Opinions on 'Odin's Rune'

[Tess]

Hiya,

I have heard that the blank rune, Odin's rune, was a construct of Ralph Blaum's and did not exist before he introduced it. I am interested to know how people feel about using it - does it matter that it was not an original rune? Or do you feel that the existing runes cover all possible circumstances adequately enough, for example, if you aren't meant to know something or something is mystical in nature, doesn't Perth cover that?

Tess

[aefentid]

Hiya,

I have heard that the blank rune, Odin's rune, was a construct of Ralph Blaum's and did not exist before he introduced it. I am interested to know how people feel about using it - does it matter that it was not an original rune? Or do you feel that the existing runes cover all possible circumstances adequately enough, for example, if you aren't meant to know something or something is mystical in nature, doesn't Perth cover that?

Tess

I'm almost positive Blum is the first person to use a blank rune.I'm new to the runes I've only been studying them for four months,but in my opinion there's no need for a blank rune.Here's an article on blank runes www.sunnyway.com/runes/blank_rune.html (http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/blank_rune.html)

[Rick]

The blank rune was 'invented' in the late 1800's-early 1900's by some of the contemporaries of Guido Von List. There is no historical basis for it in either rune lore or rune tradition. If Odin came down from the tree with a blank rune, I can't find it in my Edda.

[Rick]

PS... Odin's Rune is Ansuz...

[Tanathlyr]

Hi all,

I've been working on the Runes for a few months now - that's not long I know - but the blank rune seems to me to be a corruption of the integrity of the Aettir. That sounds very harsh, but those Eights have a deffinite structure and their order is loaded with meaning. When I opened Blum's book and saw this wierd order laid out I thought "What going on here?" When I read his account of the Runes showing him the "order they would like to be laid out in" I thought, that's great for you, but don't make it out to be the new world order.

As you say Tess, Perthro covers much of what the erroneously named "Odin's Rune" purports to signify. Other aspects of it are covered elsewhere.

Woah, get off your soapbox, Tanathlyr!

[Flar's Freyja]

PS... Odin's Rune is Ansuz...

:fpraiseyo

[Tess]

Aha, thank you, this is good :) I can now happily remove the blank rune from my bag in the knowledge that I'm not just randomly throwing away runes willy nilly on heresay alone!

Tess

[Hamelyn]

I can definately understand some reasons behind removing this, and if that works for you then go for it. ^_^ Hmm. I can kind of see some point behind it... I don't think it's so much secret as a slate. You know, a blankness that you write other runes upon. When I use the blank rune in my work, it feels... inviting. Like when you're putting something together and tab A goes into slot B? Its nature is all about preparing for work to be done.

That's how I take it, anyway. I tried tackling the poetic edda recently and... urk... head hurts. I'll have to try when I get some more sleep. *boggle*

Nice though. And I didn't know about it being a more recent addition. Thanks for the input!

[Gala]

Hi all,

I've been working on the Runes for a few months now - that's not long I know - but the blank rune seems to me to be a corruption of the integrity of the Aettir. That sounds very harsh, but those Eights have a deffinite structure and their order is loaded with meaning. When I opened Blum's book and saw this wierd order laid out I thought "What going on here?" When I read his account of the Runes showing him the "order they would like to be laid out in" I thought, that's great for you, but don't make it out to be the new world order.

As you say Tess, Perthro covers much of what the erroneously named "Odin's Rune" purports to signify. Other aspects of it are covered elsewhere.

Woah, get off your soapbox, Tanathlyr!

I agree as well, my first set of runes was really the Blum Rune Cards, then shortly there after I bought the runes. I never really got a "good" reading untill I took the blank one out of my bag. I don't use it either and don't make them when I make my ceramic runes. I just don't believe that it was meant to be there.

[Aine of the Fae]

I read professionally, mostly Tarot, but I use Runes as well. I also make engraved glass Runes. I refuse to use the blank Rune. Not because it's a modern invention (although modern additions to ancient systems seem false and wrong) but because the other 24 make sense together, whereas you throw the 25th in and it skews the balance. Also as a reader, most people that come to me are at wits end and want answers. They want answers, they don't want cryptic "There something in this situation you can't know." Of course they don't know what's going on, that's why they came to me! The blank Rune is also a contradiction. A Rune is a symbol not what it's put on. How do you draw a blank symbol? You don't, it's non-existant and you don't need to throw in a blank stone for it to show up, it's a force in any reading, it's what ties the reading together and if you try to solidify that force by putting in a blank stone you throw off the balance of the reading.

[Rick]

I read professionally, mostly Tarot, but I use Runes as well. I also make engraved glass Runes. I refuse to use the blank Rune. Not because it's a modern invention (although modern additions to ancient systems seem false and wrong) but because the other 24 make sense together, whereas you throw the 25th in and it skews the balance. Also as a reader, most people that come to me are at wits end and want answers. They want answers, they don't want cryptic "There something in this situation you can't know." Of course they don't know what's going on, that's why they came to me! The blank Rune is also a contradiction. A Rune is a symbol not what it's put on. How do you draw a blank symbol? You don't, it's non-existant and you don't need to throw in a blank stone for it to show up, it's a force in any reading, it's what ties the reading together and if you try to solidify that force by putting in a blank stone you throw off the balance of the reading.
Couldn't have said it better myself... runes are visual symbols representing sounds (this is the basic tenet of galdr, rune magic... to perform galdr, one sings the runes)... exactly what sound does blankness represent? One hand clapping? A tree falling in the woods?

[Epona44]

But the discussion makes sense.

[Aine of the Fae]

While you can draw assocations and correspondences between the Runes and Tarot, that still doesn't make much sense. Would you use a blank Tarot card?

[Epona44]

It seldom comes up in a reading anyway.