The Ar-Kan Runes and the Tree of Life

Figure 1.

The above shows what we usually call the Nine Glory-Twigs of Woden; Hamasson drew a variant of this which has the upright staves the same width apart as the cross-staves. I have now developed this even further and produced a design that should fit our needs.

Figure 2.

This retains the Nine Glory-Twigs design but puts the whole thing into a hexagon. All of the 33 runes can still be taken from this design, but it now further continues the development of the Ar-Kan Runes from the Armanen Runes of Guido von List. If you look carefully at the pattern seven hexagrams emerge from the whole; this represents the Seven Worlds of the Saxons (the Norse had Nine Worlds). The whole design can be fitted into a circle. This is the Wheel of Wr.Alda - the Yule-Wheel.

Figure 3.

This is called the 'Seed of Life', this and the 'Flower of Life' being names used in the 'New Age Movement'. Note here that the circles are seven in number, with the Hagal-Rune in the centre. This is the same as the seven hexagons in Figure 2. What I have done is to substitute the name 'Tree of Life' which seems less 'New-Agey' and more akin to our own Northern Tradition. Like the Armanen Runes, the Ar-Kan Runes all stem from the hexagon-shaped form, but here the Nine Glory-Twigs are used within the Ur-Hexagon.

It is interesting to note here what Edred Thorsson has to say about the Hagal-Rune -

"...involves the projection from above or beyond of a hard and dangerous substance which is also the 'Seed of Becoming', new creation and transformation - sometimes through crisis. This is a transformation within the framework of cosmos, and the re-unification of opposites in a productive way.'

The Hagal-Rune/Haegl-Rune is a rune of transformation, being the snowflake (ice)  that turns into water. As 'hail' it is destructive; as 'heil' it represents wholeness and health. Here Thorsson tells us that this is 'a projection from above or beyond', i.e. it is from another world/dimension; it is a 'new creation and transformation' as the 'Seed of Becoming' (the rune has the meaning of a 'cold grain', i.e. a 'seed'). Today we live through a massive crisis, and this is perhaps needed in order for this change to take place - this is the meaning of the Hagal-Rune. The rune also shows the 'Union of Opposites' within the whole/heil in either the Hagal (snowflake) or Haegl-Rune.

The Haegl-Rune is the rune of opposites, with its 'snowflake' form being the most obvious: this has the 'Life-Rune' and 'Death-Rune' in balance in the same glyph. The Elder Futhark Hagal and Anglo-Saxon Haegl-Rune also have this same balance but using the Ur-Rune. This is where the difference of rune-sound comes into play -

Heil - wholeness, health, heal, holy etc.

Hail - disruption, change, destruction (to recreation). 

I am now reminded of the strange circumstances around a set of runes that I was asked to interpret at the Wayland's Smithy some years ago. Two different peoples, wives of both Hamasson and myself, had dreams of a youth with long black hair, accompanied by a black dog, coming to the Smithy when we were there. A young chap with a black dog did turn up and he asked me to interpret a set of runes, those shown on the stave above. At the time such a request is difficult in view of the varied meanings of the runes, and invariably the answers come much later, and here seemed meant for WF due to the circumstances.

I did give him a rough idea, relating to change through destruction, and a rebirth into a New Dawn. The central rune relating to Ingwe, the English and to England. I am going to develop this in light of new revelations -

Haegl (reversed) - This is obviously a negative rune because it is reversed; it means change through disaster or catastrophe in any case ('Hail'). Here the catastrophic change is even more negative due to the rune being reversed. In view of the meaning given to this rune by Edred Thorsson this change is even more important today than it was then. It is interesting to note that the Haegl-Rune is used here rather than Hagal (the runes are Saxon). The Hagal-Rune does feature in the bind-rune below this.

The central rune is a bind-rune of Isa and Ing; it also contains the Germanic Ing-Rune between the Eolhls-Rune and Calc-Rune, Ingwe between life and death! This is Ingwe 'sacrificed' upon the World Pillar, sacrificed 'himself to himself' on the Tree of Life & Death. That the bind-rune can also be seen as two Edel-Runes upright and reversed is interesting since this relates to the 'homeland' - England. This rune also featured on a staff I made at the time of the Hale-Bopp Comet; unconsciously I used this rune on the staff. The Ing-Rune here is of the Ken-Fusion type, thus representing Fire. In the one bind-rune we have the fusion of opposites - Ice and Fire.

This is further underlined by the next rune, Daeg, which has the meaning of 'Light and Darkness' within the same stave. It can also refer to the time of this balance - dawn - and thus the New Dawn. This version is made up of a Thorn-Rune and its reflection, so once again it relates to destruction, and as 'Thor's Hammer' as the destruction of our enemies. It relates to the destruction of the Old Order since we are ruled by the enemies of Gods and Folk.

The two other runes that this young chap saw, and which he stated were not part of this formula, were Eolhs and Beorc. These two take the formula a step further since they hint at a complete rebirth (Beorc) and new life (Eolhs). The totally destructive nature of this is necessary in order that new life can emerge out of the destruction of the old.

The Tree of Life is made up of cubes, the 'building-blocks' of life itself; the figure is a mandala which, when concentrated on, shows us differing patterns as the eyes focus differently. The runes can be found within the Tree of Life, which is where Woden discovered them (since they were already there, already existing). They are thus facets of the whole, parts of the one-ness that we call the Wyrd, that which is Becoming. 

The Ing-Rune

The Ing-Rune is usually said to mean 'a hero' or 'a god' and has an association with Ingwe-Frey. In one interpretation I came upon the meaning 'beacon' was also given to this rune, thus associating this with 'fire'. But the usual meaning given in Folkish circles is related to 'Blood', as the Edel-Rune is related to 'Blood & Soil'. Indeed, the Anglo-Saxon Ing-Rune can be seen as the Edel-Rune upright and reversed joined as one symbol. 

It is the association with 'fire' that I am here going to look at since I believe that this is an important meaning often overlooked by rune-workers. There are two distinct meanings from our Indo-European Roots, the word 'fire' referring to the physical form, and the IE Root *egni referring to the metaphysical form - a spiritual form. This root gives us the Hindu Fire-God, Agni, and also such words as 'ignite', 'ignition' etc. Hamasson pointed out that the reflection of AGNI is INGA which is a fascinating idea that we should not overlook. 

There are two distinct versions of the Ing-Rune and these should be considered in respect to the hidden meanings within this stave -

• The above shows what could be termed the 'Ken-Fusion' of the rune, being two Ken-Runes joined together. This version, of course, underlines the link to 'fire' in a metaphysical sense. Since the Ken-Rune is associated with 'fire' but also with the 'Fire-Serpent' (*) there is a link to the concept of the Hindu Kundalini. 
• One alternative version of this rune turns the above on its side, which seems to glyph the male-female in sexual union, thus symbolic of virility and fertility, and obviously linking this to Ingwe-Frey. In this version we have the 'Ur-Fusion' where the ur-glyphic Ur-Rune is upright and reversed in the same symbol.

Kundalini - Continuing the symbol as above by extending both ends, the 'Coiling Serpent' unfolds, as does the DNA Spiral, which this rune symbolises too. Ken is the Rune of Fire but it is also the Rune of the Fire-Serpent. The key to this can be seen in the rune-meanings themselves, being a rune of 'kin' and of 'ken' (knowledge), and being a rune of 'kingship'. The Brosingamen Necklace of Freya is linked to this rune - 'Feminine Fire'. 

The 'Gift of Ing' is 'fire' which is inherent in the White Stone of Ing shown above. It is noticeable that the Ing-Rune is almost fixed to the alternative Ken-Rune, whilst the Gyfu-Rune has a bigger gap, thus perhaps underlining the link to 'fire'. The alternative Ken-Rune is seen as the ur-glyphic Ur-Rune with a 'pillar of flame' or 'pillar of smoke' whichever way you see it. The Ur-Rune seen in this way always symbolises the 'heavens' as opposed to its upside-down version which is symbolic of the 'earth'. In a certain sense this is male and thus connected to spirit, thus hinting that this is indeed Spiritual Fire. 

I have shown so many times how this Holy Stone came to light through a link to a New Testament text, so we need not go into that here. Suffice it to say that the gist of this is that Ing is the 'new name of God', i.e. that Ingwe is the new god-force of the New Age, the new archetype if you like; this is the Age of the Son (Ing means 'son of' or 'offspring of'). In view of this we need to recognise that this is an Age of Fire in the sense of a renewal of the Spiritual Fire that permeates the Cosmos and dwells within our Folk too. It is significant that the conception of the Age of Ing came on August 11th 1999 with a solar eclipse that created the Black Sun. The significance of the solar eclipse cannot be overestimated since this phenomena brings with it a 'crown' which is symbolic of 'kingship'. 

It was thus the Black Sun which gave 'birth' to the new god-force, or at this time 'conceived' the new archetype. Nine months later, May 2000, a significant planetary conjunction gave 'birth' to this new Aryan Force. May is the time of the 'White Sun' (until recently the term 'Whitsun' was still used) and thus the symbolism of the White Dragon clearly links to the birth of the new Aryan Archetype (or rather the ancient Aryan archetype, since the cyclic nature of forces means that this is resurrected in a new form for our times). 

I have shown in previous posts how Ing is both associated with the planet Venus and with the Constellation of Bootes. The latter is important since it figures in the Legend of Cuthman found connected to Steyning ('Stone-Ing') in West Sussex. The legend mentions 'oxen' which connects to Bootes, but also to the Ur-Rune which form part of the Ur-Glyphic Ing-Rune. Bootes is the force that drives the Waen (Great Bear/Big Dipper), and its prime star, Arcturus, is the Guardian of the Bear, and is the name linked to 'King Arthur'. There is also another subtle link which I believe Hamasson once pointed out, for arthr is the Old Norse name for 'plough' and the Great Bear is often called 'The Plough'. There are certain people who say that Bootes represents The Coming One which to us can mean only Wid-Ar the Avenger. This god-form is a similar archetype to Ingwe-Scef and also to HelgiH or the Spirit 88.

'One Land - One Blood!' - The new motto used by WF, a motto strongly connected to the new god-force Ingwe. This is 'Ing-Land' and we are the 'Ing-Lish' - the 'Sons of Ing'. Honour & Loyalty is our motto too, and our loyalty is to our Sacred Land and our Folk. Guided by the Spear of Woden and the Ravens of Woden we lead a new English Resistance against the growing oppression of our Folk in this land, and aid our Germanic Kinfolk in the struggle for the New Europa. 

If you look up the term 'Apkallu' online you will find the figure of a god named 'Oannes' or something similar to this figure in various cultures of the Middle-East. This figure is usually seen as bird-headed or fish-headed, and often associated with the 'Flood'. He and other figures are seen in the shape of the Ac-Rune, holding a 'bag' or 'bucket' in one hand, and sometimes a 'pine-cone' in the other. He appears to be associated with the 'Flood of Atlantis' and the loss of the 'Third Eye', which goes back to around 12,000 years ago, or half a cycle of 24,000 years (some say 26,000 years). The symbolism for the Age of Aquarius is a 'water-bearer' pouring the waters onto the Earth, most likely symbolic of the period of dissolution at the end of this cosmic cycle. 

This is diverging slightly but seems to be of importance since the 'Apkallu' are the Seven Sages of various Aryan Myths connected to the Great Flood and the renewal of civilisation brought by these god-like figures after the flooding of the lands. I have featured the Seven Sages on the Inglinga Blog and they are linked to the Seven Sons of Mimir. They are, in some myths, linked to the Great Bear or Woden's Waen, which is why I see the significance of this in relation to Bootes, and thus the Ing-Rune.

The above is another version of the Ing-Rune and one that looks very much like Bootes at certain times of the year. The upright stave ends with Arcturus at the bottom. Woden's Waen is thus the Chariot of Ing which revolves around the Pole Star. Bootes is a hunter and is often shown with two hunting-dogs; his name is said to mean 'clamourer' which may suggest the idea of an 'awakener'. 

Bootes is sometimes shown holding a scythe, a symbol which features in Revelation when describing the 'Son of Man'. Ing, of course, is the 'Son of Man(nus)'. Manu appears before the Great Flood in order to save the Ancient Wisdom and sow the seeds of a regeneration after the catastrophe. Like the Seven Sages he appears at this particular time of the Cosmic Cycle. We are witness today to the 'Great Flood' in the form of the great invasion of Europe by outlanders, wrongly termed 'migrants' or 'refugees'. According to the Eddas the 'Mighty One' appears before the flood......

....... and an 'even Greater One' appears after the flood.......

The first we can equate with 'Manu' and the second with 'Ing' ('Son of Manu'); the sword passes from the 'Father' to the 'Son' - the Sword of Hengest. Hengest is the 'Ghost of Ing' or 'Spirit of Ing' and one of the Divine Horse Twins, Hengest and Horsa. As I stated before the above painting by Franz von Shuck was done in 1899, just 100 years before the 'awakening' of the 'Ghost of Ing' in 1999. This was also the first year of the Lord of the Rings trilogy which is a synchronicity not to be laughed at. It is thus perhaps significant to note that the above, like the 1889 painting, is that of the Wild Hunter and that Bootes is shown as a hunter. Perhaps it is significant to note that in the second painting (1899) he appears to be riding a white horse.

We are living through the great period of dissolution, and the 'dissolution of the races' in which everything returns to the 'Waters of Chaos'. So we have to expect things to be a bit 'rough' and we should also recognise that these things were bound to come about, and in recognising the events of today, and linking them to the myths concerning the end of a cycle - beginning of a new cycle - we can perhaps learn some lessons from our ancient past. 

The key to understanding the Ing-Rune is that of a Rune of Fire, fire in a metaphysical sense, fire linked to the Fire-Serpent or Kundalini, of which the rune is a glyph. The IE Root *ingwe means 'groin', the area where the Sleeping Goddess lies, ready to be awoken by the Woden Initiate. When we fit the 33 runes of the Ar-Kan Rune-row onto the human spinal column, starting at the top with Feoh we end with the Gar-Rune at the very base of the coccyx, the Gar-Rune being the 'Gift of Ing', a glyph of Gyfu and Ing. 

Nostradamus prophesied that the 'King of the Angles' would be 'resurrected' with the Black Sun of August 11th 1999; the 'King of the Angles' is Ingwe/Ing and his archetype represents, as stated before, the new archetype or god-force for the Age of Ing which we are entering now. Yes, this is a time of great transition, a time of dissolution, a time of disorder and chaos, but out of this chaos a New Order will arise. These times herald great changes, catastrophic changes, indeed the survival of our Folk is threatened, but only when the Folk-Soul of our people cries out will the Gods send one of their own, only when the times are so bad, so chaotic, so destructive, will the Gods send one of their own. The Ing-Rune represents the Aryan Hero who will be the Divine Child of the Gods, born of an earthly mother but with the Spark of the Gods. Only when the new archetype of the new Warrior-God replaces that of the 'Hanged God' will these things come about.