Judy Ann Nock - The Modern Witchcraft Guide to Runes: Your Complete Guide to the Divination Power of Runes

The Modern Witchcraft Guide to Runes

Your Complete Guide to the Divination Power of Runes

Judy Ann Nock

Adams Media

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Copyright 2022 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

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First Adams Media hardcover edition February 2022

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Interior design by Priscilla Yuen

Interior illustrations by Katrina Machado and Priscilla Yuen

Interior images 123RF/Elena Medvedeva; Getty Images/bauhaus1000

Cover design and Illustrations by Priscilla Yuen

Cover images 123RF/Dziewul, Elena Medvedeva, Elena

Volkova, Gemma Hester; Getty Images/Bauhaus1000

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Nock, Judy Ann, author.

Title: The modern witchcraft guide to runes / Judy Ann Nock.

Description: Stoughton, Massachusetts: Adams Media, 2022. | Series: Modern witchcraft | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2021043840 | ISBN 9781507217566 (hc) | ISBN 9781507217573 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Witchcraft. | Runes. | Magic.

Classification: LCC BF1566 .N63 2022 | DDC 133.4/3--dc23/eng/20211007

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021043840

ISBN 978-1-5072-1756-6

ISBN 978-1-5072-1757-3 (ebook)

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Simon & Schuster, Inc., was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

To my daughter, Jaime, who has been there with me, beside me, every step of the way

Without the support of the following people, this book would not have been possible. To my agent, June Clark; my editor, Eileen Mullan; my daughter, Jaime Olsen, for her substantial contributions, including numerous digital drawings based on my original sketches; Peter Archer, for his skillful edits and endless patience; my inspiring friends Ann Gaba, Stephanie Duty, Llisa Jones, Tracy Peterson, Debby Schwartz, Samantha Franklin, Dena Moes, Greg Ayres, Gretchen Greaser, Leigh Brown, Julie Gillis, Barbara McGlamery, Shaula Chambliss, Jeffrey McGriff, Louie Zhelesnik, Andrew Gilchrist, Kris Sayler, Karyn Kuhl, Christian Day, Donna Distefano, Melissa Whitehead, Jamie Roach, and Tara Mathieu; and my supportive family, James and Bonnie Nock, Robert Nock, Teri Nock DelGaudio, Jackson Nock, Andrew DelGaudio, Jessie Nock Paniagua, Cindy and John Nock, Ben and Samantha Nock, Mary Nock, and Darra Zankman. I would like to acknowledge and thank Strand Bookstore in New York City for their support, as well as Book Culture in New York and Open Books in Pensacola, Florida, for hosting me for author events. I would like to call upon the eternal memory of my friends in spirit who were with me in the beginning, passed beyond the veil, and yet are with me still: Susan Sherrill, Will Ryan, Cayne Miceli, Tara Mooney, and Kevin Marchetti. Particularly for Susan, Cayne, and Kevin, I will always pick up a hammer and beat it against an anvil to ring out your names. To the memory of my husband of twenty-three years, David Olsen, my Viking, this book is perhaps one you may have liked, had you lived. May you be welcomed into the halls of your ancestors. May your names be spoken and your stories be told, for I am forever blessed by you. Thank you.

Runes are a gateway to magick.

They offer spells of protection and health. They are a guide to the future and the past. They are a gateway to a world of powers and mysteries that are almost beyond understanding. The art of runes is your passport to the never-ending realms of the spirits, places of wonder and enchantment.

From their first use around C.E . 150, runesalphabetic figures used for communication systems in many Scandinavian countrieshave been used for many different purposes. For some, runes were merely an ancient system of writing, and modern scholars have studied them that way. However, even more evidence suggests that runes were used for divination. There is even conjecture that the runes themselves are inhabited by beings who can open links to other realms.

In The Modern Witchcraft Guide to Runes, youll see how casting runes gives modern witches the ability to access information previously unknown and unseen. Whether youre an experienced practicing witch or someone just beginning to explore the world of witchcraft by using this book, youll come to understand the magick and mystery of runes.

Youll learn about the history of runes, how they were used for magickal purposes in ancient times, and how they connect to witchcraft and to the natural world that surrounds us today. Youll learn how to choose the right runic system for you, one that will strengthen your powers as a witch, and how to incorporate your chosen system (or systems) into your everyday magickal practices. And youll discover how best to create your own runes using sustainable raw materials and engraving methods, such as carving, burning, and painting.

Your runes allow you to discern pathways and gain insight. You can use them for divination and as an oracle. For many witches, runes symbolize a connection to spirit, where messages can be transmitted from beyond the veilfrom a time out of timeand interpreted in the here and now.

Finally, runes can be very personal, reminding you of the journeysphysical and spiritualthat youve taken. As you handle your runes, youll feel a sudden spark of recognition, a memory of your own sacred origin. Youll know you are surrounded by all the magick the earth offers her inhabitants.

For modern witchcraft, runes endure as a powerful system for empowerment, fortune-telling, and gaining insight. They give you confidence and power as a witch: Your voice is worthy. Your experiences are valid. Your ideas are powerful. You are part of a community of witches and are free to define yourself in your own terms and, by using runes, bring magick and joy to your work and to the world. Blessed be your runes.

W hen you explore runes, you can hear the words and voices of the ancients through time. A spoken or written word has a power that allows you to tap into a timeless vibration. These runesthese symbols, and the sounds they representcontain unbound vibrational energy rooted in, but not limited to, the past. Runes carry with them the wisdom of the ages.