Rune of the Month

[Rae'ya]

Here begins our Rune of the Month (or maybe fortnight... we'll see how we go) endeavor.

Each month, I will post up a rune that I have chosen at random from a hat (actually it's a plastic container from my kitchen). I have included in the container all of the Elder Futhark runes and the extra runes from the Anglo Saxon Futhorc... this way we will have runes from all three of the major futhark/orcs and each will have an equal chance of being chosen or putting themselves forward. When each is chosen, I will post it's name and some basic data, including the closest 'equivalent' rune from the Younger Futhark and Anglo Saxon Futhorc. Then everyone can add some information, experience or insight that they have to offer regarding this rune. Each rune will then miraculously have it's name in the Index List linked to the page in this thread where it's discussion begins. If we ask very nicely, someone might even sticky the thread for us.

In the interests of this being a collaborative effort, please DO NOT post entire essays on everything that you know about the rune... lets give everyone a chance to contribute and have their say. Appropriate things to post about include history or archaeological attestations (though personally I'd rather we stuck to personal experiences), alternative names/spellings/pronunciations, modern rune poems, personal insights, meditations, divinations, uses for magick, uses for galdr, uses for bindrunes, correspondences, stadhagaldr stances/runic yoga, pictures, poems, stories and anything else that you feel is relevant to the rune of the month. Ask questions of each other, discuss the finer points of a philosophy, but please remember to be civil and considerate of each others' personal opinions and experiences. There are no wrong answers here and new or modern experiences are encouraged. Also, please remember to include sources where appropriate... plagiarism is not tolerated at PF and is incredibly bad manners.

Onto the runes...

Fehu/Fe/Feoh
Uruz/Ur/Ur
Thurisaz/Thurs/Thorn
Ansuz/As/Os
Raido/Reidh/Rad
Kenaz/Kaun/Cen
Gebo/-/Gyfu
Wunjo/-/Wynn
Hagalaz/Hagall/Haegl
Naudhiz/Naudhr/Nyd
Isa/Iss/Is
Jera/Ar/Ger
Eihwaz/Yr/Eoh
Pertho/-/Peorth
Algiz/-/Eohl
Sowilo/Sol/Sigel
Tiwaz/Tyr/Tir
Berkana/Bjarkan/Beorc
Ehwaz/-/Eh
Mannaz/Madr/Mann
Laguz/Logr/Lagu
Ingwaz/-/Ing
Othala/-/Ethel
Dagaz/-/Daeg
-/-/Ac
-/-/Aesc
-/-/Yr
-/-/Ior
-/-/Ear
-/-/Cweorth
-/-/Calc
-/-/Stan
-/-/Gar

[MaskedOne]

We haz breaks.

[Rae'ya]

Nauðiz

Elder Futhark: Nauðiz, Proto Germanic, meaning 'need' or 'necessity'
Younger Futhark: Nauðr, Old Norse, meaning 'need'
Anglo Saxon Futhorc: Nyd, Old English, meaning 'need' or 'necessity'

Phonetic value: 'n'

Pronunciation:
The Elder Futhark 'Nauðiz' is pronounced along the lines of 'NOW-thizh' with the ending 'z' being an odd little sound halfway between an r and a z, which is rendered differently depending on what your accent is! That part will probably make more sense when we get to Algiz as that is the rune that has the phonetic value of the Proto Germanic 'z' or 'tz' or 'zh' sound, where I'll try to explain it further.

In Old Norse, 'Nauðr' is pronounced 'NOW-thr', with no vowel sound in between the 'th' and the '-r'. In Old English, 'Nyd' is pronounced 'nieud' with the middle being like the German ü sound (round your lips and say ee).


Now you all reply and add your insights...




[Rune images are/will be the Elder Futhark runes, drawn by me on Paint, so forgive the slightly wonky straight lines... it's hard to draw a straight line with a mouse!]

[Pronunciations are what I've put together over the years from a variety of sources. I can maybe dig out a list if I have to, but it involves lots of books and websites, some of which are contradictory. They are based on reconstructed languages that are no longer commonly spoken, NOT on modern German or Scandinavian languages. My advice is that if you want to look at modern languages, Modern Icelandic is the closest to Old Norse, but still has some major differences. Modern Danish, Swedish and Finnish are not accurate representations of Old Norse or Proto Germanic sounds, and while Modern German has some sounds right, it uses different letters and characters to represent them. I've never looked into Old Icelandic, so I don't have those pronunciations for the Younger Futhark runes. American speakers in particular may struggle with my pronunciations as some of the vowel sounds will be quite alien. Having said that, there are a million modern bastardisations of the rune names, so there's nothing wrong with a modern pronunciation it that's what you want to go with.]

[MaskedOne]

So I wasn't sure this would work till earlier today but...

I know the code to link specifically to each new rune's post instead of simply the page and it seems to work with the first one.

[Odahviing]

To me naudiz is a pretty heavy rune, it lends some extra weight to whatever situation I am in.
I feel that the undertone of this rune is one of difficulty, of rising need or necessity that might be challenging to overcome. But that is based on my own experiences.

For example, I drew it as a rune of the day during this past week. (I do this and keep the rune with me during the rest of the day. Sometimes it just helps me reflect over the rune and it's meaning but other times it leads to more meaningful insights.)
Anyway, I drew naudiz as a rune to indicate what the day would be like. And sure enough, the day was full of needs that could not be satisfied. I work as a bartender/waitress so this turned out to be particularly problematic... The power in the bar went out right before opening, the coffee maker broke in the beginning of our lunch rush, the fireplace wouldn't stay lit - nothing would go right for the first eight or so hours of my shift.
And in the middle of all this, while running around and being completely incapable of fixing EVERYTHING that I need to fix RIGHT NOW (other servers will know that feeling) it struck me - Naudhiz! These troubles today are an aspect of Nauhiz! That try as you might to control your situation, there will still be needs that arise that 1) can't be helped but must be satisifed and 2) rise regardless of how you try to prevent them.

At least that's how I feel about it so far. I'm still kind of new to the runes so I know it's absolutely not a definitive interpretation.
I hope this wasn't too long a first post, and that it somewhat fits into what Rae'ya had in mind for this thread.

[Tylluan Penry]

Part of the problem (for me) with the runes is that the translations of the various poems vary so much. One version of the AS rune verse for Nyd is:

Trouble is oppressive to the heart;
yet often it proves a source of help and salvation
to the children of men, to everyone who heeds it betimes.

Now clearly, this translation is horribly dated. But again it shows as Odahviing discusses above, the idea of difficulties that can be overcome. More than that, it suggests that it struggle somehow helps us to grow.

[Rae'ya]

Great input so far

Naudhiz is a tricky one for us to start with! lol

I don't use Naudhiz a lot in magickal works, as I find it a little too serious. To me, Naudhiz is the rune that says 'look at this, this is an important, life changing situation which may have dire consequences'. Therefore, I would only call on it during magick if I had an important, life changing situation with dire consequences. I feel that to call on it too often is frivolous, and so I reserve it as a last resort only. A part of my reticence with using Naudhiz is perhaps the fact that I belong to the Norse goddess who is most frequently associated with it, and who controls the aspects of 'obligation' and 'necessity' within our Wyrd. I have a caution in the back of my mind that says 'remember your priorities... this is about necessity, not desire'. I feel that Naudhiz is not a rune to help with first world problems, but with situations that embody a more serious, dire straits, or otherwise life changing nature. Naudhiz says to me, what MUST you have? What MUST you do? What MUST happen here? As someone who works closely with wyrd, orlog and the Nornir, I feel that it is my responsibility to know the difference between necessity and preference, between must and should, between need and want... and I get the feeling that if I were to apply Naudhiz to a first world problem, I would find myself out in the cold and being taught a lesson about perspective.

[Munin-Hugin]

I rarely end up coming across Nauthiz, and for the most part I'm content with that. The rune does have it's own weight, one that I tend to find a little uncomfortable, and for good reason. In my experiences, it only seems to come up when there's something pressing or heavy, and I've come to see it as relating not only to it's direct translation of "need", but to be expanded from there to symbolize debt, and even at times guilt. From there I see it's relationship to Nifelhel and to the wurm Nidhog, that gnawing, dull ache that comes up from the base of us to wreck havoc if we refuse to address it.

In making bindrunes and runecharms, I have used it a little more often than it has appeared in castings, drawing on it mainly for it's energies of restriction and constraint, using it as a fetter or a binding. Though, in some instances, I've used it in conjunction with other runes for protection.

Lastly, I've found it has a close connection to the runes Hagalaz and Isa, not only as being the first three runes of the second aett, but also in that each of the runes corresponds with the Nornr, Nauthiz representing Skuld.

[Odahviing]

Lastly, I've found it has a close connection to the runes Hagalaz and Isa, not only as being the first three runes of the second aett, but also in that each of the runes corresponds with the Nornr, Nauthiz representing Skuld.

"Skuld" actually means "debt" or "guilt" (as in being responsible for something negative) in swedish. Just a thought.

[Munin-Hugin]

"Skuld" actually means "debt" or "guilt" (as in being responsible for something negative) in swedish. Just a thought.

Mhmm, I was aware of that. So it further ties in the relationship with the rune.