Naudhiz

After reading my friend Galina Krasskova's excellent new book, Runes: Theory and Practice, I became interested in the magical use of the ancient Sacred Alphabet.  These are some notes of my working with Naudhiz, the rune of Necessity and Need-Fire.

I was immediately impressed with how powerful this rune is. I can see where adding it to a bindrune would definitely increase the speed, force and efficacy of the working. But I can also see how it needs to be used with caution. If you really need the magic to work it is a powerful aide but if not it's likely to turn on you. Naudhiz is the adrenalin burst that lets you lift a car off your child or the force of will that lets you keep going long after your body should have collapsed miles ago.  I got the sense it only likes to be called when there is a real need: it feeds off the fear and stress of desperation. If that isn't there, it feels cheated and will put you in a place where you can feed it. It will teach you very quickly the difference between "want" and "need."   I think Naudhiz could also be a very useful rune for those who desperately need to grow the hell up and accept responsibility for their actions. Meditating on Naudhiz and taking its advice would likely be considerably less painful than having it manifest uncontrolled in your life. This could be a powerful rune in love magic for making someone fall hopelessly, desperately in love with you or for inflicting a painful obsession on a target . I would probably give it an animal were I using it for that purpose. While it would be feeding off the target, I think it would also expect payment from the caster. Naudhiz is very much about getting reimbursed for anything it does. Galina identifies Naudhiz with Sigyn, the wife of Loki in her role as Loki's protector in the cave. I totally agree: Sigyn embodies the kind of terror, suffering and perseverance at the heart of Naudhiz. Naudhiz can give you the stamina to prevail over obstacles and the wisdom to know what to keep and how to get by without that which you have lost. It's definitely an unforgiving rune but a powerful one to those who are ready to pay its price.