Over the years I have created my own divination tools through different Rune Journeys using stitchomancy and oracle work. Through the process of completing the Rune journeys, what I gained was a personal divination system – the lessons and words of my Deities, Their stories behind each of the symbols, what they mean for my journey, and how to use them. The Core energy of each symbol didn’t really change, but the expression and depth did. I have done this with the Elder Futhark, Ogham, and Soul Runes (Crane Practice tool). The Elder Futhark is governed by my Death Deities, the Ogham by my Life Deities, and the Soul Runes by the Guardians of the Temple/ Elements.
I have not used them much in the sense of the usual divination perspective, but from a lessons and creating sigil and spoken spell-craft with them. I spent a lot of time in each lesson, the words of my Guides, to understand and incorporate them into myself as I grew and transformed along my path. All pieces of a much larger picture that has changed me for the better through the work.
With all that being said, it is shifting, and I wanted to share a piece of that with you.
Some Background
Now, before we go further, I can hear some say that these systems, Elder Futhark and Ogham, already have meanings and a system. This is true from a perspective. Someone created a divination system with them based on their interpretations and experiences, possibly even their Guides. What we do have in the form of divination meanings is fairly recent in the scope of the tool themselves, and has become a more “agreed upon truth” than actual fact. There is also conflicting information depending on where you look and who is speaking, because there are different expressions and connections people make in their own work with them. I think it is important to recognize this.
For me, when I first started, the Rune Journey is what my Deities wanted. They showed me how to do it, and it has added a depth and connection to each Rune/symbol that I never would have gotten otherwise. They also gave me lessons and other information that I most likely would have never seen or connected without doing this.
It is why in my Spirit Walking course (the first part of the Death Emissary course) I have all my students complete a Rune Journey. It is a profound tool for your own growth and path, but also strengthens the bond between you and the Deity/ Guide taking you through it. Many find it challenging at first because it is different and it requires not just stitchomancy but a deepening of connection with your Guide/ soul senses to cohesively reconcile the messages. The experiences and stories they tell though just strengthen my stance in this exercise. It never fails to give tangible and meaningful results that are specific to each person and their path.
So if you have never done it before – it is a great time to start experimenting!
Back to Divination
As I said, I have not really used these tools much in the sense of what we would see as traditional divination. Tarot has always been my comfortable go-to. As I start to deepen this path of merging this Duality: both my Death work and Living/Green (physical world) work, my Deities have been adamant about using the tools we have created over the years, and not the tarot/oracle.
I on the other hand have been resistant. Tarot has become and easy comfort zone – I can pick them up, get quick directions, answers, and so forth, and they are just easy. I don’t have a huge collection like many that I see, but I do have around a dozen different tarot and oracle decks, some that cost quite a bit. In my frugal mind, it seems a waste not to use them – yes, another “justification” lol.
My Deities will only let me circle the drain for so long though before they kick me – and that is what happened last week. I picked up my cards and felt nothing. Not one of my Deities was interested in that, and besides one deck I use with Ancestors when we are spell crafting – my Ancestors didn’t seem interested either. Yep, They had cut me off and were forcing my hand. It is actually not surprising, this dance has been going on for awhile and I am actually surprised it took this long.
First Steps
Besides the Soul Runes, which are based solely on a Core Energy, the Elder Futhark and Ogham had various different lessons and messages in them – all tied to a core energy but not as easily used in that way. If you have read my Goddess, Sacred Words of Transformation book, you will understand because both of my journeys are in there. So my first step was to “reshape” them for easier divination use.
When that was finished I started thinking about them in the way of “this tool for this group” – Elder Runes for my Death Deities, Ogham for my Living ones – because those were the Guides who created them with me… When I was focused on one side or the other, I would use that tool for Them… Boxes… Separation… Yeah that was a mistake. Sure, eventually there will be work that way, but right now I was working on merging, blending, and this was not going to work.
Divine Intervention
I had everything ready to go. Everything was written down and organized. All three tools were together in one bag (the pennies are in a bag in the bag or they would get lost). But I was over-complicating things in my mind. So I took a day and immersed myself in art. I had a project for my coven work I was finishing, repainted a statue for new purposes, and stared at the material I am using to make a new cloak and hood for my practice… that is whole other story, but art helps me get out of my logic and into my flow.
As I laid down that night to go to sleep I had a vision of a spread using all three divination tools. I quickly made notes on it to try the next day.
The Experiment
The next morning I pulled out my Grimoire and the tools to try it out. I approach all new things like an experiment because without trying it, I don’t know if it will actually work or not, and I am a results based person in my craft. I am looking for real tangible results.
I sat with everything for a few minutes thinking of a starting question. Something specific that I could also measure and evaluate. I decided to stick with my current quandary –“ How do I merge these two sides of me, these two paths”.
I honestly did not expect it to work as beautifully as it did. I expected some weird outliers or something not to fit in – but nope, it was perfect. Knowing me as well as my Deities do, the very first thing was restating my question and focused on the “Union.” Every step kept bringing up the merging, the unity, the union of the sides in various ways. It also gave me some questions I had to dive deeper into – one of them being a phrase: “The Cloak and Armor of the Ancients – symbolism that has been distorted”
The Cloak and Armor
This morning I decided to dive deeper into that one aspect, and what I will share here.
Cloak
It’s core is built in the Well, from the Well path – the Spiritual Journey.
Shield (Guides) Horn (Voice) Sword (Runes) – awakens the Will.
What we reap/ build within it: exchange to create deep roots with our bonds – harnessed and imbued into (cloak and staff)
The Purpose: the needs of the clan and self care. “the water moves between the sky and earth, an eternal cycle of transmutation”
In Use (action): ancestors/ ancestral soul magic, approach with integrity, being of good character and nature – storytelling, listening to and sharing stories that expand and help ourselves and others. Understanding the depths and lessons in them.
Spell-casting/ manifesting, let intuition lead you to the development of skills and accuracy.
The Guardians/ Guides, take responsibility for your part. Acknowledge bad habits that distract or distort in order to remedy. The connection/ bond with divine is all that matters (divine being your primary guides/ nature/ soul)
Fire: adapting the elements over time creates your legacy
Earth: Hope and magic start with the vision
Air: Collaboration, working together, requires trust and love.
Water: Knowing through experience and concrete evaluation of that experience is the culmination of the work. Knowing the true self is the culmination of the cloak.
Armor
The Armor is built and used for the Needs of the Clan (your community) and for Self Care. It is used to strike and defend – the choice lays in you.
We draw the warrior with it, strength and healing. It is the witch’s armor, unseen yet ever present. It requires sacrifice “For prosperity, we sacrifice ourselves to ourselves”
It grows in the sun, living in our bonds with our guides, in the wisdom we gain in the journey, and standing fearless in our faith/ beliefs.
It grows in vitality when we balance our priorities – finding the rhythm and balance in the polarity/dualities being faced. Our choices, decisions, and judgments can not be from a place of negative dominance. Some desires are not worth taking action for. Let your actions be guided by being in the service to others – doing what nourishes life and the self.
Fire: The spark of the soul, that which is connected to divine in all its forms – guides, nature, and souls – creation is in the depths, moving deeper into them.
Earth: Accept your role, all the elements of it, and being dominate within them (mastery).
Air: Exchange in the duality will help us stand our ground in the face of challenges.
Water: Being the Master of Voice, Souls, and Magic is the culmination of building the armor.
For me, this all makes complete sense and I understand all the depth and nuances because I spent years in these lessons and experiences. My hope though is that you will see things within it that make sense to you. Perhaps even some inspirations or ideas for you to explore for yourself.
Parting Words
In the end this is mostly just me sharing some of my practice and showing an example of how I experiment in it. There is something I want to impart to whoever reads this though: The longer we practice and walk our path, the more we end up creating our own tools. It is one of those “tells” that you are advancing in your practice. Get creative, think outside the box, re-create, and develop your own connections specific for your own path. Let the results be the gauge of what works for you and what doesn’t. Remember, everything started as just one person’s perspective, their UPG, it does not mean it is the only.
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