DIV-301 Lessons

A woman has joined Professor Fayge today in the dimly-lit Divination lounge. Professor Fayge is busy fiddling with horns of carved bone and wooden charms bearing strange symbols. Meanwhile, a blonde woman with a short bob and pressed robes has her feet up on the Divination professor’s desk, eying the incoming students with a veiled, weighing look that makes some -- particularly those that have never seen her before -- feel uneasy. As the clock tolls eleven, the blonde woman makes no move to stand, though her eyes turn to Professor Fayge who stops shuffling around the room and takes a seat on the edge of the desk, smiling, before addressing the class.

Welcome, welcome students. My, do I have an exciting lecture prepared for you today! During this lesson, with some help, we will begin to delve into the practical aspects of runic divination, particularly with the starting point of it all: creating your own rune set. In addition, we will also be filling in some context about this practice and its numerous uses. Here to tell you more about it is our former Professor Wessex, a specialist in various kinds of ancient runes! I have invited her here today to reinforce some of the concepts you have learned about runic magical theory. So, without further ado, let’s begin - please welcome Ms. Wessex.

Guest Lecture
Thank you, Inarid. While it may come as no surprise that I find runes fascinating, it may be unexpected for you to discover that I harbor an interest in and knowledge of various forms of divination. I am familiar with most traditional forms of divination, though runecasting is the only one which I actually practice. For those of you who have taken Ancient Runes, the magic behind runes differs slightly when applied to divination, but you will certainly see some overlapping information and themes between both courses. The reason for these differences is due to the fact that in general runic magic, runes are meant to cause magic on their own, whereas when used in divination, they are merely vessels to collect our magical energy and tools that our Inner Eye uses to express secret truths.

Days of Old
Runes have been used for magical purposes since roughly 200 C.E. These strange symbols that make up the alphabet of the Elder Futhark were used for many purposes, not only as a way to communicate and write messages, but also to enchant talismans, amulets, and other objects such as stones, fibula, or rings. Additionally, somewhere along the line, they were used to tell the future, or answer questions about the present or past that could not be answered via other means.

The Elder Futhark was first used by various Germanic tribes, then the Norse, -- also known as the Vikings -- and the peoples and civilizations that they conquered after its development into new scripts. This alphabet was at its peak of use between 200 and 800 C.E. but continued to be used for magic -- both in general and for divination -- well past these dates and continues to this day, as you can plainly see. The people who created the Elder Futhark were largely hunter gatherers and had a primitive society, at least compared to our standards today. Their general magical practices were very typical of ancient magic, in that they consisted of ritualized actions and words that were often lengthy and incredibly superstitious. 

Over time, as languages and forms of writing normally do, the Elder Futhark changed and adapted to new situations, evolving into two further alphabet variations. These were the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc (or Anglo-Saxon Futhorc), which was used in Frisia, as well as the Younger Futhark, which was used in Scandinavia among the Vikings and their captured territories. However, neither of these “children” of the Elder Futhark ever came to be used in divination, likely due to the fact that they are believed to have no magical properties whatsoever. The Elder Futhark, interestingly enough, has enjoyed a place of prominence among the magical community for a variety of reasons to this day. Professor Fayge is about to show you how to create your own rune sets, which (as she informed you last week) is the method that promises the most effective rune readings by far, though it is possible to either receive them as a gift or to purchase them - the latter being the least desirable option.

Alright, that is all the time I have for today. Should you wish to learn more of these mysteries, I urge you to sign up for Ancient Runes next term. At Professor Fayge’s request, I will leave my rune set out on one of the displays for you to look at, should you desire.

Creating Runes
Thank you again for coming, Venita! Now students, are you ready to learn how to make your own? Excellent, because this week’s extra credit assignment is to do just that!

When creating your own rune set, you must keep certain factors in mind in order to assure their effectiveness. As you might have guessed due to the topic for this year’s Divination class, the most crucial component is that your materials should be natural. I will go over each consideration seers must make when creating their rune sets and explain some of the theory behind it all.

Base Materials
The most important thing is the material with which you start. The material onto which you inscribe your runes must be natural. Ignoring this stipulation will result in rune readings that are no more accurate than a Muggle’s. You reviewed natural materials with Professor Laurel last year, yes? Well, the definition of natural as applied to runes is slightly contested so I will take a moment to explain here. The ancient Germanic tribes saw the Earth and all its bounty as natural. This meant stones (plain or precious), twigs, bones, hides, clay, and much more. Anything man-made was not, including metals, though runes were frequently inscribed upon metals, particularly weapons. More die-hard purists reject some of these materials for rune sets, insisting that stones do not conduct the magic as well as wood or bone, for various reasons, despite the fact that magical stones with the Elder Futhark still survive today. I personally disagree, as you’ll see soon enough that my runes are made of a natural clay.

Finishing Touches
Once you have picked your material, you still need to somehow represent the shape of each rune on the material. The most common ways are with paints, scratching, cutting, or burning. Some prefer a combination of these techniques to ensure the rune design stands out. A note for those that prefer to use paints is that they should not be synthetic, which requires a good deal of extra work. As you can see from this photo, I rolled and shaped my clay by hand, doing my best to keep each rune the same size. (Those of you who paid close attention last week will remember why this is important.) Then, I carved the Elder Furkarth symbols and filled the resulting indentations with an ink I crafted specifically for this set.

Additionally, some ornamentation can be applied to the runes but, as you might imagine, this is contentious. There are some -- the purists I mentioned in the earlier section -- that maintain you must not do anything additional to the base material other than what is necessary to inscribe the rune. This includes ornamentation, removing the bark (if applicable), as well as sanding, waxing, or the like. However, most people do not ascribe to this practice, as the runes need to feel uniform and therefore must almost always require some modifications made to them to make that possible.

Blood Magic
Lastly, we need to discuss blood. In our discussion of base materials, I touched on the fact that despite metal being man-made, it was used in many runic weapons. In order for these runic weapons to effectively function, the rune needed to be sealed in blood. While this is a general magical practice and swords have little to nothing to do with divination, the idea is the same. If, for some reason, you are using a non-natural material, sealing with blood is a generally agreed-upon method to ensure the rune set’s effectiveness. Therefore, blood sealing is quite popular with stones. Truthfully, it can be used on any material for runes, not just to compensate, but to lend a little extra power to the mix.

The general practice of sealing swords with blood required someone, usually the smith, to open the palm of his hand along the edges of the sword and apply the drops spilled to whichever part bore the runes (most often in the hilt or occasionally, along the blade itself). However, runes are slightly different. I will not be giving you a step-by-step guide, but there are no required specifics on how the blood is applied, other than a general recommendation that it should be yours. Some insist that it works just as well with the blood of a close friend or family member, but all agree that the blood of strangers or creatures is not quite as effective. The blood can either be applied to the entirety of the rune’s surface, or used to make a paint or ink. In either case, it must be allowed to dry in its entirety, and can be sealed if you are concerned about the dried blood coming off at a later time. Merlin forbid you use blood forcibly taken; we will not go into any more detail on that subject other than to strictly forbid it.

Moreover, I emphasize that you should never spill your blood lightly and reaffirm that I do not promote Third Years experimenting with such things. Not only is the transmission of disease possible if blood is taken without the proper precautions, but magic and blood are not something to go around mixing willy-nilly. Blood magic is an incredibly risky practice not to be attempted without consulting an expert. If you must, think of your first set of runes as your “starter” set, and wait until you have gained more experience with divination (particularly runecasting), magic, and the world in general before attempting this.

Storing
The most common method of rune storage, as has been mentioned, is in a small bag made of natural fibers. Traditional cloth is not the only option, as leather or hide pouches are also quite common. I have seen some boxes as well, but if you do purchase a box, ensure that it is solely made of wood - not the cheap compressed sawdust that is so popular these days. Rune boxes are not nearly as common, as many believe either that a) the runes need “air”, or b) the box’s wood could interfere with the magical energies of the runes, particularly wooden ones.

Imbuing With Magic
The reason it is so important to craft your runes by hand is the fact that it is through this process that they become effective channels for your magic and Inner Eye. That is not to say that they won’t receive your magic through handling and reading, but it certainly wouldn’t be to the same degree. This process is meant to be a meditative experience during which time the runes should absorb your magical essence. I made a whole wonderful afternoon out of forming mine! It is also important to note that spellcasting during this process is extremely ill-advised as it may overload them, causing them to “short out” and be no more magical than a lump of plastic. Your own natural, inherent magical ability is more than enough provided you maintain your focus on the creation process.

Closing
Now, I know that was a fair bit of information to absorb in one go, but we can clearly see an overarching theme: natural, natural, natural! You’ll need your own natural magic to kick-start the process, natural materials for the runes themselves, and natural storage. You will also find that many of the meanings are linked to weather, animals, plants, or common activities in which hunter-gatherers would participate. I’m sure it’s beginning to become clear why we are covering runes this year.

Before you leave for the day, I would like to direct your attention to the two stands over by the entrance to the Divination lounge. I have placed them there to hold both my set and that of former Professor Wessex. Should you find yourselves curious, you may feel free to go over and take a peek. The assignments this week consist of a quiz and an assignment in which you must use the knowledge from this class to decide for yourself on how you will make your own runes.

Rune Sets
Upon two different podiums sit two separate rune sets. On the left, a leather pouch next to darkly gleaming circular stones. They have tiny specks of grey in them, but are generally a very dark green color. The runic symbols seem to be made from gold-hued paint that has been applied over etching with some sharp implement.

The one on the right bears an emptied silk bag sitting next to a handful of thin, oblong runes that are rather uniform in shape. This set is made of a light-colored Brazilian clay, and their symbols are delicately hand-carved. You notice that, in the right light, the ink’s color appears to be some sort of dark reddish-brown that looks suspiciously like blood. Upon further inspection, you see nameplates under the podiums. The one on the left bears the words “Professor Wessex” and the one on the right “Professor Fayge.”

Original lesson (and guest lecture) written by Professor Venita Wessex
Edits and additional portions by Professor Inarid Fayge
Image sources here and Professor Fayge's personal camera