This is the rune known as 'Berkana', signifying birth, new beginnings. This rune emphasizes gradual changes, the importance of new things that might seem small at first, and spiritual growth. I have chosen this as the symbol of our first lesson in the art and craft of runes.

This red arrow beside the text points to information I consider particularly important; it will also frequently point to information about which you can expect to answer questions in your homework. Thought you'd like to know.

In this lesson, we will take our first look at making your own personal set of runes (variously called "rune-stones", "rune-staves", or "runastaffr")...

The origins of runes are largely a matter of conjecture. We can be fairly certain that the runes we know today were developed by and remained primarily the tools of the northern European Germanic peoples (Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, English, and Dutch). There is significant belief that these people originally took inspiration from the Etruscan and north italian cultures as they spread up through the Alps and into what is today southern Germany.

If that is true, as is quite likely, a major change occured in the process: the Etruscan speech and alphabet were an active language in common use; the derived runes, in contrast, were an alphabet without a spoken language. True, each rune represents a specific spoken sound as well as having an identifying name, but we have no evidence that runes were ever used in speech.

A possible explanation for this is the fact that the word 'rune' originally meant secret or a secret. Derivations of this meaning persisted well into the 19th Century. In fact, among some serious Runesters these curious symbols still harbor secrets.

However, there is another explanation, one only somewhat related to being seen as a 'secret' alphabet: runes originally were and still are a meta-language. Now, just what does that mean? Let me give you an example (more an analogy, really) of one way a meta-language works.

Some years ago, I spent some time in Italy. While there, I met a fascinating gentleman whom I wished very much to get to know. Unfortunately, he spoke no English. I spoke and understood only a few words of 'tourist phrase-book' Italian, but we discovered that we both spoke German.

In the friendship that developed, we communicated exclusively via the meta-language, German.

Runes would not have served very well as a meta-language in that situation because they were designed (much like the Chinese I Ching) to enable communication between the quite limited human 'mind' and Something Else.

That very special communication is the first part of what this course is all about.

We will inquire into the nature and function of that 'Something Else' in sections M2 and M3, below and in future Lessons, where such inquiry becomes a matter of considerable interest and importance.

The Runes

Let's pause here for a moment and take our first look at the traditional standard set of 24 runes, the Elder Futhark. See them here.

If you used this link to inspect the runes, you saw them displayed in three vertical rows of eight. This is the classical arrangement, around which are built various elements of rune lore and practice. You noticed also that futhark, pronounced 'foo-thark', is the combination of the sounds of the first six 'letters' or symbols of the set.

The most detailed and authoritative presentation of the futhark is contained in the book Runecaster's Handbook by Edred Thorsson, which you will find starred in the brief list of references. If this course had a required textbook, it would be this book by Dr. Thorsson. If you can buy, beg, or borrow... not steal... a copy, I strongly urge you to do so. If you should become seriously interested in learning more about runes and perhaps becoming a Runecaster yourself, Thorsson's book will be a must for you.

One other popular author, Ralph H. Blum, has irritated a number of the published rune authorities (first among them Dr. Thorsson) by completely rearranging the Elder Futhark structure, and has made his own changes in the meanings and interpretations of the various characters. I mention this because his book is among those listed in the references, and you might otherwise be quite puzzled by the obvious differences between authors' views. We will discuss these differences in later Lessons, but you will need to make up your own mind which system or version appeals more strongly to you. But now back to what history can tell us about these fascinating symbols.

Runes first become part of the historical record through the discovery of human artifacts marked with runic characters. In other words, we found bits of bone, leather, stone, wood, and metal bearing rune-inscriptions that we later learned were used as receipts, identification markers for goods and products, legal documents, and other formal uses.

As far as we know today, the earliest documented item bearing runic characters is the so-called Meldorf brooch, found on the coast of Jutland, and dated at about 50 C.E. There are other examples, quite possibly somewhat older, but none as positively identified and dated as the Meldorf.

Before going any farther, it is important to discuss the important distinction between divination (including 'fortune-telling') and Oracles.

Essentially, divination (in its popular use as a 'fortune-telling' system) asks the question "What will happen..." (to me. to you, to my romance, to my job, ...whatever.). It assumes that something could happen to me or whatever I am concerned about, as though we are all helpless pawns in this melodrama and that the universe thinks up things to do to us. The question seeks its answer in the future, whether in the next five minutes or the next five years.

It makes very little difference whether the questioner ("querent") actually adopts this attitude or actually holds these beliefs. Requesting or undertaking a divination about anything or anyone outside yourself, and over which you believe you have no ccontrol, or wish to acquire some control, automatically places your inquiry in the 'what will happen...' box.

Divination perhaps comes a little closer to the present moment — to Now — when one asks something like "Does s/he love me?", but a simple 'yes or no' answer is seldom enough, and so even this eventually becomes a "what will happen..." question. The questioner still believes that 'things do happen to' him or her. However, the questioner is also usually willing to believe that the tea-leaves, the Tarot cards, the bridge deck, the yarrow stalks, or the runes can somehow transmit information from an all-seeing universe or other power.

I do not single out 'fortune-telling' as anything inherently wrong; I merely wish to call attention to its usually frivolous practice as a sort of game. Runes deserve far better than that. Divination can also serve perfectly serious and useful purposes, as a means of achieving clarity and understanding for one's self or for others. Whenever our study of runes touches primarily on divination, the information will be placed under the heading of M-2.

Oracles, on the other hand, have an entirely different basis and produce significantly different results. They are properly in the territory of the mage, and you will find all our information and discussion about Oracles in Section M-3, below, and in subsequent Lessons.

Oracles such as the runes, the I Ching, and other legitimate mediums of communication have a single primary purpose: to convey true and useful personal information to the self from the Self, to further understanding and personal growth.

Let me explain about the self and the Self.

Written with a lower-case 's', self refers to the persona, the 'outer' or 'smaller' concept of 'me', the 'ego'-self. This little self believes it is separate (from everyone and everything, including divinity) and that it must extract all its information from sources outside itself.

Written with an upper-case, large S, the word refers to what some call the 'higher Self', the unconscious core of one's Being, one's Essential Consciousness that is never separate from the Universe. The Self has immediate access to all knowlege as parts of Itself. Sadly, The Self often has difficulty sharing that information with the lower-case self.

Oracles exist to help with this sharing, providing a channel of communication, the meta-language we spoke of earlier. The communication is prompt, clear, and intensely relevant to the honest seeker of self- knowlege and growth. Querants with other things in mind get conundrums or puzzling remarks that may or may not have anything to do with the question presented.

Perhaps the best-known to Western European cultures is (or was) the Oracle at Delphi, in ancient Greece. It is significant that, carved over the main door to the temple, were the words "Know Thyself". History tells us that not everyone who came to consult the Oracle had personal, inner or 'spiritual' growth in mind; in fact, most seemed to be desperate to know about power, military and political campaigns, love affairs, and — of course — money. Seekers with such motivations (we are told) received 'answers' or Pronouncements that were in the form of riddles or opaque remarks that defied understanding and were often argued about for years.

More about this next time; now it is time to turn our attention to the major project for this course... making your own set of runes.

Why do this? Runes 'work' best for an individual if a strong and growing connection exists between the runes (stones, staves, cards, etc.) and their owner-user. Such a connection can be established, of course, with 'store-bought' rune-sets, but it takes a lot of time, dedication, and focus... and is seldom as intimate and sensitive as a connection emerging as you actually create the runes yourself.

It is very useful to have some sort of rune-set available to you as you study these Lessons, to serve on a temporary basis while you are engaged in making a more permanent set. I suggest making a set using heavy paper or light cardboard, cutting individual 'staves' even as small as 3/4 inch by 1and 1/4 inch (or larger, if you like). Write the rune-characters on the little cards, and you have all you need for the time being. For a more deluxe and durable set, use blank business-cards. Office-supply stores and stationers can provide with packets of blank business-cards of very good quality; these have the advantage of behaving like small playing-cards, allowing you to shuffle them properly rather than pushing them around on a table-top or tossing them in a bag or box.

Another option that will give you a permanent and handy reference, plus provide you with another opportunity to learn the runes, is simply to print or copy-paste these || pages ||, and draw the rune-symbols yourself in the boxes provided.

Whether or not you choose either of these two options, the next step is to decide what form and material you will use to make your permanent set. The ideal and traditional method is to cut 24 round sections from a single branch of a live fruit-bearing tree, dry them, and carve the runes into one surface. Nowadays, this may not be either convenient or advisable.

Short of the above, rune-sets can be cut from dowel-sticks or small finished-lumber (such as 1x1 or 2x2). A different approach would be to collect 24 loose tiles or ceramic squares for mosaic work; these make fine little rune-sets with the runes painted on with enamel and then given a sealer coat. I have made a very satisfactory set using wooden tongue-depressors from the drug-store.

I have even seen them made out of 'bread dough' (flour, salt, and water), rolled out and shaped, the runes drawn in with a knife or sharp stick, and then baked. You can use your ingenuity, and try out more than one alternative method.

For an immediate start, I suggest copying and pasting the the pages of rune-meanings (link "|| pages ||", just above in this section). This is actually more than a suggestion; it is the first step in completing this Exercise. Please copy-paste or print out the referred pages now.

If you like, it might help also to copy the Elder Futhark (link above in section M1 ). These will give you a visual reference to use immediately. I also strongly recommend buying or borrowing one or more of the books listed in the references section. They are all good, but each has its own slant and flavor; look them over, if at all possible. In any case, you should have a copy of Edred Thorsson's "Runecaster's Handbook"!

Your Assignment ('homework') for this lesson is waiting for you at the link below. Be sure to follow the instructions for submission carefully.

Good luck, and enjoy playing with Runes!

Click here to access your Assignment.