Levels of the Runes

Speaking of the Runes as the expression of Runic vectors along which Power moves, it is very important to understand that these vectors manifest on many different levels.

Just as the Great Stream of Power, flowing through the worlds, manifests differently at each of the levels of perception, each Runic vector directs Power at such level. For example, the World-flow of increase, the Power of growth expressed by the Rune Fehu, manifests at the macrocosmic level as the Force of Primal Fire, at the individual level as the impulse to acquire and possess — perhaps even as the next paycheck — and in lower states of mind as a herd of gnus thundering across the savannah and stripping the grasses bare, or as the riotous flowering of the steppe in spring. Therefore, when using the Runes as a Magical or Mantic instrument, it is crucial to remember that these vectors have many manifestations that must be taken into account; for example, Berkana can mean the Universal Protective Power, mother-goddesses, a human’s mother, or simply the birch outside the window, while Tiwaz can mean the balance of world law, pure masculinity, the god Týr or Khors, or even the policeman next door. The same applies to all the other Runes: Hagalaz may simply mean heavy rain, hail, or snow, and Isa — a cold spell. When interacting with Runic vectors, one should, of course, attempt to discern their first principle — the most general description of the guiding force they express. In fact, the great art of Galdr consists precisely in revealing a Rune’s ‘primary vector’ and in tracing an axis of analogies along which it manifests, establishing many manifestations of the vector across the greatest possible number of levels and aspects. But one must also remember the lowest manifestations of that power and the literal meanings of the Runes, since the names given to the Runic symbols were based on the most visible manifestations of the Powers behind them. Whatever Rune level a Magus gravitates toward, one must not forget other levels; while concentrating on the peaks of spirit, one must not neglect the lower world, and while observing concrete manifestations, one must still soar to the cloud-high summits of the universal mind. Only thus, rising and descending, «Ascendit a terra in coelum, iterumque descendit in terram, et recipit vim superiorum et inferiorum.» does the Magus unite the cosmos in his mind and expand himself to the dimensions of all that exists.