Nordic Runes: Understanding, Casting, and Interpreting the Ancient Viking Oracle [Paperback]

Paul Rhys Mountfort (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 5, 2003

A comprehensive and practical guide to the ancient oracle based on the runic alphabet of the Norse

• Reveals the symbolism and divinatory significance of the 24 rune "staves"

• Provides clear instructions on how to craft your own rune stones

• Explains the role of runes in the Norse wisdom tradition and its influence on such works as Tolkien's Lord of the Rings

Nordic runes are a potent and profoundly transformative magic system that gives contemporary readers access to the ancient wisdom tradition of Northern European cultures. The runes have deep resonances within the pagan Norse world of gods and goddesses, giants, dwarves, warriors, and wizards, which have greatly influenced the work of J.R.R. Tolkien, among others. Norse tradition attributes the discovery of the runes to the "All-Father" Odin--a god of inspiration and secret wisdom and the mythical prototype for runecasters, who established the pattern for gaining his knowledge.

Nordic Runes addresses three major areas: Runelore, the history of this 2000-year-old Norse oracle; Runestaves, the meaning of the individual runes of the Elder Futhark alphabet and their powerful mythological, magical, and practical lessons for daily life; and Runecasting, a comprehensive guide to the oracular application of the ancient runes, including their crafting, divination, and self-development. As Nordic Runes shows, the runes do more than simply reflect the path of fate; they help develop and enhance intuition. By learning to cast and interpret the runes, the user becomes receptive to the energy currents in material reality and empowered in the arts of its transformation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The runes have an entire mythology and history, all of which is meticulously explained in Paul Mountfort's Nordic Runes."
(Dell Magazines, October 2003 )

"Nordic Runes by Paul Rhys Mountfort serves as an excellent guide for those wishing to understand and utilize the runes. . . . His tome is comprehensive and rests firmly on a solid foundation of scholarship. It is also user friendly and fun to read."
(Thor the Barbarian, Nemeton, Jan 2006 )

"More than just a clinical textbook on rune work, this book was a pleasure to read. . ."
(Roxanne, The Beltane Papers, April 2004 )

From the Back Cover

DIVINATION / NORSE MYTHOLOGY

Nordic runes--the runes of the Elder Futhark--comprise a potent and profoundly transformative divination system that gives us access to the ancient wisdom tradition of Northern European cultures. These runes have deep resonances within the Northern pagan world of gods and goddesses, giants, dwarves, warriors, and wizards, which have greatly influenced the work of J. R. R. Tolkien, among others.

Nordic Runes addresses three major areas:

•  Runelore, the history and rich mythological tradition of this ancient oracle first discovered by the “All Father,” Odin.

•  Runestaves, which includes full explanations of the meanings of each of the 24 runes in the Elder Futhark, accompanying visualizations, and practical lessons for daily life.

•  Runecasting, a comprehensive guide to the oracular application of the ancient runes, including their crafting, their use in divination, and interpretations of sample castings.

As Nordic Runes shows, the runes do much more than simply reflect fate; they help develop and enhance intuition and open new paths of growth, self-discovery, and transformation.

PAUL RHYS MOUNTFORT is a writer, researcher, and workshop leader specializing in the Celtic and Norse traditions. He is the author of Ogam: The Celtic Oracle of the Trees. Active in the contemporary Pagan community, he lives with his partner and son on Waiheke Island, in the Hauraki Gulf of Auckland, New Zealand.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Destiny Books; PF edition (May 5, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892810939
• ISBN-13: 978-0892810932
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #484,446 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #36 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > New Age > Divination > Runes

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nordic Runes, February 12, 2007

By 

Robert D. Watson "www.green-machine.info" (www.green-machine.info) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nordic Runes: Understanding, Casting, and Interpreting the Ancient Viking Oracle (Paperback)

This is a very adequate book for people new to the runes, and in fact, I would even recommend it for those who have limited experience. The author gives solid, traditional descriptions of the runes and does a good job of explaining where he derives his meaning from by presenting the rune poems and applicable lore. In that regard, it is an excellent teaching tool for anyone who wants to delve into the primary sources.

The problem that I have with this book is that the author breaks no new ground whatsoever, aside from a few spreads he explains in the final section. Thus, for those with even a little experience, everything you'll find should be old hat. As a previous reviewer stated, reversed runes are explained very poorly.

23 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good beginners book on rune reading, June 30, 2003

By 

Rede Seeker (Cincinnati, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nordic Runes: Understanding, Casting, and Interpreting the Ancient Viking Oracle (Paperback)

The Author has established a niche for his trilogy on divination techniques from the ancient Celts, Norse, and western Europeans and he has kept within that niche with this book. It does not provide an elaborate discussion of the history of the runes and the different systems in use. He takes the Elder Futhark, using dagaz and othila as the twenty-third and twenty-fourth runes, respectively and provides the pronunciation guides, poetry, lore, and more needed to develop an understanding of each of the individual runes. I have a fair-sized collection of rune reading books but the spreads and casting techniques provided in "Nordic Runes" were new to me.

Two problems: (1) reversed runes are not well explained initially, however, the Author clarifies them in the spreads and casting section; (2) the Author denies any significance to the aettir - i.e. he believes that their order does not have any hidden meaning.

For folks new to rune work, the final chapter provides an overview of the major books and authors from the past 20 years.

"Nordic Runes" is a good platform for further runic studies for folks drawn to this kind of work.