Awareness of Needs
«Need tightens the chest,
though to people
it can be of help,
and even provide salvation,
if one knows it in time.»
The influence of the principle of mortality on the movement of the Wheel of the Second Atta leads to an awareness of the need for endurance and resolve.
The awareness of death, at first paralyzing and then permanently transforming, forces one to press on through life’s storms with gritted teeth.
These principles, as well as the notion of a special kind of energy released only under conditions of hardship and severe constraints, are embodied by the Rune Nauthiz (Need, sometimes Nauth, Naud).
Graphically, this rune depicts sticks which, when rubbed together to produce fire, required considerable effort, and so Nauthiz also expresses patience.
Moreover, this correspondence relates Nauthiz to fire and Muspelheim; but in this aspect, this is the fire of desire, which can be tamed by restraint and the cultivation of the will.
Mythologically, Nauthiz corresponds to the goddess Nott — the Goddess of Night (as Sigrdrifa said that this rune adorned the ‘owl’s beak’).
Therefore, Nauthiz also expresses the principle of time both in its positive sense (as change) and its negative sense (as resistance and obstacles).
Night, darkness, and stillness — all these concepts from Nauthiz’s semantic field point to the gap between desire and attainment, expressed by this Rune, and to cross that chasm one will need a “sail of patience.” Thus, Nauthiz is not only the awareness of needs but also control over them.
Deformations, inertia — all these embodiments of the world’s opposing forces and resistance that contribute to the strengthening of the will belong to the symbolic field of the Tenth Rune.
A state of longing and hopelessness — dark nights of the mind, corresponding to this Rune — can only be overcome by learning self-sufficiency, the ability to turn shortcomings into advantages. Therefore, Sigrdrifa advised inscribing Nauthiz on a cup, understanding that this Rune would guard against betrayal and deceit, for betrayal and deceit stem from misunderstanding needs and replacing them with whims. Another aspect of Nauthiz is caution, since at night it is easy to lose one’s way or fall prey to predators.
Nauthiz was primarily used for protection against deceit, although this Rune also aids concentration and expresses a need that should be fulfilled. Furthermore, Nauthiz teaches one to believe in and rely on oneself, and not seek external support.
Graphically, Nauthiz is related to Fehu and Ansuz, which indicates the introverted character of this Rune, as well as its connection with the fiery forces and self-knowledge. In addition, the connection between Nauthiz and Eihwaz is evident.
Unskillful use of this Rune risks adding obstacles and delays, as well as undermining one’s self-confidence. In this aspect, Nauthiz corresponds to Balder’s funeral pyre, which carried the bright god to Hel until the end of the world.
You described the rune very well…
I recently used it specifically to instill faith in myself in a child – it turned out wonderfully.
I don’t know how to describe it, but nauthiz stops, hinders, but also gives strength to overcome that obstacle. Everything in it is both the obstacle and the strength to overcome it, after realizing the obstacle and necessity. This resembles one and the same flow, but one flows towards you and the other flows away from you!
Several years ago, the power of Naudiz frightened me, and the rune itself seemed a bad omen. Then I inscribed it on a stone from a power spot and unexpectedly for myself realized that I had inscribed an inverted rune, meaning for some reason I perceived Naudiz in a mirror reflection, and thus incorrectly understood the energetic direction of this rune. Then I quite long and regularly tuned into the energy of Naudiz and it helped to perceive the inner conflict – an unrecognized refusal to sincerely recognize one’s own needs. I can note that this rune still has a shade of fatality, uncompromisingness, and unarguable transparency, as does sincerity itself, which places consciousness before facts that are sometimes not very attractive.
Hello! You say that graphically there is a correspondence between Fehu and Ansuz. I see a three-dimensional variant of Gebo while using another coordinate system. Does such an approach have the right to exist? Or is it better to perceive all images of runes in a plane?
Hello. Any associations and analogies are appropriate if they stem from inspiration and can inspire.