Magin Rose

On Sunday 27th February the rune calendar moved into the last Aett of the Elder Futhark, opening with the rune of the God Tyr: Teiwaz.  In terms of the journey of the soul, the last Aett speaks to me of a coming into maturity, the foundations of the first Aett have been laid, the testing and self discovery of the second Aett have revealed the strength and purpose of the soul; with the last Aett the individual is able to fully participate in the shaping of human society.

Tyr is a sky-god, a fallen king who once led the Aesir but sacrificed his sovereignty so that the mighty wolf Fenris might be tethered – there the wolf will remain until the final battle when he will break free and devour Odin.  Teiwaz teaches us of sacrifice, nobility, justice and right action.  It is intimately associated with the law of Orlog, divine justice (as opposed to ‘human’ justice which is presided over by Forsetti).  For me, the justice of Forsetti is the justice of logic and rational thought which can, occasionally, run away with itself - whereas the justice of Tyr is that which, in our hearts, we know to be right.  Now is a good time to pause before action and consider whether your decisions are based on conformity to the norm, or on your own deeper truth.

Warriors inscribed the Teiwaz rune upon their weapons to ensure victory in battle and, for this reason, Tyr is often seen as a war god (the Roman’s identified him with Mars, hence ‘Tuesday’ – Tyr’s day).  I sometimes wonder, however, whether the presence of the Teiwaz rune hearkens more to Tyr’s sacrifice to save Odin (the patron of warriors) – perhaps the presence of the Teiwaz rune ensures that weapon and shield are cut by the blows of the enemy rather than the warrior?

Tyr is sometimes identified as a later manifestation of the God Tuisto, a mysterious being whose name may mean ‘doubling’ or ‘conflict’ and who is sometimes identified as an hermaphrodite, sometimes as the child of earth and sky, and sometimes as the primal being Ymir (also an hermaphrodite).  While these are all conjectures, a theme emerges of this God as a being of duality – interesting if we Tyr’s successor, Odin’s, triple nature.  Teiwaz will be followed by the feminine rune Berkano, and then the rune of partnership, Ehwaz; note how the shape of the Ehwaz rune is a re-formation of the Teiwaz rune, our Rune Circle this month will be exploring this runic mystery.

This half-month provides an opportunity for you to examine the balance in your life.  Do you sacrifice of yourself too much, or too little?  Do you follow your own star and how does this impact on others (Teiwaz is also associated with the concept of the guiding star)? In what ways have you allowed yourself to be wounded, and, what lessons and wisdom have you learned from this?

May Teiwaz guide you truly.