The final Saturday of the year, the 28th day of Ýdalir, was called Reflection Day, and was in a sense just like any other Saturday, except that you had to wash and clean yourself and your home particularly well this day. You should think about what had happened the last year, and clean your mind too, so that you could start the next year clean and ready for new tasks.
3.0 The Divine Secrets
3.1 The Runes
Óðinn hanged himself in the tree of sacrifice and hung there for nine nights before he fell down and picked up the runes. He learnt in the same process nine magic songs from Bölþorn, the mistletoe, and drank the mead that taught him the art of poetry. The belief that the deity/man visiting Hel learnt something special in the realm of the dead was very strong. We see the same from our fairy tales, where a person travels to a special place and learns or becomes something special. In the fairy tale about Mother Holle (i. e. Hel) the main character is herself turned into or rather covered in gold. The prince kissing Sleeping Beauty (No. Tornerose, “thorn-rose”) also learns something special, because the thorn is a symbol of Bölþorn, the mistletoe, and the rose an ancient symbol of love, intimacy and secrecy (as seen in the Latin proverb sub rosa), associated with Freyja. We see the same reverence for the secret knowledge in the Greek mystery religions, that one acquired in the mystery chamber. They brought different object with them inside, and were allowed to see and sometimes participate in religious plays. In these plays the deities (i. e. masked priestesses and priests impersonating deities) gave the audience a feeling of having learned something important, described by the Romans as mysterium tremendum, facinans et augustum; the solemn that brings forth tears and trembling.
The word rune translates as “secret knowledge” or just “secret”, and the runes are most often identified as characters on par with the Latin alphabet. Originally they were sacred symbols intended to help the sorcerers memorize their sacred songs. We believe the runes date from no earlier than the 2nd century, but we can still use them to reveal much older secrets, because the runes are based on more complex Bronze Age and even Stone Age symbols.
The secrets of the runes were only known by the sorcerers and the deities who travelled to the realm of the dead. By studying the runes we can find out exactly what it was they learnt in the burial mounds, and what made them able to rule their societies as queens and kings for so long.
The rune-row consisted of 24 runes divided into three groups of eight: Freyr's group, Hagall's group and Týr's group.
3.2 Freyr's Group of eight
1. Fehu means "cattle" and is connected to Auðhumbla ("silence", "weak sound"), that came about by the entrance of the burial mound, when the Sun beams (from the world of fire) met the cold darkness inside the burial mound (the world of fog). This was the cow/animal that was sacrificed on the burial mound when the sorcerers were to travel to the realm of the dead to bring back the power of the Sun. The rune is a picture of the horns of a cow, and represents cattle, possessions and material wealth.
2. Uruz means "proto-ox" and is connected to Ymir ("sound", "howling", "crying"). In the Bronze Age in Scandinavia they used lures to break the silence after they had opened up the burial mounds on the New Year's Eve. They later used the lures to summon the deities to the burial mounds, to announce that the gate to Hel was open. The lures were after this dismantled and buried, and thus they created the world between all worlds, Miðgarðr, every year from the body of Ymir. The rune is a picture of an ox without horns, because they have been taken from him and have been used to build the world, and represents drizzle, strength, health and the well-being of the body.
3. Þursaz means "thirsty" and "noise" and is connected to Bölþorn, the giant worm we best know as Jörmungandr ("animated cattle", "the mighty stick", "animated staff"). The dead went to Hel in silence, but the sorcerers and later gods made a lot of noise. To unlock the grave they needed the mistletoe; this was what they needed to make the guardian of the bridge of Hel believe they were Óðinn escorting a dead (Baldr) to Hel. The rune is a picture of a thorn, and represents hidden, negative powers, hostility and a portal to or a transition to this.
4. Ansuz means “spirit” and is connected to Óðinn (“spirit”) and Sága (“story”). The gods disguised themselves as Óðinn to get access to Hel, and wounded themselves with the point of a spear to make it look as if they were bleeding. In Hel they learnt the secret stories, the songs and spells from the spirit/goddess of death. The rune is a picture of the point of a spear, of the type made from bone and used for fishing in the Stone Age. It represents signals, messages from the deities, gifts and divine knowledge.
5. Raiþo means "thunder" and "ride" and is connected to Þórr ("thunder") and Loki ("lightning"). The kings went on a hunt for the spirits of winter, who had killed Baldr and abducted Nanna. The rune is a picture of the lightning that strikes from Heaven to Earth before thunder. It represents a journey, a ride, the ride of the mind after death and a rider.
6. Kauna means "mound", and is connected to Svartr ("black"). The dead returned in the Yule tide, from the pitch black burial mound, when the Sun lit up the innermost chamber as it rose on the Winter Solstice morning. The kings had to fight the shadows of Hel in the forest, armed with burning torches, bonfires and sparks. The rune is a picture of a light entering a dark chamber through a tiny opening. It represents light and enlightenment, guarded by the darkness around them.
7. Gebo means "gift" and is connected to Heimdallr ("world tree"). Inside the burial mound they found the weapons, tools and other valuables that had been placed in the grave along with the dead. They brought these items back out for the reborn dead to enjoy – again – when they were given to them on the Yule night. The rune is a picture of two pairs of wings, symbolizing time. When one pair rests the other pair takes over, so time never stands still. It represents gifts, spiritual gifts, talents, sharing, offers, reward and loyalty.
8. Wina means "joy" and "beauty" and is connected to the Vanir ("beautiful"), the winners of the beauty contests, and Fjörgyn ("mountain"). After the Yule time the winter spirits were weak and nature regained its strength and beauty. The rune is a picture of a beautiful woman. It represents absence of suffering, balance and harmony.
3.3 Hagall's Group of eight
9. Hagalaz means "hail" and "transition" and is connected to Ægir ("awe"), who is also known as Gymir ("sea"). When Baldr dies the world is covered in snow (water) and is changed. The rune is a picture of a hail storm in the autumn. It represents hail, pebbles, dissolution, harmful forces of nature, and the transition from one world to another.
10. Nauþi means "need" and is connected to the Norns; Urð ("past", "honour"), Verðandi ("presence", "the coming") and Skuld ("future", "guilt"). Need followed in the wake of the autumnal darkness and winter cold. The rune is a picture of a man with a rope tied around his waist, being a symbol of slavery and the destiny limiting our freedom. It represents the limitations of man, need, slavery, causes to suffering, lessons, hardship and necessities.
11. Isaz means "ice" and is connected to Hel ("hidden", "death"). The flood (rain and snowfall) came every year and covered the world. It took Baldr and his wife to Hel. The gods went into the mound and met her there. The rune is a picture of an icicle. It represents ice, cold and lack of movement.