Rune History Runes as a tool of divination are of European (German, Saxon and Scandanavian) origin. They were later developed into an early Germanic alphabet. From the Gothic "Runa", they carry the connotation of a secret thing, or a "mystery". The myth behind the Runes is that they are a gift from the Gods. Discovered by Odin, they were a gift to mankind from Heimdall, the guardian of Bifrost, the rainbow bridge that connects the world of Spirit with the Physical world. The word Rune is also connected with the concept of a tree - the branches reaching up and standing for the spiritual in life, the trunk representing the physical world that we live in and the roots representing our future and our connection with Mother Earth. Runes were originally made of natural materials - stones and small pieces of wood. The symbols were then painted on or etched into the stones/wood chips,retaining the energy of the source material and adding the energy of the Runic symbol as well as the energy of the person making them. In this manner Runes beome very personal tools of divination, carrying great power. Runes were often inscribed onto tools, weapons, alters, and other personal items, as well as onto buildings. Runes were used for the casting of lots, for divination, but also to call on the spiritual world as an influence into the future, or "luck" if the parties involved. Wandering Rune Masters were not an unusual phenomenon, nor was the fact that many Rune Masters were women. Personal Lifestyle Reading - I offer a Personal Lifestyle Reading using Tarot that looks at past, present and future influences in your life, at the energies that are currently available to help you along your path, and at those energies that are appearing as challanges. My goal is to offer you insight into your decision making process, as well as tools that you can use to both better understand your path and make conscious, choice centered decisions. Home Rune links View My Guestbook Sign My Guestbook Graphics by Art for the web