runes. Stephen wondered aloud where the condom goes for the threesome. I made bind-runes out of salt dough, which is a kind of “Play-Doh”. You can make all sorts of things out of salt dough. If you are into ceremonial or Enochian magick, you can make the “wax” tablet from salt dough.

Stephen waited until he was 20 to read the runes because he wanted to do research. He researched what each rune represented and meant. He researched who promulgated the runes and why. He researched how to construct them. Like a child practicing hir capital letters, he would write them over and over, row after row after row.

I just drew 3 runes: Ansuz, Hagalaz, and Tiwaz. Two thirds of these runes have their own families or aetts. Ansuz is the divine order that stays put no matter what. Hagalaz is the rune of friendship, stability, and bonding. “From primal chaos comes transformation.” Tyr or Tiwaz is the rune of spirituality and faith. I wanted to integrate these three meanings into one cogent summing up statement, but Stephen asked “Why do you want to do that?” I answered “Because when I read for people, they usually want a cogent summing up statement.” “That isn’t necessary.” But people, if you can think of a good summing up statement, please post it here.
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I got the itch to do another reading. On my blue lace agate, I got Dagaz, Hagalaz again on clear quartz crystal, and on rose quartz, Laguz. Dagaz embodies the ritual fire of the hearth, and the mystical light that can be used in magick. Hagalaz represents friendship, stability, and bonding. Right now I’m thinking in terms of a chemical bond. Laguz represents the primal waters from which all rivers of energy flow into the ocean, which is Oneness.

Stephen the Runemeister tells me I should’ve drawn 9 runes, so since I’ve already drawn 6, I shall draw 3 more. I drew Ansuz, Laguz, and Eihwaz. Eihwaz was on top of Laguz as a bind-rune. We’ve had Ansuz and Laguz before. So what do they mean all told? Eihwaz is the elk rune, a symbol of protection. It is also communication through the three realms. Ansuz is again the divine order that stays put no matter what. Laguz represents the primal waters from which all rivers of energy flow into the ocean, which is Oneness. I interpret these three runes as meaning that the divine order communicates with the primal waters. There, I managed to put those three runes into a single unifying pithy cogent sentence.

There are two sets of cards Stephen thinks I should tell you about. One is called “The Rune Vision Cards.” There is one for each Rune, and a deity is shown on each card. I never dreamed that the Norse pantheon was so extensive. It also gives many different attributes, such as colors, herbs, animals, and trees. I call them correspondences, but Stephen calls them attributes. I think I have more authorities on my side, who also call them correspondences.
Rune Magic [sic] by Nigel Pennick 1992 from Aquarian Press looks like a very good book. Stephen’s read it all the way through. It gives a great glossary, and has a chart showing the runic half-months. There’s a chart showing the colors, the trees, oils and a section on making runic talismans. Stephen highly recommends this book.

Newsflash: Altavista’s Babelfish has now been added to Yahoo’s toolbar. Go to Altavista Babelfish and they will offer to put it on your Yahoo toolbar. Log in, restart, and it shall be done onto you.

I’m on KEEN now, so call me. I changed the spelling of my name slightly so that the non-Welsh speakers could pronounce it. It’s spelled Teiweth ShadowDancer. My number is 8342. My extension is 03877627 I’m sure it means something qabalistically, but I haven’t looked it up yet in Godwin’s. The site is www.keen.com, so go there and look me up. Stephen’s British friend Peter is threatening to call me, but he hasn’t called me yet. He has only 6 hours yet tonight, before he’ll have to wait until tomorrow morning. I refuse to be a slave to the telephone as Stephen is, so I’m offline from 10 p.m. until 8 a.m. I need my beauty sleep. I don’t know whether it does me any good cosmetically, but it does my moods a world of good, as well as my physical body. If you need a clairvoyant, call on AstroWing 3323. For exact dates, call Stephen6580.

We’re working on Abbott’s Inn International. I changed the Griffin Network this morning so that it can take groups. We’re looking for a housemate now, so if you are in the Sacramento area, and need a place to live, or are thinking of moving to Sacramento and need a place to live it is only $400 + 1/3 of the utilities. It is perfect for someone who either has a low paying job or is on Social Security or SSI. You can have cats here. Please no smoking. We can share food if you are an omnivore, as Stephen and I are.

We’re both behind on our rent and are offering readings and classes for $32 each. For $60, you can have both a reading and a class. It’s payable through Paypal. My account is tezra.reitan@gmail.com. Stephen’s account name is abbottsinn@gmail.com. We’re the contact people for Isaac. We encourage people to buy his books to pay his medical bills. Isaac’s books, while they have his distinctive sense of humor, also are very informative. For readings and classes, call either Stephen at (landline) 916-455-2267 (cell) 916-612-2504. With webcam and voice on Yahoo IM , Skype, or Windows Live Msgr, it’s almost like being here. I don’t have my webcam hooked up yet. We also need staff members, who if they work as hard as we do on Abbott’s Inn International, will receive readings and classes for a year and a day.

If you are in the Sacramento area, go by 14th an 60th to Gallery 14. It is run by Walter Rhoads and Julie Maahs. They have exhibitions by local artists each month.

Well that’s all for now. We’ll be back soon.
Tegwedd ShadowDancer
Stephen Abbott
Bailee Beasley Beastly (3B)
Inky (my BFF BoyFriend Forever)
Little Boy (who isn’t so little anymore)
Frikki & Frakki (the tag team twins)
Dr. Livingston I. Presume (the put upon little brother)

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