Northern Mysteries and Magick: Runes & Feminine Powers

This book is a must-have for any serious practioner of the runes, in addition to other notable authors such as Thorsson, Gundarsson, R.I. Page, etc. Freya Aswynn combines scholarly research with instinctual magickal application. Those who dwell too much on the lore details and spellings should find another resource as the entire point to this book is to find the runes within one's own psyche. I highly recommend this book.

This is the fourth printing of "Northern Mysteries and Magick" and if you are into runes or Scandinavian mythology and mysteries then it is easy to see why it has been so popular. Starting with a short piece on the northern tradition in perspective, it proceeds quickly into a detailed section on runes. For each rune it gives the Germanic, Anglo-Saxon and Old Norse names, the phonetic value and the traditional meaning as well as an illustration of the rune. Beneath this there is a detailed analysis of the rune in terms of the culture of the time, it's derivation when known, other words it is associated with, how it was related to specific Norse gods and myths, and various other pieces of information as appropriate. While the information is detailed the writing style is not very technical in nature and so creates a flowing, easy to follow read that anyone can understand. Following this section is an excellent piece on runic divination including the nine worlds of Nordic mythology and how they relate to the conscious. Divination methods discussed include the basic fourfold wheel and the more detailed eightfold wheel techniques. This is followed by a very informative section on runic magic and traditional magic techniques and beliefs. Each of the traditional Scandinavian gods is presented with a detailed profile that includes their name in Norse, English, Dutch, and German, their primary element, secondary element, color, number, totem animals, personal sigils, magical items, the purpose for which they are typically invoked and the runes used for them. The book ends with a chapter on feminine mysteries that includes a short piece on the practice of Seith (mostly the casting spells and enchantments), an examination of Odin and how he related to the feminine mysteries, and detailed profiles of the feminine gods such as Frigga and Freyja. For those who are interested in runes, northern magic beliefs and systems, or just a detailed account of how runes and magic were used historically and what they meant to the people of that time it is a highly recommended read.

A very interesting and in-depth look into the runes of the Elder Futhark, complete with a description and folklore of each of the 24 runes (three to four pages on each rune), a guide to rune divination, a section on rune magic, and even a section on Nordic Deities connected to the rune lore. Freya Aswynn is a real authority on this matter, and has written a brilliant and thorough book. It goes beyond an overview, and if one is serious about learning the runes, it is a dense, but incredibly informative and effective work. The accompanying CD makes it even more worthwhile. And for the amount of information included in the book, the price is very reasonable. This is an excellent buy. Readers new to runework should note, however, that there are quite a few different rune futharks, so doing a little research about which one you choose to study may be of some value if you're looking to "dive right in" to practice.

this book is a must have. It is absolutely fantastic and has a lot of depth to it. Wonderful information on the deeper meanings of the Runes and their relation to the Northern Mysteries as well as a good look at the Northern Gods and Goddesses. A high quality book.

Freya must be one of the most serious authors on the subject. She writes about the runes with a very strong, well studied background on their history. I find it obvious this is her passion and way of life. The CD that accompanies the book is out of this world! If you are a person who makes your own runes, her chants on the CD will vibrate those runes and give them power! A very interesting book written only like Freya could write!