Thank you both for your replies.
obnoxion wrote:If I remember correctly, there are runes carved in some Bysant-era church in Turkey, but it was some private scribble like "Harald was here" or something like that...
Yes, you are correct. There is however a difference between the scribblings of a layman using runes to carve his name in stone to testify his travels, and between those energies which are partially invisible, but which I very much connect to the actual meanings of the runes.
Which is something you also note if I understand you correctly:
obnoxion wrote:In general I am quite convinced that any form of new spiritual tradition must be soaked in to the soil if it intends to become a reality for the soul. Different times and different locations should be allowed to interact with the mutable aspects of the tradition. And I think that that these mutable aspects are not for all places, nor for all times.
I would have to agree with you. I do think that any tradition which appears in a certain area comments not only on the people who dwell there, but also on the entire surroundings; the animals, the plants, the weather, how and what one eats, and so forth.
Perhaps this is why I still struggle to grasp traditions outside certain geographic areas, because I can't seem to feel that connection to the nature of those areas. I have never been dreaming of living in a warm country, and I do notice that if a winter comes with little snow, this in some ways shocks my system. I am so tightly tuned on the cycles of the seasons here in the northern parts of the world, that it feels -at this point at least- impossible to look past that. I can have academic interest towards other traditions (here using the word academic slightly hesitantly, lacking a better one) and absolutely respect them, but they simply do not speak to my soul in ways which nordic traditions do.
If I am to use a sigil that spells giraffe, I am so easily at loss and find this difficult because I know so little of a giraffe; how does it move, truly, when free in the wild, how does it smell like? What is the energetic current that it radiates? But if I am to work with a sigil that spells an elk I instantly understand, I remember how it feels to sense an elk nearby, how it moves, what kind of spell does it evoke when it runs, what kind of a print it leaves on the moss. And then the elk, awakens a sort of dim recognition that seems to be in my very being, from somewhere far away; that perhaps in those times I was one, or had an understanding of one or of how to become one.
With that said, I know and understand that some people feel a kinship to far away countries, for varying reasons. That is fine. I simply am not imaginative enough!
Or perhaps, I am yet to walk through a geochakra which opens my eyes and heart to some other tradition.
There is one exception to this though, I was properly obsessed with ancient Egypt as a child.
Invitus wrote:Thanks Heith for reviving the thread, I'll make sure it gets a good re-reading and new comments after I find some fresh intresting topics.
No problem, I am glad if it gives you something. Always feel free to discuss and ask, we are lucky to have Fra Jiva who pretty much remembers everything ever written. It seemed natural to post on this thread again, as it seems like Runic work is again something which I will undertake, perhaps teaching a little as well.
I'll be interested to hear more of your experiences and thoughts concerning the Runes.