There is some evidence that, in addition to being a

writing system A writing system is a method of visually representing verbal communication, based on a script and a set of rules regulating its use. While both writing and speech are useful in conveying messages, writing differs in also being a reliable form ...

runes Runes are the letter (alphabet), letters in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write various Germanic languages (with some exceptions) before they adopted the Latin alphabet, a ...

historically served purposes of

magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

. This is the case from the earliest epigraphic evidence of the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

to the

Germanic Iron Age The archaeology of Northern Europe studies the prehistory of Scandinavia and the adjacent North European Plain, roughly corresponding to the territories of modern Sweden, Norway, Denmark, northern Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. The regio ...

, with non-linguistic inscriptions and the '' alu'' word. An ''

erilaz ''Erilaz'' or ''Erilaʀ'' is a Migration period Proto-Norse word attested on various Elder Futhark inscriptions, which has often been interpreted to mean " magician" or "rune master",* viz. one who is capable of writing runes to magical effect. How ...

'' appears to have been a person versed in runes, including their magic applications. In medieval sources, notably the

Poetic Edda The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems, which is distinct from the ''Prose Edda'' written by Snorri Sturluson. Several versions exist, all primarily of text from the Icelandic me ...

, the ''

Sigrdrífumál (also known as ) is the conventional title given to a section of the ''Poetic Edda'' text in . It follows without interruption, and it relates the meeting of Sigurðr with the valkyrie Brynhildr, here identified as ("driver to victory"). Its ...

'' mentions "victory runes" to be carved on a

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

, "some on the grasp and some on the inlay, and name Tyr twice." In the early modern period and

modern history The term modern period or modern era (sometimes also called modern history or modern times) is the period of history that succeeds the Middle Ages (which ended approximately 1500 AD). This terminology is a historical periodization that is applie ...

, related

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

and

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and ...

is recorded in the form of the

Icelandic magical staves Icelandic magical staves () are sigils that were credited with supposed magical effect preserved in various Icelandic grimoires, such as the Galdrabók, dating from the 17th century and later. Table of magical staves See also * Galdr A (pl ...

. In the early 20th century,

Germanic mysticism Armanism and Ariosophy are esoteric ideological systems that were developed largely by Guido von List and Jörg Lanz von Liebenfels respectively, in Austria between 1890 and 1930. The term 'Ariosophy', which means the wisdom of the Aryans, was in ...

coined new forms of "runic magic", some of which were continued or developed further by contemporary adherents of

Germanic Neopaganism Heathenry, also termed Heathenism, contemporary Germanic Paganism, or Germanic Neopaganism, is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religious studies classify it as a new religious movement. Developed in Europe during the early 20th centu ...

. Modern systems of runic divination are based on

Hermeticism Hermeticism, or Hermetism, is a philosophical system that is primarily based on the purported teachings of Hermes Trismegistus (a legendary Hellenistic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth). These teachings are containe ...

, classical

Occultism The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism an ...

, and the

I Ching The ''I Ching'' or ''Yi Jing'' (, ), usually translated ''Book of Changes'' or ''Classic of Changes'', is an ancient Chinese divination text that is among the oldest of the Chinese classics. Originally a divination manual in the Western Zho ...

Historical evidence

Tacitus

Historically it is known that the

Germanic peoples The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and ear ...

used various forms of divination and means of reading omens.

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historiography, Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his t ...

(''

Germania Germania ( ; ), also called Magna Germania (English: ''Great Germania''), Germania Libera (English: ''Free Germania''), or Germanic Barbaricum to distinguish it from the Roman province of the same name, was a large historical region in north- ...

'' 10) gives a detailed account (98AD):

:They attach the highest importance to the taking of auspices and casting lots. Their usual procedure with the lot is simple. They cut off a branch from a nut-bearing tree and slice it into strips these they mark with different signs and throw them at random onto a white cloth. Then the state's priest, if it is an official consultation, or the father of the family, in a private one, offers prayer to the gods and looking up towards heaven picks up three strips, one at a time, and, according to which sign they have previously been marked with, makes his interpretation. If the lots forbid an undertaking, there is no deliberation that day about the matter in question. If they allow it, further confirmation is required by taking
auspice Augury is the practice from ancient Roman religion of interpreting omens from the observed behavior of birds. When the individual, known as the augur, interpreted these signs, it is referred to as "taking the auspices". "Auspices" (Latin ''ausp ...
s.Birley (1999:42).

It is often debated whether "signs" refers specifically to runes or to other marks; both interpretations are plausible and Tacitus does not give enough detail for a definite decision to be made.

Epigraphy

The

Ansuz Ansuz is the conventional name given to the ''a''-rune of the Elder Futhark, . The name is based on Proto-Germanic ''* ansuz'', denoting a deity belonging to the principal pantheon in Germanic paganism. The shape of the rune is likely from N ...

and Tiwaz runes in particular seem to have had magical significance in the early (

Elder Futhark The Elder Futhark (or Fuþark), also known as the Older Futhark, Old Futhark, or Germanic Futhark, is the oldest form of the runic alphabets. It was a writing system used by Germanic peoples for Northwest Germanic dialects in the Migration Peri ...

) period. The ''Sigrdrífumál'' instruction of "name Tyr twice" is reminiscent of the double or triple "stacked Tyr"

bindrune A bind rune or bindrune ( is, bandrún) is a Migration Period Germanic ligature of two or more runes. They are extremely rare in Viking Age inscriptions, but are common in earlier (Proto-Norse) and later (medieval) inscriptions.Enoksen, Lars Magn ...

s found e.g. on

Seeland-II-C Seeland-II-C (Sjælland bracteate 2) is a Scandinavian bracteate from Zealand, Denmark, that has been dated to the Migration period (around 500 AD). The bracteate bears an Elder Futhark inscription which reads as: :ᚺᚨᚱᛁᚢᚺᚨᚺᚨᛁ� ...

or the

Lindholm amulet The Lindholm "amulet", listed as DR 261 in Rundata, is a bone piece, carved into the shape of a rib, dated to the 2nd to 4th centuries (the late Roman Iron Age) and has a runic inscription. The Lindholm bone piece is dated between 375CE to 570CE ...

in the ''aaaaaaaazzznnn-b- muttt'', sequence, which besides stacked Tyr involves multiple repetition of Ansuz, but also triple occurrence of

Algiz Algiz (also Elhaz) is the name conventionally given to the "''z''-rune" of the Elder Futhark runic alphabet. Its transliteration is ''z'', understood as a phoneme of the Proto-Germanic language, the terminal ''*z'' continuing Proto-Indo-Europ ...

and

Naudiz *Naudiz is the reconstructed Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic name of the ''n''-rune , meaning "need, distress". In the Anglo-Saxon runes, Anglo-Saxon futhorc, it is continued as ''nyd'', in the Younger Futhark as , Icelandic language, ...

. Many inscriptions also have apparently meaningless utterances interpreted as magical chants, such as ''tuwatuwa'' (

Vadstena bracteate The Vadstena bracteate (Rundata Ög 178) is a gold C-bracteate found in the earth at Vadstena, Sweden, in 1774.''Nordisk Familjebok'', Owl Edition, pp. 262-26/ref> Along with the bracteate was a gold ring and a piece of gold sheet: all were near ...

), ''aaduaaaliia'' (DR BR42) or ''g͡æg͡og͡æ'' (

Undley bracteate The Undley bracteate is a 5th-century bracteate found in Undley Common, near Lakenheath, Suffolk. It bears the earliest known inscription that can be argued to be in Anglo-Frisian Futhorc (as opposed to Common Germanic Elder Futhark). The ima ...

), ''g͡ag͡ag͡a '' (

Kragehul I Kragehul I ( DR 196 U) is a migration period lance-shaft found on Funen, Denmark. It is now in the collection of the National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark. The spear shaft was found in 1877 during the excavation of the classic war booty s ...

). Alu is a charm word appearing on numerous artifacts found in Central and Northern Europe dating from the

. The word is the most common of the early runic charm words and can appear either alone or as part of an apparent formula. The origin and meaning of the word are matters of dispute, though a general agreement exists among scholars that the word either represents amulet magic or is a metaphor (or

metonym Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept. Etymology The words ''metonymy'' and ''metonym'' come from grc, μετωνυμία, 'a change of name' ...

) for it.Macleod and Mees (2006), 91-101. A few

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Ger ...

rings Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

with runic inscriptions of apparently magical nature were found, among them the Kingmoor Ring. The phrase "runes of power" is found on two

runestone A runestone is typically a raised stone with a runic inscription, but the term can also be applied to inscriptions on boulders and on bedrock. The tradition began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, but most of the runestones da ...

s in Sweden, DR 357 from Stentoften and DR 360 from Björketorp. Runestones with curses include DR 81 in Skjern, DR 83 in Sønder Vinge, DR 209 in Glavendrup, DR 230 from Tryggevælde, DR 338 in Glemminge, and Vg 67 in Saleby.

Medieval sources

The most prolific source for runic magic in the

is the ''

'', where the valkyrie Sigrdrífa (

Brynhild Brunhild, also known as Brunhilda or Brynhild ( non, Brynhildr , gmh, Brünhilt, german: Brünhild , label=Modern German or ), is a female character from Germanic heroic legend. She may have her origins in the Visigothic princess Brunhilda o ...

) presents

Sigurd Sigurd ( non, Sigurðr ) or Siegfried (Middle High German: ''Sîvrit'') is a legendary hero of Germanic heroic legend, who killed a dragon and was later murdered. It is possible he was inspired by one or more figures from the Frankish Meroving ...

with a

memory-draught Symbel ( OE) and sumbl ( ON) are Germanic terms for "feast, banquet". Accounts of the ''symbel'' are preserved in the Anglo-Saxon '' Beowulf'' (lines 489-675 and 1491–1500), ''Dream of the Rood'' (line 141) and '' Judith'' (line 15), Old Saxo ...

of ale that had been charmed with "gladness runes" (stanza 5), She goes on to give advice on the magical runes in seven further stanzas. In all instances, the runes are used for actual

(

apotropaic Apotropaic magic (from Greek "to ward off") or protective magic is a type of magic intended to turn away harm or evil influences, as in deflecting misfortune or averting the evil eye. Apotropaic observances may also be practiced out of supersti ...

or ability-enhancing spells) rather than for divination: * "victory runes" to be carved on the sword hilt (stanza 6, presumably referring to the ''t'' rune named for TyrEnoksen, Lars Magnar. ''Runor: Historia, tydning, tolkning'' (1998) ), * ''ølrunar '' "

Ale Ale is a Type of beer, type of beer brewed using a Warm fermentation, warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste. Historically, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops. As with most beers, ale typicall ...

-runes" (stanza 7, a protective spell against being bewitched by means of ale served by the host's wife;

naudiz *Naudiz is the reconstructed Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic name of the ''n''-rune , meaning "need, distress". In the Anglo-Saxon runes, Anglo-Saxon futhorc, it is continued as ''nyd'', in the Younger Futhark as , Icelandic language, ...

is to be marked on one's fingernails, and

laukaz or is the reconstructed Proto-Germanic name of the ''l''-rune , meaning "water" or "lake" and meaning "leek". In the Anglo-Saxon rune poem, it is called "ocean". In the Younger Futhark, the rune is called "waterfall" in Icelandic and "wat ...

on the cup), *''biargrunar'' "birth-runes" (stanza 8, a spell to facilitate

childbirth Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births globall ...

), *''brimrunar'' "wave-runes" (stanza 9, a spell for the protection of ships, with runes to be carved on the stem and on the rudder), *''limrunar'' "branch-runes" (stanza 10, a healing spell, the runes to be carved on trees "with boughs to the eastward bent"), *''malrunar'' "speech-runes" (stanza 11, the stanza is corrupt, but apparently referred to a spell to improve one's rhetorical ability at the

thing Thing or The Thing may refer to: Philosophy * An object * Broadly, an entity * Thing-in-itself (or ''noumenon''), the reality that underlies perceptions, a term coined by Immanuel Kant * Thing theory, a branch of critical theory that focuses ...

), *''hugrunar'' "thought-runes" (stanza 12, the stanza is incomplete, but clearly discussed a spell to improve one's wit). The Poetic Edda also seems to corroborate the magical significance of the runes the ''

Hávamál ''Hávamál'' ( ; Old Norse: ,Unnormalised spelling in the :Title: Final stanza: ../ref> classical pron. , Modern Icelandic pron. , ‘Words of he High One��) is presented as a single poem in the Icelandic , a collection of Old Norse poems fr ...

'' where

Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, v ...

mentions runes in contexts of divination, of healing and of necromancy (trans. Bellows): :"Certain is that which is sought from runes / That the gods so great have made / And the Master-Poet painted" (79) :"Of runes heard I words, nor were counsels wanting / At the hall of Hor" (111) :"Grass cures the scab / and runes the sword-cut" (137) :"Runes shalt thou find / and fateful signs" (143) :" if high on a tree / I see a hanged man swing / So do I write and color the runes / That forth he fares / And to me talks." (158) Other oft cited sources for the practice of runic divination are chapter 38 of

Snorri Sturluson Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of the ...

Ynglinga Saga ''Ynglinga saga'' ( ) is a Kings' saga, originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet and historian Snorri Sturluson about 1225. It is the first section of his ''Heimskringla''. It was first translated into English and published in 1844 ...

, where

Granmar Granmar was a king of Södermanland, in Snorri Sturluson's Heimskringla. The same king also appears in the Volsunga saga. Granmar was married to Hilda, the daughter of the Geatish king Högne of East Götaland, and his son-in-law was the seaking ...

, the king of

Södermanland Södermanland ( or ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latin form ''Sudermannia'' or ''Sudermania'', is a historical province or ''landskap'' on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanla ...

, travels to the

Temple at Uppsala The Temple at Uppsala was a religious center in the ancient Norse religion once located at what is now Gamla Uppsala (Swedish "Old Uppsala"), Sweden attested in Adam of Bremen's 11th-century work ''Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum'' and i ...

for the seasonal

blót (Old Norse) and or (Old English) are terms for " blood sacrifice" in Norse paganism and Anglo-Saxon paganism respectively. A comparanda can also be reconstructed for wider Germanic paganism. A ' could be dedicated to any of the Germanic god ...

. "There, the chips fell in a way that said that he would not live long" (''Féll honum þá svo spánn sem hann mundi eigi lengi lifa''). Another source is in the

Vita Ansgari The ''Vita Ansgarii'', also known as the ''Vita Anskarii'', is the hagiography of saint Ansgar, written by Rimbert, his successor as archbishop in the Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen. The ''Vita'' is an important source not only in detailing Ansgar ...

, the biography of

Ansgar Ansgar (8 September 801 – 3 February 865), also known as Anskar, Saint Ansgar, Saint Anschar or Oscar, was Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen in the northern part of the Kingdom of the East Franks. Ansgar became known as the "Apostle of the North" b ...

the

Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen This list records the bishops of the Roman Catholic diocese of Bremen (german: link=no, Bistum Bremen), supposedly a suffragan of the Archbishopric of Cologne, then of the bishops of Bremen, who were in personal union archbishops of Hamburg (sim ...

, which was written by a monk named

Rimbert Saint Rimbert (or Rembert) (''c.'' 830 - 11 June 888 in Bremen) was archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen, in the northern part of the Kingdom of East Frankia from 865 until his death in 888. He most famously wrote the hagiography about the life Ansgar, th ...

. Rimbert details the custom of casting lots by the pagan Norse (chapters 26-30). The chips and the lots, however, can be explained respectively as a ''blótspánn'' (sacrificial chip) and a ''hlauttein'' (lot-twig), which according to Foote and Wilson Foote and Wilson (1970), 401. would be "marked, possibly with sacrificial blood, shaken and thrown down like dice, and their positive or negative significance then decided."

Egils Saga ''Egill's Saga'' or ''Egil's saga'' ( non, Egils saga ; ) is an Icelandic saga (family saga) on the lives of the clan of Egill Skallagrímsson (Anglicised as Egill Skallagrimsson), an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald. The saga spans the years ...

features several incidents of runic magic. The most celebrated is the scene where Egil discovers (and destroys) a poisoned drink prepared for him, by cutting his hand and cutting runes on the drinking horn, and painting the runes with blood. While the motif of blood painted runes also appears in other examples of early Norse literature it is uncertain whether the practice of painting runes with blood is merely a literary invention or whether it had precedence in magical practice.

Modern systems

In the 17th Century,

Hermeticist Hermeticism, or Hermetism, is a philosophical system that is primarily based on the purported teachings of Hermes Trismegistus (a legendary Hellenistic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth). These teachings are containe ...

and

Rosicrucian Rosicrucianism is a spiritual and cultural movement that arose in Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts purported to announce the existence of a hitherto unknown esoteric order to the world and made seeking its ...

Johannes Bureus Johannes Thomae Bureus Agrivillensis (born Johan Bure; 1568–1652) was a Swedish polymath, antiquarian, mystic, royal librarian, poet, and tutor and adviser of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden. He is a well-known exponent of Gothicism. Life an ...

, having been inspired by visions, developed a Runic system based on the

Kaballah Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "receiver"). The defin ...

and the Futhark which he called the ''Adulruna''. The

Armanen runes Armanen runes (or ''Armanen Futharkh'') are 18 pseudo-runes, inspired by the historic Younger Futhark runes, invented by Austrian mysticist and Germanic revivalist Guido von List during a state of temporary blindness in 1902, and described in hi ...

"revealed" to

Guido von List Guido Karl Anton List, better known as Guido von List (5 October 1848 – 17 May 1919), was an Austrians, Austrian occultism, occultist, journalist, playwright, and novelist. He expounded a Modern Paganism, modern Pagan new religious movement kno ...

in 1902 were employed for magical purposes in

by authors such as

Friedrich Bernhard Marby Friedrich Bernhard Marby (10 May 1882 – 3 December 1966) was a German rune occultist and Germanic revivalist. He is best known for his revivalism and use of the Armanen runes. Marby was imprisoned during the Third Reich, which may have been ...

and

Siegfried Adolf Kummer Siegfried Adolf Kummer (born 24 September 1899 in Radeberg, died 1977 in Dresden) was a German mystic and Germanic revivalist. He is also most well known for his revivalism and use of the Armanen runes row. He, along with Friedrich Bernhard Ma ...

, and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in a reformed "pansophical" system by

Karl Spiesberger Karl Spiesberger (29 October 1904 – 1 January 1992) was a German mystic, occultist, Germanic revivalist and Runosophist. He is most well known for his revivalism and usage of the Sidereal Pendulum for divination and dowsing and for his anti-r ...

. More recently,

Stephen Flowers Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; h ...

Adolf Schleipfer Adolf (also spelt Adolph or Adolphe, Adolfo and when Latinised Adolphus) is a given name used in German-speaking countries, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Flanders, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and to a lesser extent in vari ...

, Larry E. Camp and others also build on List's system. Several modern systems of runic magic and runic divination were published from the 1980s onward. The first book on runic divination, written by Ralph Blum in 1982, led to the development of sets of runes designed for use in several such systems of

fortune telling Fortune telling is the practice of predicting information about a person's life. Melton, J. Gordon. (2008). ''The Encyclopedia of Religious Phenomena''. Visible Ink Press. pp. 115-116. The scope of fortune telling is in principle identical w ...

, in which the runes are typically incised in clay, stone tiles, crystals, resin, glass, or polished stones, then either selected one-by-one from a closed bag or thrown down at random for reading. Later authors such as

Diana L. Paxson Diana Lucile Paxson (born February 20, 1943) is an American author, primarily in the fields of Paganism and Heathenism. Her published works include fantasy and historical fiction novels, as well as numerous short stories. More recently she has ...

and

Freya Aswynn Elizabeth Hooijschuur (born November 1949), known by her pen name Freya Aswynn, is a Dutch writer and musician, primarily known for her activities related to modern paganism in the United Kingdom. She was an early exponent of a form of Germanic neo ...

follow Blum (1989) in drawing a direct correlation between runic divination and

tarot divination Tarot card reading is a form of cartomancy whereby practitioners use tarot cards to purportedly gain insight into the past, present or future. They formulate a question, then draw cards to interpret them for this end. A traditional tarot deck con ...

. They may discuss runes in the context of "spreads" and advocate the usage of "rune cards". Modern authors like Ralph Blum sometimes include a "blank rune" in their sets. Some were to replace a lost rune, but according to Ralph Blum this was the god

's rune, the rune of the beginning and the end, representing "the divine in all human transactions".

Ralph Blum

In 1982, a modern usage of the runes for answering life's questions was apparently originated by

Ralph Blum There is some evidence that, in addition to being a writing system, runes historically served purposes of magic. This is the case from the earliest epigraphic evidence of the Roman to the Germanic Iron Age, with non-linguistic inscriptions and the ...

in his

divination Divination (from Latin ''divinare'', 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy') is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout histor ...

book ''The Book of Runes: A Handbook for the Use of an Ancient Oracle'', which was marketed with a small bag of round tiles with runes stamped on them. This book has remained in print since its first publication. The sources for Blum's divinatory interpretations, as he explained in ''The Book of Runes'' itself, drew heavily on then-current books describing the ancient

divination system of China. Each of Blum's seven books on runic divination deals with a specialized area of life or a varied technique for reading runes: *''The Book of Runes: A Handbook for the Use of an Ancient Oracle: The Viking Runes'' (1982); revised 10th Anniversary Edition (1992); revised 25th Anniversary Edition (2007). * ''The Rune Cards: Sacred Play for Self Discovery'' (1989); reissued as ''The Rune Cards: Ancient Wisdom For the New Millennium'' (1997). Rather than rune stones, this book uses images of the runes printed on card stock, much like a set of

trading card A trading card (or collectible card) is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing (fictional or real) and a short description of the picture, along with other ...

s or

tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

cards. * ''The Healing Runes'' with co-author Susan Loughan (1995) teaches methods for using runic divination in the context of health and personal integration. * ''Rune Play: A Method of Self Counseling and a Year-Round Rune Casting Record Book'' (1996) * ''The Serenity Runes: Five Keys to the Serenity Prayer'' with co-author Susan Loughan (1998); reissued as ''The Serenity Runes: Five Keys to Spiritual Recovery'' (2005) utilizes runic divination as a method for assisting

self-help Self-help or self-improvement is a self-guided improvement''APA Dictionary of Physicology'', 1st ed., Gary R. VandenBos, ed., Washington: American Psychological Association, 2007.—economically, intellectually, or emotionally—often with a subst ...

and recovery from addictions; the title is a reference to the well-known

Serenity prayer The Serenity Prayer is a prayer attributed to the American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr (1892–1971) in 1943. However, Winnifred Crane Wygal wrote an early version in the Santa Cruz Sentinel of March 15, 1933, as noted in the above cited research ...

widely used in the

12-step program Twelve-step programs are international mutual aid programs supporting recovery from substance addictions, behavioral addictions and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), aided its members ...

Alcoholics Anonymous Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international mutual aid fellowship of alcoholics dedicated to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through its spiritually-inclined Twelve Step program. Following its Twelve Traditions, AA is non-professi ...

. * ''Ralph H. Blum's Little Book of Runic Wisdom'' (2002). * ''The Relationship Runes: A Compass for the Heart'' with co-author Bronwyn Jones (2003) shows how to use runic divination in matters of love and friendship. Blum has also written books on the

Tao Te Ching The ''Tao Te Ching'' (, ; ) is a Chinese classic text written around 400 BC and traditionally credited to the sage Laozi, though the text's authorship, date of composition and date of compilation are debated. The oldest excavated portion d ...

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, and

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

Stephen Flowers

In the wake of a 1984 dissertation on "Runes and Magic",

published a series of books under the pen-name "Edred Thorsson" which detailed his own original method of runic divination and magic, "odianism", which he said was loosely based on historical sources and modern European

hermeticism Hermeticism, or Hermetism, is a philosophical system that is primarily based on the purported teachings of Hermes Trismegistus (a legendary Hellenistic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth). These teachings are containe ...

. These books were: * ''Futhark: A Handbook of Rune Magic'' (1984) * ''Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology'' (1987) * ''At The Well of Wyrd'' (1988) which was later reprinted under the title ''Runecaster’s Handbook: The Well of Wyrd.'' * ''Northern Magic: Rune Mysteries and Shamanism'' (2002). Runic divination is a component of Flowers' "esoteric runology" course offered to members of his Rune-Gild, as detailed in ''The Nine Doors of Midgard: A Curriculum of Rune-Work.'' Besides runic divination, Flowers also advocated the "runic gymnastics" (''Runengymnastik'') developed in the 1920s by

Friedrich Marby Friedrich Bernhard Marby (10 May 1882 – 3 December 1966) was a German Ariosophy, rune occultist and Germanic Germanic revivalism, revivalist. He is best known for his revivalism and use of the Armanen runes. Marby was imprisoned during the Th ...

, under the name of "Rune-Yoga" (also "Runic Yoga", "Stadhagaldr").

Stephan Grundy

In 1990,

Stephan Grundy Stephan Scott Grundy (June 28, 1967 – September 29, 2021),
''The Wild Hunt'', October 5, 20 ...

, a.k.a. Kveldulf Gundarsson, described runic magic as the active principle as opposed to passive interpretations based on runic divination. He held that runic magic is more active than the allegedly

shamanic Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...

practice of seid practiced by the Seiðkona. Runic magic, he states, uses the runes to affect the world outside based on the

archetype The concept of an archetype (; ) appears in areas relating to behavior, historical psychology, and literary analysis. An archetype can be any of the following: # a statement, pattern of behavior, prototype, "first" form, or a main model that ot ...

s they represent. Most of Gundarsson's runic magic entails being in possession of a physical entity that is engraved with any or all of the individual runes or "staves", so as to practically work with their energies. The individual runes are reddened with either blood, dyes, or paints. The act of possessing the stave in its final form serves the purpose of affecting the world of form with "the rune might" of that particular stave. After use, the staves are discarded or destroyed. Gundarsson holds that each rune has a certain sound to it, to be chanted or sung; the sound has in common the phonetic value by which it is represented. This act of singing or chanting is supposed to have more or less the same effect of using the staves in their physical form.

Other

Nigel Pennick Nigel Campbell Pennick (born 1946 in Guildford, Surrey, England) is a marine biologist, who has also published on occultism, magic, natural magic, divination, subterranea, rural folk customs, traditional performance and Celtic art as well as ...

proposes "Germanic Runic Astrology" in publications such as ''Runic Astrology: Starcraft and Timekeeping in the Northern Tradition'' (1995), . *

has published interpretations of the runes based on her own meditations in ''Leaves of

Yggdrasil Yggdrasil (from Old Norse ), in Norse cosmology, is an immense and central sacred tree. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds. Yggdrasil is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional s ...

: Runes, Gods, Magic, Feminine Mysteries, and Folklore'' Llewellyn Worldwide (1990), and ''Northern Mysteries and Magick: Runes, Gods & Feminine Powers'' (1998),

Llewellyn Worldwide Llewellyn Worldwide (formerly Llewellyn Publications) is a New Age publisher based in Woodbury, Minnesota. Llewellyn's mission is to "serve the trade and consumers worldwide with options and tools for exploring new worlds of mind & spirit, thereb ...

. *Adam Byrn Tritt, in ''Runic Divination in the Welsh Tradition'' (2011) presents a system based on a 10-stone set, including nine symbols which are unrelated to the historical runes, plus a blank stone, which represents the querent (inquirer). *

deals with the subject of runic divination and the use of the runes in magical spell-casting in her book ''Taking Up The Runes: A Complete Guide To Using Runes In Spells, Rituals, Divination, And Magic'' (2005). *Wendy Christine Duke in ''Spiral of Life'' (2008)''Spiral of Life - A Guidebook For Your Journey'' (2008) Cloud Haven Studio Incorporated, . presents a divination system based on organizing a set of 41 "revealed images" based on the runic letters. * A. D. Mercer, ''Runen - The Wisdom of the Runes'' (2016) reintroduces the

Armanen Runes Armanen runes (or ''Armanen Futharkh'') are 18 pseudo-runes, inspired by the historic Younger Futhark runes, invented by Austrian mysticist and Germanic revivalist Guido von List during a state of temporary blindness in 1902, and described in hi ...

. * Saemarr þorsgoði (Peter Seymour), Produced during the 1980s, a tape recording "Runes" giving advice on the use and divination practice of runes, including theoretical Galdrar (chanting) of the rune names of the Elder Futhark for ritual use.

References

Sources

* Birley, A. R. (Trans.) (1999). ''Agricola and Germany''.

Oxford World's Classics Oxford World's Classics is an imprint of Oxford University Press. First established in 1901 by Grant Richards and purchased by OUP in 1906, this imprint publishes primarily dramatic and classic literature for students and the general public. I ...

. * Blum, Ralph (1993). ''The Book of Runes : A Handbook for the Use of an Ancient Oracle: The Viking Runes with Stones'', St. Martin's Press; 10th anniversary ed. . * Flowers, Stephen (1986), ''Runes and magic: magical formulaic elements in the older runic tradition'', vol. 53 of American university studies: Germanic languages and literatures, P. Lang, . * —, as Thorsson, Edred (1983). ''A Handbook of Rune Magic'', Weiser Books. * —, as Thorsson, Edred (1987). ''A Handbook of Esoteric Runology''. Weiser Books, * Fries, Jan, ''Helrunar: A Manual of Rune Magick'', Second Edition, Mandrake of Oxford (2002), * Foote, Peter G., and Wilson, D. M. (1970). ''The Viking Achievement'', Sidgwick & Jackson: London, UK. * * * Meadows, Kenneth (1996). ''Rune Power: The Secret Knowledge of the Wise Ones.'' Milton, Brisbane: Element Books Limited. * Plowright, Sweyn (2006). ''The Rune Primer''. Lulu Press. * Tritt, Adam Byrn (2011), ''Tellstones: Runic Divination in the Welsh Tradition''. Smithcraft Press.

External links

Mystic Uses of the Runes
bibliography
Magic RunesOn line readings
{{DEFAULTSORT:Runic Magic

Magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

Germanic paganism Germanic neopaganism

Divination Language and mysticism Magic (supernatural) 1980s in modern paganism sv:Runor#Armanenrunor och modern runmagi