The True Meaning of Yule

Some people think that the Yuletide Season is all about getting and giving gifts, spending money, decorating, and sending cards, blah, blah, blah.

Every year after Thanksgiving (in the USA) but in any christianized nation, we face the end of the year with both joy and trepidation. Our thoughts are, 'Can I make it through another holiday season with its shopping and chores and into the New Year with that lay ahead ?'   But this type of thinking is a metaphor for something larger.

We spend the year on projects, paying bills, raising children.  Farmers plant vegtables and raise livestock.  We toil and sweat and worry about outcomes and current conditions.  We form bonds with new people and lose some others.  We make decisions that will either make us, break us, or become neutral.  Through our experiences we grow hopefully stronger, wiser, older and often a bit bruised along the way.  

Yule is a time to be reborn, to reflect, to say to ourselves you did it -- you made it !   We acknowledge the experiences of others and the bonds we have formed throughout the year.  We look to both the past, present, and future for guidance.  We become a year older.

So love of life, love of others, love of rebirth and celebration are all in order at Yule.  It's a time of reflection and stock taking.  It's a time to acknowledge those who took this last journey around the sun with us, and a time to embrace new beginnings that lie ahead.

At Yule we come full circle.  This is why we have the symbol of the wreath on our doors this time of year.  It's a pagan symbol that represents the wheel of the year.  Now it is done and we decorate it in honor of the occasion.  The ancient Norseman would light a wreath on fire and roll it down a hill as part of the Yule celebration as a way of sending the old year away to make way for the new one.
Notice 'wreath' has the R Rune sound, which means to 'journey.'  As in a journey through a year.

Be well this Yule Season.  Toil and growth on planet earth is a hard job so may you find peace and strength during this season of rebirth.

Perthro ~ A Powerful Plan

Perthro, according to many interpretations, is the cup of destiny.  What we do with our destiny is both fixed and mutable (can be changed).  The law of the Norns as well as the power of cause and effect all come to mind.  The P Rune is the Rune of The Web of Wyrd working on us in the past, present, and future.  We are born with set genetics but our lives unfold either this way or that, depending on the decisions we make.

Some interpret this as a cup to throw the dice in a gambler's game.  But every decision we make in life is a gamble and subject to an outcome.  And the cup, being called a lot cup, could very well be our lot in life with the gamble of decisions being the dice.  Some people interpret this Rune as the cup of mystery because the unfolding of our lives (or business/job, relationships, or any endeavor) is a mystery.  A woman on Facebook wrote in a comment that this is the Rune that makes a blank Rune in divination obsolete as it is like a blank piece of paper that our decisions write on.  Each of our lives comes is our lot.  It's our personal likes/dislikes, initiatives, and decisions that create within that lot.

Here are some nouns and mostly verbs now as I go alone (energy and action words seem to fit very well) in the English language, that may help us to pick up on the energy of Perthro.

pleasure, pain, plan, play, procrastinate, pessimism, party, pursue, puberty, procreate, possible, prorate, patronise, polymer, powerful, program, paradigm, pool, pooling, plethora.  (search google for more nouns and verbs beginning with the P Rune sound).

Perthro seems to represent our lives and what we do with them is partially up to us.

Eihwaz - Earth and Eternity

Eihwaz is the Rune of the World Tree.   Some say it's an Ash tree, others say it's a Yew.  But as we know trees are both metaphors and actualities for the meaning of as above so below.   It's both a protective Rune and a rune of balance.   Feet on the earth, head in the clouds, having help from the divine, and the union of the arcane and the mundane all come to mind with this Rune.  Also the rune of astral travel and a rune to bring along for protection on lucid dreaming and astral travel.  Eihwaz/Eiwaz is used to enter the astral plane of the world tree but it is also used as a shield once in there.  Always hold onto this rune for protection while in a trance state.

Yew tree with berries, an important wood to the ancient Norse peoples.

Eihwaz has the E sound as in 'eh'.  Let's look at some English nouns and other similar words, to see if we can find the Eihwaz energy.

eternity, everlasting, entwine, entertain, enrich, enlarge, engulf, ever, esoteric, erotic, Erulian, economy, ecstasy, ego, effort, ecstasy. (google more words beginning with the E sound to find the energy of Eihwaz).

Read more on phonics and the Elder Futhark.

Jera - Rune of the Yielding Year

Jera is traditionally thought of as the rune of the year and a good harvest.  This encompasses every part of the year from seeding, to growing, to harvesting.  Rune authorities also state that this is the Rune of cause and effect.  You reap what you sow.

Norse wheel of the year.

As before, let's examine some English nouns.  The J Rune has the J sound in English but the Y sound in other Northern European languages.  So we'll examine both sounds, the J sound as in the word jump and then the Y sound as in the word yellow.

First with the Y sound:

yacht, yachtel, yachtsman, yachtsmen, yank, yard, yardage, yardstick, yarn, yawl, yawn, yeah, year, yearbook, yearning, yeast, yell, yelling, yellow, yelp, yen, yesteryear, yield, yearling, yielding, yodel, yoke, yokel, yolk, yore, young, youngster, youth, Yule, yam. (Google for more Y words that carry the energy of Jera, the J Rune)

Now with the J sound:

jab, jacket, jade, jag, jail, jalopy, jam, janitor, jar, jargon, java, jaw, jawbone, jay, jazz, jazzmen, jealousy, jedec, jeep, jejunum, jelly, jeopardy, jerk, jersey, jest, jet, jewel, jeweler, jewelry, jiffy, jig, jinx, jitterbug, jog, job, jelly, jester, jug

Conclusion:

I think, from looking at the above, that the Y sound of the J rune fits the closet energy to the traditional interpretation of Jera.  Do you agree ?   The set of the J sound also has an energy but not the traditional one.

The energy I do see from the Y sound, consist of very natural things, the earth, wildlife, the land, with a bit of increase added as in growth.  How things can, overtime, grow they increase.  Getting back to the traditional interpretation, this Rune represents raising young ones, crops, and livestock in a year.  The energy of increase and growth.

Isa - Rune of the Immobile Infant

Isa is traditionally the rune of ice.  When we think of ice we think of something that is made by an outside influence, like cold weather or a kitchen freezer.  Unlike water, ice stays in place until an outside influence like warm weather or room temperature makes it mobile again.   When the police tell the criminal to 'freeze' !  They mean for him to stop his movement.  

Now again, we are going to find deeper meaning of the I Rune by finding English nouns (and other worlds) that begin with the sound of a long or even short 'i'.  What do those words mean to us ?  

An infant is a helpless little person that can do nothing without outside help.  But over time the infant learns mobility as in how to roll over, lift up the head, and eventually walk.

Where is the I Rune energy, the energy of being immobilized in these words?

industrialization, industry, inefficiency, inequality, inertia, inevitability, inexperience, infamy, infancy, infant, infantry, infantryman, infantrymen, infarct, infarction, infatuation, infection, image, imagery, imagination, imaging, imagination, imbalance, imbecile, imbroglio, imitation, immaturity, immediacy, immensity, immersion, immigrant, immigration, imminence, immobility, innocence, innovation, innuendo, inoculation, inposition, input, inquest, inquiry, inquisitor, insanity, inscription, inscrutability, insect, insecticide, insecurity, insemination, insert, insertion, inset, inside, insight, insignificance, insinuation.  (google more nouns that begin with I if these are not enough).

Immobility.  I see this rune in many ways as the opposite of Fehu.  Where Fehu moves, Isa is immovable (at least for the time being).

Nauthiz - Rune of Needful Knowledge

Nauthiz, or the N Rune is traditionally all about needing something and how to fulfil that need.   In life we must work to fulfil our needs and those of our loved ones.  We might need a job, need to put food on the table, need to pay the bills, and so on.  We all have our share of needs.  

I've read many Rune authors discussing an ancient tradition called a need fire or a force fire.   This was the practice of creating a sacrificial forest fire (or other type of fire), to meet the desperate needs of the community.  They believed there would be help for an outbreak of illness, starvation, or impending war if the burned down the woods.  (google it:  Need fire).

The N Rune has the 'nnnn' sound as in the word 'need'.  Lets look at other words in the English language that begin with N to find the inherent energy in this Rune.

namesake, news, newcomer, napkin, nadir, name, network, neurotic, nipple, nickname, niece, night, nightmare, nickle, not, nobleman, nympho, nut, nose, nostril, nomad, nursery, nutrition, nephew, number, nurture, nudity, know, knead, knowledge.  (google more English nouns that begin with the N Runic sound).

Some needs are great and some are small and need always comes with a the challenge of finding a solution.   What are we going to do ?  Where are we going to find what we need ?  Who is going to help us ?

Look around you.  How can you find the energy of Nauthiz in all objects that start with the N Rune sound ?  

Hagalaz - Rune of Hurricane Healing

Hagalaz is hot !  Or is it cold, as it is said to be associated with hail ?   Hail destroys crops, but it also provides ionized water that when melted feeds thirsty roots and seed.   There is always sunshine after the rain.  So the traditional meaning of Hagal, is to teardown in order to build up better and stronger than before.  In life, death brings forth new life.  Although it might not feel that way while going through an ordeal, many of us believe that everything happens for a reason.  Hagalaz is an interruption to the status quo for the greater good.

The H Rune begins with the hhhhh sound as in 'hot'.  Remember, very hot water always turns cold again but any bacteria that was in it before is now dead.  People out camping know that after boiling river water for 5 or 10 minutes can be safely drunk as all the organisms will be destroyed in the process.   This is the traditional energy of the H Rune.

Let's examine some English nouns and other words beginning with the H Rune sound and see if we can expound on our understanding of the energy.

hat, hand, head, healer, helm, head, heyday, hit, high school, hill, hero, hail, heroin, hex, highball, history, hold, home, hoax, hobo, holy, help, hormones, holiday, hair,  (search a dictionary or google for other words that begin with the H Rune sound to get a greater glimpse of its energy.)

Recovering forested area of West Mesa after Cedar Fire (May, 2004), Photo by Linnea Spears

The duality of the H Rune is one of what goes up must come down and what goes down must come up.  There is balance in the energy of this Rune and I believe if we study many, many English words including adjectives, nouns, and verbs, we will get a better understanding of what this energy means and how it can be used in our lives.

Read more of my posts on the etymology, phonics, and singing to find the energies inherent in the Elder Futhark.  Say The Magic Word