It says that the runes came from Odin to us, but also what Bates said, how it is brought to the people by Rig. Odin "hung on the windswept world tree whose roots no one knows. For nine whole days and nine whole nights he hung there on Gungnir, his spear" and so on - I believe you can read the rest of the story in the now semi-famous e-mail that I once wrote to my beloved brother, now referred to as "1000 years of oppression". I got those words out of the Edda, and then added a bit of creative license to them...
That's the Rungaldr from the Havamal, verses 139-140:
I ween that I hung on the windy tree,
Hung there for nights full nine;
With the spear I was wounded, and offered I was
To Othin, myself to myself,
On the tree that none may ever know
What root beneath it runs.
None made me happy with loaf or horn,
And there below I looked;
I took up the runes, shrieking I took them,
And forthwith back I fell.
This is how the runes were won by Odin. The Havamal continues with the 18 rune charms after that.
The thing to remember is to always put things into (pre)historic context. Odin was the god of the chieftains, the upper class. Later on, with the arrival of Christianity, kings and queens were ordained by god (they still are, according to some - look at a Canadian nickel if you doubt me), but in Iron Age Scandianvia, kings were still ordained by the people. To become the leader, you had to be successful in war and raiding. To be successful in war and raiding, you had to be close to Odin. Successful leadership was often associated with Odin, and as this went on for generations, eventually Odin became a god popular with the socialites, whereas Heimdal and Balder and Frey, and especially Thor and Freya were common man's gods. My thinking is that people probably needed to understand why common man would have been given the runes by Heimdal, but the higher ups had Odin's ear, and would have received his wisdom from The High One himself. We're supposed to learn things from the lore, but we're supposed to learn things in an Iron Age Scandinavian context, right? It needed to be explained why there were social differences, and this is one of those times.
Ok, Tyra, I may differ with you about the higher ups (Jarls) having Odin's ear and Heimdall teaching the runes to the Karl (middle) class. In the Rigsthula, Heindall only teaches the Rune charms to a son of the Jarl class, and only to one of exceptional wisdom and insight.
In the Sigrdrifumal, Sigurd learns Rune charms from the valkyrie Brynhilde, but he is also of Jarl class.
In the Svipdagsmal, Svipdag learns them from Groa his grandmother, but I believe he is an elf.
It is when runes charms are attempted by the Karl class (notably for selfish and dishonorable purposes), as in Egil's Saga, that the Rune Charms go awry.
There are a number of people today, that make the claim of "having Odin's ear" (and we both know of some of them, Tyra), and usually, it's more of a case of Odin having them by the ear and beating them about the head and shoulders.
I strongly agree that the magical thing with the runes has becomes a bit over emphasized here in North America. I think that is because we get so many "converts" from other religions, especially wicca. Many of those religions are "prone to spellcasting" and such, and are very much into magical things. For those people, the magic then becomes the focus of asatru. That is not, IMHO, how it supposed to be. All the lore cautions you strongly against using magic, unless you have been very well trained in seid or galder, because every action has an equal and opposite reaction. If you use magic, you can exepct to pay for it dearly. Very few have the ability to use it wisely. Prime examples of this is Leif Eriksson's sister Freydis, and Erik Bloodaxe's wife Gunnhild, both of whom brought about the destruction of their bloodline by using seid unwisely.
Even in the best of circumstances, seidh can take its toll on you. I know modern cases of unstable persons attemping seidh, and going barking mad. Although I know the mechanics of seidh, I don't think I would ever attempt it. I hate to show my ignorance, but is that story of seidh from the Greenland Saga?
Runesinger and i have discussed this at lenght, and I keep saying that this is not a religion for "lazy" people, and it is not a religion that does well with instant gratification. You cannot sit there and say "Woe is me, I am so broke, I wish I had some money to pay the bills" and then solve that problem by casting a spell. What you need to do is get busy and apply to every job you can find until you wear out the soles of your shoes and then some. You can strenghten your resolve by invoking the right rune, because it makes you feel confident, and confidence is good in any job interview. But you still have to do the work. It may make you feel better to cast a spell against someone that's done you wrong, but it won't really help if you don't follow through and act on your intentions. So, yes, I agree that laying such a heavy focus on the magical aspects of the runes is a bit off, BUT the fact of the matter is that my ancestors were fornd of using runes for divination and for invocing the protection of the gods. Each rune falls in a specific aett, each aett belongs to a specific god or goddess. That again ties in with the previous, about who taught us the runes. That god or goddess is tied to those specific runes. If you want to learn more about that, anything written by Nigel Pennick is going to be good.
I agree totally! For instance, I may use a rune charm to make my mead brew better, but I also take great care to ensure that everything is sanitary, that the yeast is in good health, and that the other ingredients are measured carefully, and all the necessary procedures are done. The runes don't do it for me, but they help.
Generally rune charms are invoked more for a communal or other honourable good, like a good harvest for the village or good fishing or safe passage over the seas, protection in battle. Usually runes invoked for purely selfish reasons (especially love charms), go terribly bad.
As for rune divination, it is not exactly foretelling the future, because the future can be influenced by our actions/inaction, words and ideas. I call it more like seeking the counsel of the gods and goddesses. The runes can show you a direction, but you have to walk the path. I refuse to accept money for any runecasting. If I accepted money, I might tend to tell a person what pleases them - not the true counsel of the gods and goddesses.
I think Nigel Pennick is not bad for Rune books. I like some of Bernard King's stuff, but you have to sift it a bit. Of course, Edred Thorsson is Satanism with a Runic overlay, and Ralph Blum is just awful.
Runesinger
