There are many old Anglo Saxon charms that refer to the protection of cattle against harm, thieving and/or loss. This is due to their immense value. We can see that there are many spells concerning these creatures written in Anglo Saxon times. If a cow was stolen for example, one would sing the appropriate charm to the hoof print left in the dirt, light a candle and let the wax drip into the hoof mark. This would make it so no man would be able to conceal the theft. This would of course work for any item that was lost as the charm continues. If it is a household item sing the charm on all four sides and once in the middle and the thief will come forward. This charm is interesting in that it combines cattle and household goods as both being items of value. Today we could use such a charm in finding a lost item such as a ring, bracelet or any item of value that has disappeared be it by mistake or theft.

It seems as if cattle had another function as well. This function seems to be one of fertility, especially the fertility of the Goddess. In the Cotton Manuscript Maxim it states:Line 47 & 48    The cattle on earth produce and bring forth. The above alludes to the function of cattle as fertility animals and hence brings us to the divine cow in both early Teutonic and Norse mythos. In Tacitus' Germania 40 he states that a certain goddess by the name of Nerthus was drawn in a wagon by cows. When her wagon was drawn past communities no weapons of offense or defense were allowed and peace reigned. The tribes of that North Sea area included the Reudigni, Varini and Anglii as well as several others who were said to share in a common belief in this goddess whom they believed took part in the affairs of humans. We call the Anglii the Angles and we know that they settled in England alongside the Saxons, Friesians and Jute's. I believe that they brought their earth goddess with them when they migrated to Briton and that she survived into the late Anglo Saxon period.

The Anglo-Saxon name for the month of March was Hrethemonath. Hreth in Anglo-Saxon means victory and glory. Victory and glory can be used to describe the month of March because it is when the grasses begin to appear and the buds begin to sprout. March symbolizes the return of the goddess after her long winter sleep and thus the fertility gods are victorious over the winter months. I believe that Hrethe is the same goddess as Nerthus. There are several other German goddesses that I believe to be related to her and they are Hertha, and Bertha. These goddesses were a continuation of the worship of the old Germanic earth goddess Nerthus. All the goddesses mentioned above are related to the hearth and family life as well as being related to the earth. These were the kind goddesses that took part in the every day life of the people they served bringing with them peace and fertility whenever they passed by or were called upon.

We find reference to another bovine goddess in Germanic myth, but this time it comes from the Norse Eddas. In the creation account give by Snorri Sturlusson in his Prose Edda. In this he makes mention of a cow by the name of Audhumla. Her name seems to mean nourisher or sustainer of life. For it is Audhumla that feeds the frost giant Ymir from the milk that streams from her teets. She also is responsible for uncovering the first god in Norse myth, his name being Buri. It is through Buri that the parents of Odin and his brothers were born and through this action the worlds were created out of chaos. As we can see, she holds a very prominent place in Norse myth. I take her to be the first incarnation of the goddess sharing her peace and kindness to all living things. She can be seen as the continuation of the belief that cows were symbols of fertility among all Germanic-speaking tribes and that these animals were always connected to the goddess.

Ur byth anmod and oferhyrned,

Felafrecne deor feohteth mid hornum,

Maere morstapa; thaet is modig wuht.

Aurochs is a proud, fierce and over-horned beast,

It fights with its horns,

A courageous creature that is a notorious moor-stomper

Anglo-Saxon meaning: Bison, Aurochs
Phonetic Equivalent: U

The Aurochs was very important to the ancient tribes of the northlands in that it furnished them with valuable hides and their horns were used for drinking vessels. There still are some examples of these beautifully crafted drinking horns left. One could say that they were as important to the tribes as the American Bison were to the native tribes of the Americas. The European bison represented the wild and untamable forces within nature and it was because of this wildness that young men who wished to be warriors had to prove themselves by killing an Aurochs single handedly. After this task was completed the young man would be brought back to the tribe as a new warrior in their clan. Could it be possible that when the young initiate completed the task of killing the bison he might don the hide of the animal and take in its immense strength and vigor and thus become a strong warrior capable of protecting his village? This is a classic example of a tribal rite and/or initiation into manhood. This follows in close teaching with the rest of tribal societies throughout the world. In many tribal societies the young man was separated from his family and was usually put in isolation or asked to perform a feat of courage to prove that he was worthy of completing the task of becoming a man. Women likewise had their own initiations for girls and this usually happens at their first menstruation. It is interesting to point out that in the Exeter Manuscript Maxim some kind of initiation seems to be alluded to:

Lines 45-47      Men shall teach younger men, strengthening and instructing with the proper knowledge, until his oats have sprouted, surrendering his being and clothing, until hence he brings forth understanding.

This seems to be describing some sort of initiatory process where by the elders of the tribe, those who have already become men, teach and instruct the initiates in what it means to become a man. By surrendering their being they are giving up their childish ways and behaviors in order to learn the responsibilities of manhood. By being naked it appears as if they were in the womb of their mothers and being reborn into men. This could very well have taken place in a cave or a man made earthen hut where the earth, who is the mother of all living things, represents their mother and once they have been taught the appropriate secrets they immerge form the earth reborn as men. These sentences seem to point towards some sort of isolation, again in keeping with the traditions of initiation that were practiced around the world by ancient civilizations. I'm quite sure that the same applied to the women of the tribes who in turn had their own rites for the girls who were about to be initiated as women.

Ur represents will, moreover it symbolizes ones true will. This will is represented in nature and in animals. It is that impetus to survive even through the toughest of times. Vigor and self-reliance are also aspects of this rune. This vigor, will and self-reliance are especially noticeable in the winter months when life seems to just cling on but somehow something pushes to survive. The Ur rune is that energy manifested into its runic symbol. This energy is also expressed in any kind of initiation that requires isolation or any kind of physical challenge, especially when it has to do with warfare or even hunting.

In modern German the name Ur still means origin, primeval and primordial. All of these words seem to point to the origins of some cosmic or earthly beginning. In most mythology this beginning seems to come from a well, this well being the source of all living things be they animate or inanimate. In Norse mythology the well is known as Hvergalmir and it is the source of the rivers of lives. It is located under one of the branches of the world tree, i.e. Yggdrasil, in Nifelheim. Nifelheim means fog or cloud home and it is one of the worlds that helped in forming the cosmos. It was one of the rivers of lives called Elivgar that flowed so from it source that it began to harden, but there was a land to the south called Muspelheim which was a land of fire and extreme heat. It was the sparks, which flew out form Muspelheim that began to melt the rime and ice that was beginning to form on Elivgar. When the water dripped from the melting rime it formed the sacred cow Audhumla who nourished the cosmos with her milk, i.e. the waters of space, and in turn feed the frost giant Ymir who was to become the foundation of the soon to be cosmos. So this rune seems to be connected with the sacred well of the past and hence the source of all living things in the vast cosmos. This would make it an excellent rune for teaching the initiates the secrets of the cosmos, which in turn reflects them.

Ur is also connected to one of the Norns or Wyrd Sisters, Urd. Urd is the Norn that represents the past. The norns have pretty much the same function as the Greek Fates. For it is the Norns who weave the web of wyrd that flows through all living things. They govern life and death as well as the whole cosmic play. She also has a well under one of the roots of Yggdrasil and it is called the Well of Urd. It is here that the gods hold counsel each day. Urd represents the record of all past events that have happened throughout the ages and it is for this reason that I believe the Gods go there each day to meet in counsel. They know that there is much to learn and gain from the past. We can likewise learn in a positive way from our own past. Just by searching and looking into the past we can find that many events have shaped us into who we are today. Some might be positive and some might be negative. Negative past experiences can cause many problems from sexual dysfunction to alcoholism. It is only by going into the past and learning from those experiences that we can confront them and learn to heal ourselves. It is through Ur that we can find that inner strength and vigor to dive in and combat those negative forces and begin to heal ourselves. What a perfect rune for initiation, for initiation is no more then a catalyst that helps us to see ourselves in a different light.

Thorn

Thorn byth thearle scearp; thenga gehwylcum

Anfeng ys yfyl, ungemetun rethe

Manna gehwylcun the him mid resteth.

Thorn is sharp and harsh,

It is extremely evil to each who grasps it,

Cruel to every person who rests amid them.

Anglo-Saxon meaning: Thorn, Thorn-bush
Phonetic Value: Th

Thorn is very powerful as the rune poem above demonstrates. There are several aspects of Thorn that make it the powerful rune that it is. The first aspect of Thorn is a one of karmic action. If we look at the rune poem in a little more detail we can see its connection with the karmic influences. Firstly the rune poem seems to be alluding to something that can be potentially harsh, for instance it warns us of the future life lessons that one might have to face depending on the decisions that were made in past endeavors. By this I mean to say those decisions that we might have made in the past greatly affect our future no matter how positive or negative they might have been. Take for example when we harm somebody or commit a crime, it greatly affects our future happiness and our karma as a whole. By committing a negative act we in turn attract negativity into our lives. The same goes for a positive action, except the consequences are a friendly one, creating peace and harmony in the lives of those who acted in a positive and thoughtful way. So in short, Thorn warns us of those negative actions by using the thorn as a metaphor for negative decision making and karmic action. It also goes further to say that we all have to accept those decisions and learn from them in order that we will not make the same mistake again. We are forced to rest among them until we have gone through and accepted, as well as learned from the actions that we have made in the past. Thorn reminds us that everything in our lives is based on the choices that we make. It also tells us that one should not feel guilty for those actions but to let those experiences teach you so that you can grow strong from them and be able to avoid making the same choices in the future. Another aspect of this rune is karma. The Anglo-Saxon name for karma is wyrd. In order to understand the word wyrd we have to look at the various definitions that explain wyrd. One definition of wyrd is fate, chance and destiny but it's meaning goes far beyond those definitions of the word. Another definition of wyrd is event, phenomenon and condition. There is another word connected to wyrd. This word is Weorthan. This word simply means to become, to be and come to pass. It is also interesting to note that weorthan is connected to our modern word worth. This is interesting in that in the ancient costumes of the Germanic people your value or worth judged who you were in the society and it in turn extended to your whole family and even tribe. The EMM lines 32-33 reinforce this belief:

Just the same your value on earth, by your kin,

And afterwards your children, is measured over earth.