The Hanged Man and the Runes

If you’ve ever checked out my Facebook page or my Instagram feed, then you’ve seen that I post a “Daily Divination” card, which is either from a Tarot or an Angel oracle deck.

The Hanged Man, from the Wizards Tarot by Corrine Kenner & John J. Blumen. Published by Llewellyn.

Recently, I drew The Hanged Man from the Wizards Tarot and posted the card in both those online spaces. In those postings, I talked about the card from the perspective (pun intended) of the portrait hanging (I did it again) on the wall (If you’re looking at it, what do you notice?).

But also in this particular depiction of The Hanged Man you’ll find a panel of runes within an archway. You’ll also notice The Hanged Man bears a resemblance to Odin, the Allfather of the gods in Norse Mythology, seated with his ravens, Hugin and Munin, who are his eyes to the other worlds.

When I pulled and posted this card, I was personally drawn to the runes. I have a set of runes that were gifted to me by a client who had a Tarot reading with me, and thought I might consider giving the runes a try.

While I’ve had the runes for some time now, I haven’t felt a strong compulsion to cast any readings with them. That was, until The Hanged Man appeared as the card of the day.

Reading the Runes

So, I reached for the bag of runes, and, while asking the question, “What do I need to know about working with the runes more at this time?” I pulled three runes out, setting them down from right to left (It’s my understanding runes are read right to left.).

The runes are, from right to left, Perthro, Teiwaz, and Mannaz.

The runes in my reading, from right to left: Perthro, Teiwaz, and Mannaz.

As the rune representing the situation, Perthro is actually very synchronistic, in that one of its meanings is divination, and the runes are being used in that manner. There’s also a link with esoteric or hidden knowledge, and Perthro can indicate a greater interest in such things. It’s also possible that there will be an increase in dreams which could prove prophetic.

Perthro can indicate a time of initiation, of seeking knowledge and inner transformation. And the rune does look like something being opened up, at least it does to me.

For guidance and advice, there’s Teiwaz in the center. Teiwaz tells me I could progress in this direction, and that the progress would be successful. Teiwaz also says that if I choose to go in this direction (taking up the runes), I need to commit to it—and honor the commitment. Teiwaz, with its arrow, makes me think of the expression “a move in the right direction.”

Incidentally, this rune relates to The Hanged Man; The Hanged Man can be a card of sacrifice, and Teiwaz is associated with the god Tyr, who lost his right hand to the wolf Fenris, as an act of self-sacrifice.

The symbol, looking like an arrow point, is “pointing” out that I haven’t made the most of this gift that I received. But Perthro, coming before it, could suggest that the time has now come.

The last rune, as the outcome, is Mannaz. It’s the rune of the self, and points to the questioner or the seeker, so Mannaz is referring to me here.

One of its meanings is “correct behavior,” which I find an interesting follow-up to Teiwaz and its “move in the right direction” message.

Mannaz can also suggest an interest in anything New Age, which links it to Perthro and its association with divination.

Mannaz can mean “help,” so my conclusion is that working with the Runes would be of help to me, and possibly, at some later point in time, be helpful to others, as Mannaz can also mean shared experiences with others.

So the reading with the runes felt very profound. With Mannaz, being a rune of looking at the self, I’m going to start keeping a journal, pulling a rune a day, and seeing how it speaks to me and relates to my life experiences.

Perthro is a rune that can mean “womb,” and Mannaz can signal becoming more of the person you were born to be.

The runes are suggesting this is the time. And they want to be my companions for this journey of self-exploration.