Rune Thurisaz

Ramblings of a Roving Rune Caster, Part 24

The rune Thurisaz is the third rune in the Elder Futhark. It is the rune of the gateway, giants, and the god Thor.

Thor is undoubtedly one of the best known of the gods in Nordic mythology. But, he is by no means the most understood. His father was Odinn and his mother was Jord, sister to Frigga, Queen of the Gods. Thor was as firmly a member of the royal family of Asgard as any, yet he was shipped off to foster parents to be raised. Some say Thor was not the most intelligent of the Nordic gods, and there is reason to believe that the others gave him grief over it. These experiences taught him much.

Possibly more than any of the other gods, he understood what it meant to be the underdog. It is only understandable that he would become the patron to the peasants and that he would become the defender of the under classes. But, there is no disregarding the fact that there was more to this god. While he could be kindly and pleasant, he could also show flashes of temper, flashes so violent that the elements themselves shuddered with the power.

Thor was the stereotypical warrior; the manly man. He defended Asgard and Midgard (heaven and earth) with his mighty hammer, Mjollnir. Mjollnir was indeed a weapon to awe. Wearing his girdle of strength and his iron gauntlet (to protect him from Mjollnir’s extreme heat), Thor could swing it with deadly accuracy and fling it great distances. The name “Mjollnir” means the crusher, and that was Thor’s typical way of doing battle. In battle, Thor showed his brute strength. For generations afterwards, right down to the present day, generals have used his technique of “overpowering strength.”

For Thor there was no holding back when he did battle with the Ice Giants. They were his mortal enemies and have been the enemies of Asgard since their creation in the great abyss at the creation of the nine worlds.

Thor was as big as the giants he fought. A battle between them was truly a battle of titans, except there was no questioning the fact that they were opposing forces. So it is with Thurisaz; it represents a polarity or opposing forces.

No value judgement, in the modern sense, is being made here. The ice giants were a powerful force. So was Thor. When he swung Mjollnir and released it, it rushed forward with the strength of a freight train. Something had to give. Thurisaz is destructive force; it also is defensive force. The force of Thurisaz is instinctive. There is no guilt or self-consciousness involved here. Just like Mjollnir, and just like the thunder and lightning associated with Thor and great hammer.

Ralph Blum, in his well known and very popular book, The Book of Runes, refers to Thurisaz as the “Place of Non-Action.” However, from what we see here, the opposite is true. Thurisaz is the rune of elemental, potential energy released in directed power. For those who are into physics in addition to psychics, Thurisaz represents potential energy released as kinetic energy.

Thurisaz is also the rune of the great gateway. When you draw it, you have strong forces available to you. Will you use them destructively? Will you use them defensively? Actually, because Thurisaz is a blending of polarities, you will probably have elements of both destructive and defensive force at the same time. But, you will act. So, the point is - it’s decision time. Decide quickly, because next you act. Walk through the gateway and do what you must. But remember, just like Thor’s releasing Mjollnir, you can’t take it back.
Thurisaz doesn’t always suggest a life and death battle. But, it does always suggest that the seeker will have to make a decision and will act on it.

If you see Thurisaz inverted do some serious meditation. One suggestion this rune inversed offers is that you are avoiding decisions and actions you should have executed. The spiritual world will let us put off the important for only so long. Sooner or later we must act. So, when you see Thurisaz, recognize it as an opportunity to act.

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