If you are someone who dreams vividly, and especially if you are someone who writes your dreams down, you can deepen your connection with the runes through dream analysis. After you’ve written down your dream, use the margins of the writing to insert where you see connections between the runes and the dream. Last night, I had two intense dreams that felt like powerful messages. Below the “keep reading” one I’ll share the one that struck me deeply and screamed “teiwaz” in my ear.
I was staying home from working at school and our house was attached to a different elementary school, with children coming in and out of the halls, yelling and laughing (kenaz? othala?) Then, I am needed to play with the Colorado Avalanche hockey team because they have no one else (yes, silly, but does this need to work for others represent the message of ehwaz - partnership? Or perhaps mannaz?). At one point, I lose a tooth. I get off the ice, and there is a Native American boy with a seeminly dead wolf by him.
He pulls out the wolf’s fangs and glues them into my mouth. They are large and uncomfortable. Then I go on the ice (isa?) and score a goal. We lose anyway. After the game, the boy ocmes up to me and says in a deep voice, “NOW is the time to grow your fangs.” He and another perform surgery on me and permanently attach the wolf’s fangs and insert the wolf’s vocal box. When I wake up, the wolf is standing in front of me. The boy says he’ll put him back in the wild, he can live without these parts if I have them. ( This message screams teiwaz. The wolf was bound and I sacrificed a part of myself - my teeth- to receive something from this wolf. I now feel protective over the wild, and that I have to sacrifice so that I can be worthy of having the wolf’s fangs. Teiwaz, the rune of Tyr, spiritual justice, and sacrifice seem so relevant here. With this new political climate, I have been feeling extreme worry about our natural world, science, climate change, and education. I feel like I was handed the responsibility - you’re worried, do something about it.)
Then the dream becomes disjointed. With my new fangs and my new charge, I travel back in time to rescue two women trapped in cages. (raidho merkstave? Loss of movement/will?) Across the square, a group of people are yelling at two others who are on a platform. They are seemingly being judged for a crime. The women trapped are fierce and determined, but in need of our help (nauthiz). Some of my group begin yelling and throwing rocks “at” the people being judged- but purposefully missing. They are creating a distraction so that we can free these women. As they’re escaping, a police officer grabs me. i snarl and bear my fangs, breaking free and bounding over rooftops (raidho). Then somehow I’m back to present day. I hear my mother telling me I shouldn’t have the fangs, it will make it harder to get a job or work within society. I know it is true, but it is a part of me now and I cannot deny it.
I wake up.
So I’ve seen themes of ehwaz, mannaz, raidho, and especially teiwaz within this dream. I also possibly have othala or kenaz with the children at a school (othala for the children and the passing of knowledge and responsibility to our younger generation, kenaz for the illumination and wisdom of schooling).
I had a different dream, one which also felt like teiwaz and mannaz were present, with a whole lotta hagalaz and dagaz. I will use this time to reflect on teiwaz, and how it ties into these other runic themes I picked up in my dreams.
And that’s how one could use your dreams to reflect on runes, and perhaps realize different runes that may be important in your life at the moment.
Have new years resolutions but constantly break them? Use your runes to help keep you on your path. Write them on your body, stick a post-it note with it on the mirror, say it under your breath. Here are a few ideas for attaching resolutions to runes (by no means a complete list):
Fehu: Balancing your budget, remembering to donate.
Uruz: Exercising, eating a healthy diet.
Thurisaz: Becoming more forceful (for those who think they might be “doormats”).
Ansuz: Organization, breaking negative thought patterns.
Raidho: Following your own will, finding your path, to enjoy the journey of life.
Kenaz: Working on your creativity, developing more knowledge.
Gebo: Remembering to think of others, to give more than you receive.
Wunjo: To embrace gratitude and joy, to work toward your best self.
Hagalaz: To destroy your current state in order to create a new one.
Nauthiz: To ask for help when you need it.
Isa: To reign your energies in, become more controlled.
Jera: To accept the cycles in your life, to remember to work hard toward your goals/harvest.
Eihwaz: To stretch yourself to your limits in order to strengthen yourself.
Perthro: To develop more of your occult knowledge, to practice your faith more.
Algiz: To learn wise ways to protect yourself and/or others.
Sowilo: To embrace victories, to be more optimistic/positive.
Tiwaz: To be more involved politically, stand up for justice, stand up for others.
Berkano: To grow more plants, to find a place of peace/sanctuary within yourself.
Ehwaz: To be a better partner/friend, To connect more with animals/nature.
Mannaz: To be involved with global issues, to help get involved in your community.
Laguz: To be in touch with your emotions, to embrace love in your life.
Ingwaz: To see the potential in all things and all people.
Othala: To connect more with family, to learn about your ancestry, to carry on traditions.
Dagaz: To change dramatically, to start each day with a fresh attitude/mindset, to try to see the opposition’s side (and to connect them with your perspective).
(Potential) Runehack: Menstrual Cramps. Wrote berkano on my uterus to try to help ease the pain. We shall see if this helps at all. Berkano is associated with women and healing, and is known to assist with female- specific and uterus- specific issues. It also helps to have books and cats, but for different reasons.
If you're like me, consuming/ingesting items in magical rituals is very appealing. I have always been orally fixated, so I am naturally inclined toward it. With the help of dough, you can utilize this in a delicious and satisfying way! Shape cookies or small rolls of bread into rune shapes and bake them. Bonus points if you add in different colors or ingredients to help further the effects. Eat the rune(s) you want to carry within you that day. If you feel the need to call upon that rune, remind yourself it is within you, helping power your body that day.
If you have a pet that adventures out, or perhaps a sick pet, consider embroidering protective runes for your animal (like Algiz, Raidho and/or Uruz). If you aren’t much for sewing, you can create a patch with paint pens and attach it to the collar. That way, your furred friend has the runes on them at all times!
Today I set my phone pattern lock and realized I could set it to a rune shape! Now, every time I log in I think of the rune I chose. You can even figure out a short hand runic code to set runes that may not fit exactly. Set whatever rune you feel you'd benefit from tracing repeatedly!
