Runic Book of Days

Book excerpt: A step-by-step guide to working with the runes throughout the year • 2019 Nautilus Silver Award • Explains how the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark each rule the calendar for a half-month • Details the runes most powerful during each runic half-month, what they portend for personal and spiritual wellbeing, and techniques for creating relationships with them • Includes structured devotionals for each half-month and runic initiation rituals for the 8 pagan Sabbats, or holy days, such as the Summer Solstice (Litha) and Lughnssadh (the first harvest holy day) The Old Norse runes, known as the Elder Futhark, have long joined forces with the cycles of the seasons to offer powerful initiations, guidance, and wisdom. Aligning the sacred festivals, plantings, and harvests of ancient runic calendars with our modern 12-month calendar, Kelley Harrell reveals how the runes can once again offer initiations as well as instruct us on the holy days and creative rhythms of today. Drawing on her more than 25 years of shamanic practice and runic study, Harrell offers a step-by-step primer to work with the runes throughout the year. She explains how the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark follow a seasonal progression in which each stave rules the calendar for a half-month. She explores the meaning of each rune in detail and presents structured runic devotionals for each half-month, interwoven with guidance on how to make the best use of the life force available during each season, as well as runic initiation rituals for the 8 pagan Sabbats, or holy days, such as the Summer Solstice (Litha) and Beltane (May Day). She details the runes most powerful during each half-month, what they portend for personal and spiritual wellbeing, techniques for creating relationships with them, and how to work with them as an oracle. The author also explains how the runes leading up to each Sabbat help create the space for properly greeting each calendrical transition and completing its initiation. By moving through Nature’s cycle with the runes, each year becomes a reliable and trackable process of personalized growth and spiritual connection. Progressing through the teachings of each stave while honoring the seasons, Harrell’s year with the runes becomes an initiation into a direct relationship with powers of Nature.