I had a wonderful opportunity to visit the magical island of Iceland this past summer. It is a very unique area of our planet with amazing landscapes and fascinating history.
During my visit, I learned about runes - an ancient, symbolic language brought to Iceland from the Nordic people who first settled there. Runes are a method of communication for concepts both simple and multi-layered. There are 24 basic runes, and each conveys meaning often more than a word or single letter can simply express.
I took this trip with a special group of people to honor the guardians of Iceland as shown below in the coat of arms for the island. There are 4 guardians – each who “watches over” one of the island's four directions: South, East, North and West.
Many Icelanders take the spiritual nature of their land very seriously and honor these nature spirits who they feel protect their natural resources. I, and my like-minded fellow travelers, loved learning about and offering respect to these strong protectors.
On our next to last day, we were in the west area of Iceland and were about to do a simple meditation ceremony to honor the guardian of the West which is the Bull.
Before leaving the bus (there were 17 of us), one our travel companions offered if we wanted to select “a rune for the day” to work with its message. Earlier in the trip, she purchased a set of runes that had been beautifully carved on lava stones. She stored the runes in the brown paper bag from the store she bought them. You couldn’t see what the runes were, but you could put your hand in the bag and pull one out.
When I pulled one out, I got the above rune known as Fehu. I took a quick photo and a quick read about the significance of that rune learning that it represented “prosperity and abundance”. I thought, well that is awesome for the day! We then headed out of the bus to get some coffee at the Leif Erikson center and gather as a group to honor the bull.
When we returned to the bus, I had a chance to read more about the meaning of this particular rune. The general meaning of the Fehu symbol is wealth and prosperity. In Nordic times, the Fehu represented cattle since that was the primary means of wealth for the Norse. So how fun was that! I pulled out the rune which represents cattle, abundance and prosperity right before participating in a simple event to honor the Icelandic “bull” guardian.
I take that as a sign that all is good with what we were there to do and our actions were appreciated.
I also had the knowing I should share this symbol with you! And with it, I wish you abundance and prosperity in all aspects of your life. Prosperity, yes, is represented by monetary wealth, but it also covers all other aspects of your life too - a life additionally prosperous with love, good health and wonderful moments shared with those you care about - especially moments shared with your precious pups!
With Love and Appreciation,