|
e
Illustrated Guide to Runes by Nigel Pennick
It's not often that a book which looks like a coffee-table
book is as informative and useful as this. Scholarly information
is not sacrificed despite the gorgeous photos.
Pennick explores history, the meanings of the Runes in several
different Futharks, from the Elder to the Armanen and several in
between.
His study of the Armanen runes was especially interesting. I had
read the author's description of crystaline structure in relation
to the runes in his book Secrets of the Runes, but I really needed
the photos to get it. The hand mudras and the runic yoga were also
great. Thorsson speaks of these items in his books as well, but
photos of real people help.
His section on divination welcomed some new casts and new ideas
to my repertoire.
My only argument with Pennick is that for some reason he lists
Dagaz as #23 and Odhal as #24. (Most scholars list Odhal as #23
and Dagaz as #24.) This will mess up your bind-rune magick big time.
The runes are ordered this way so as to not bring on the Ragnarok
(the end of the world), which it is said will occur if they are
written in the correct order. My fear is that someone will take
this info and write them down, placing Dagaz last in what he thinks
is safe, and . . . .
Hmmm, I notice that he got the numerology correct in Secrets of
the Runes, so it may have been a fault in the photography and editing.
Despite this flaw, this book is well worth reading, and you'll
spend hours pouring over the illustrations, both for their informative
nature and their sheer beauty.
|
