For the week of 28 May 2017
Legacy, and faith in self.
Othala is the half-month stave through 14 June. Ansuz reversed is the intuitive stave, and Kenaz indicates Nature’s message to us. Read right to left is Othala, Ansuz reversed, then Kenaz.
The half-month rune is set by the runic calendar, and governs for a tad over two weeks. The intuitive stave (meaning, I draw it blind) indicates the life force most available to us, which brings the focus of the half-month rune into sharper focus for the present week. It suggests how we can handle these energies. The planetary stave (also a blind draw) indicates the state and needs of the planet.
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This week marks the spoke of the wheel (of the year) that diverges from the traditional Elder Futhark ordering. The commonly accepted order is Ingwaz -> Dagaz – > Othala. However, with the runic calendar, the order becomes Ingwaz -> Othala -> Dagaz. There are several good arguments in general, for re-ordering the Futhark. Specifically regarding the runic calendar that I follow, the determination to follow this widely accepted alt-order was based on ancient observations of solar cycles that posited Summer Solstice as the end and beginning of a “year.” Again, arguments vary.
Closing the initiation of Ingwaz went more quietly than it arrived. However, whatever needs were revealed during its progression, we know how to meet them now, or we feel confident in how we’re going forward to learn.
Othala points to our clan awareness. It comes after the very arduous toil of discovering our separate connectivity to Source (the first aett), our ability to create ourselves as we truly want to be–warts and all (the second aett), and the realization that we are the only ones who can shape or defend the self we’ve created (the third aett). But why? Why have we done it all? Why put up with all the crap and challenge?
Well, at least in part, we do it because some spark within us compels us to do so for our own growth. Maybe more than that, though, we do it to create a legacy for those who come after us doing the same. Ideally, if not before the point of reaching Othala through the year, by the time we get there, we realize the value of our elders, our ancestors. These are the folks who went before us, and for better or worse, taught us how to be ourselves. In my shamanic work, I find the more we actively engage our ancestors and heal with and through our elders, the better we are at being ourselves. The better the guidance we leave for those who come after us.
In the context of the runic calendar, Othala is our last point to get it all on the plate, to see who we are, what we’ve done, where we’re going, and what we’ve got to give in a very clear, honest sense. It’s a checkpoint of knowing our role, purpose, if you will, and seeing where it fits into collective need. Ideally the Ingwaz initiation brought us to the point of clarifying and knowing our own needs better, so that we’re adult enough to fill them and be of use to the tribe.
If it isn’t clear where that overlap can happen, that’s the focus of the next couple of weeks. Devote healing to the ancestors. After, those who remain as accessible allies, call on them. Call on the one that can specifically help with xyz need. Name it with specificity, ask for help, and open space for that ancestor to come in. Listen. Allow. Offer what’s genuinely doable
Ansuz reversed implies we need to be really sure our truth matches what’s coming out of our mouths. Upright, or brightstave, Ansuz is about speaking our truth. It points to that itty bitty split second in synaptic wiring that decides what we call something. If we consider this more deeply, it takes into consideration our conscious development from birth and everything that includes, which then arrives at how we shape our thoughts. Given that, it’s not so itty bitty or split second.
Yet, it all happens that quickly. Arriving at the determination to call things what we do–to name them–often occurs so automatically that we don’t even think about it. And that’s the focus of Ansuz reversed. It’s time to think about it. It’s time to be mindful about that process and rewire any parts of it that aren’t in support of how we think, what we say, or what we want out of life at this time. What we say matters, yet it’s what we think before it comes out of our mouths that shapes what comes out of our mouths.
This week, slow down. Situate in that synaptic gap, and learn what’s there. If it needs clearing out, go for it. If it needs educating, find the resources to do so. If getting deeply into mindspace feels elusive, find those resources, too. It can be done. Maybe not the fast-and-meditate-for-three-hours-a-day kind of mindfulness, though the minute here and there kind. It’s all valid, as long as it brings the desired results.
Kenaz as the voice of Nature tells us to chase the spark on inspiration, this week. Imagine the darkest, blackest cave, and the only visible thing is a teensy flicker of light. In that kind of darkness, the smallest light sources dazzle. Such is the motivation driving sticktuitiveness, at this time. It will be a microthought glancing off the edge of periphery. It will be the thing that seems least feasible. It will be that which has been dismissed, prior.
It will be.
Kenaz is about having the faith to feed that flicker.
This week there’s a great deal of emphasis on understanding our place in legacy as the (or a) point person who can heal self, heal the ancestral line, and carry that wisdom and skillset forward for those who follow. Often when we think of this level of work, we think it’s for someone far wiser than ourselves to do on our behalf. That is precisely the teaching of the Ingwaz initiation: there is no one wiser than ourselves to do exactly this work. Maybe we need to learn skills in how to do it from someone else, though what to do is on us. We don’t have to have every answer or how to address every detail. We are only required to have faith that with the intentional progression of this work, we will know.
It’s not easy, but you’re doing it. Thank you.
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Originally published on Soul Intent Arts.
