For the week of 5 June 2022
Holdfast
Othala is the half-month rune 29th May – 14th June. Gebo is the intuitive rune, Hagalaz indicates Horizon’s message to us, fossilized crinoid occupies Autumn, with the active element of Poison, in the direction of Within. Read right to left is Othala, Gebo, then Hagalaz.
What's a Runic Calendar?
The Elder Futhark runic calendar I work with is based on the work of Nigel Pennick. It has the potential to provide humanity keys for how we live in season with All Things. Through #theweeklyrune I share the Futhark’s insight on how to live better as animists, to make better choices based on keen insight into the present, and to help each of us be more active in creating a better life for us all. That realization includes living with All Things as family, learning to tend what can’t just be fixed, and using every tool at our disposal to do so. The runes are such a tool, and in the Old Norse tradition, this process is wyrdweaving at it deepest potential. The runes provide one way that we can create ourselves as fit elders, so that upon our good death, we can be well Ancestors.
What’s a half-month rune?
“Half-month” is an astronomical concept in which each month is divided into two parts: days 1-15, then 16-month’s end. In terms of the runic calendar, each half-month rune is one of the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark, and governs for a tad over two weeks (14 and 1/4 days, or a fortnight).
How is the Runecast Done?
The Weekly Rune is a (mostly) three-rune cast. Those runes are the half-month, the intuitive rune, and the sacred overview. When the runecast falls at a half-month transition, the fourth rune is included. The half-month is a set rune, which for the most part follows the traditional ordering of the Elder Futhark. However, in the calendric ordering observed by Pennick, the order is slightly different. The intuitive stave (meaning, I draw it blind) indicates the life force most available to us, and suggests how we can best handle the half-month energies. The final rune (also drawn blind) provides a high overview of the current time, and speaks from voices other-than-human. These sacred voices have been Nature, Earth, Creation, First Ancestor, Survival, etc. I note who’s speaking each week, as it is revealed.
As the runecast has evolved its voice, other components have joined. Osteomancy, the elements, and directions were gradually added in to more deeply root the spirits of place into the cast, each bringing a nuance of how to work with the half-month rune, or how to engage forces of the season on a more personal level for the reader. Osteomancy honors other-than-human persons on Earth. The elements indicate our best deathwalking/enlivening/tempering force for the time, and the directions offer relationship to place as the best energetic grounding or area where work is needed. These additional beings in the cast give us actionable ways to engage the runes in season and move among with them.
New to Runecasting?
- Catch a couple of my IGTV videos, which explain the intention and process behind the runecast, and what makes it different from other ways of casting.
- Listen to my What in the Wyrd podcast, which is available across all popular podcast platforms, including Google Play and iTunes.
- A few people have asked the reason that I switch between different rune sets for TWR. The short answer is: because. The more nuanced answer is, I ask which sets wants to speak each week. I don’t assume the same elements are in play according to the timing of the runes; I also don’t assume the same elements of my runes are appropriate to speak each week. I did a podcast on this subject, so there’s more info there. (See above)
- Also, for deep work on coming into relationship with the runes in season, check out my book, Runic Book of Days.
Why Join Patreon?
This is the free version of The Weekly Rune. Get the full benefit of the ad-free, detailed version every Sunday, by joining my private runes community at Patreon. The paid runecast includes:
- more detail
- ad-free
- audio blog, with galdr of the runecast and instruction on how to use each sound for felt sense resonance
- the current runes’ impact on human life force
- insights on how to best manage the curves and twists therein
- introspective prompts to nuance and tend self-work
Other Patreon offerings:
- Community connection via Discord
- live video classes
- runic insights, book excerpts, release news, free classes
- optional services with me
- discounts on soul tending services
The Runecast
We approach Othala as the rune of the elder–the one who has realized all the truths the first and second aettir have taught about souling in form, and has reached a sort of pause. I see that pause a few ways: part eyeroll, part deep breath, part earned break. However we perceive the moment of presence Othala brings, it is but a moment. In the Pennick ordering of the runic calendar Othala precedes Dagaz, or June Solstice, by which point break time is over.
Learn more about this seasonal progression, and how to draw its insights into the personal spiritual path in Runic Book of Days.
What Does It Mean?
Othala presents the point in the Elder progression that our eyes are wide open. We understand our mortality. We’re well aware of how short our time here is, and how much is left to get done. And like it or not, we’ve accepted those realities. We no longer carry dreams of reinventing the whole thing, and have honed our vision to what we can do with what we have. This week what we have is a thorough array of supports for how to suss out what that is, and how we can make it happen.
To continue reading:
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If you've benefited from my work, the free content on my site, The Weekly Rune, and What in the Wyrd,
please support me in being able to create more
by buying my books, joining Patreon, or making a one-time PayPal or Venmo donation. Thank you, and thank you for all you do in the world.
For suggestions on how to weather the season gracefully, subscribe to my private runes community on Patreon.
#beyourcommunity
S. Kelley Harrell, M. Div.
I’m an animist, author, deathwalker and death doula. For the last 25+ years, through Soul Intent Arts I’ve helped others to ethically build thriving spiritual paths as fit, embodied elders, who upon death become wise, capable Ancestors. My work is Nature-based, and focuses soul tending through the Elder Futhark runes, animism, ancestral healing, and deathwork. I’m author of Runic Book of Days, and I host the podcast, What in the Wyrd. I also write The Weekly Rune as a celebration of the Elder Futhark in season. Full bio.
#beyourcommunity
elder well, die well, ancestor well
Elder Well
So that you bear your unique gift to the world.
Die Well
So that you leave the planet better than you found it.
Ancestor Well
So that your descendants never elder alone.
