The Viking Runes Series by Ralph Blum
Published by Oracle Books / St. Martin's Press
The Book of Runes by Ralph Blum
A Handbook for the Use of an Ancient Oracle
1987 Third Edition Hardcover
The Healing Runes by Ralph Blum and Susan Loughan
Tools for the Recovery of Body, Mind, Heart and Soul
1995 First Edition Hardcover
Book ONLY, Stones not included.
Very Good Vintage Condition. The books are clean, covers attached, secure bindings, unmarked, no writing, no highlighting, no fading, no stains, no ripped pages, no edge chipping, no corner folds, no creased pages, no remainder marks, not ex-library. Some light visible surface and edge wear from age, use, storage and handling.
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A new age classic and bestseller for more than thirty-five years, The Book of Runes by cultural anthropologist Ralph H. Blum is the most renowned volume on the subject of learning how to consult this ancient Viking alphabet for self-counseling. Based on a tradition more than two millennia old, Ralph H. Blum presents contemporary interpretations of Rune casting for Spiritual Warriors, people seeking wisdom and guidance to affect positive change in their present lives to build a better future.
Ralph Blum is a writer and cultural anthropologist who has been working with the Runes as a tool for self-counseling since 1977. He is the author of the successful Runes series, including The Book of Runes, The Healing Runes, and The Serenity Runes.
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Reviews:
Added to my collection.....
Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2015
The myths, tales, songs that come down to us from this ancient culture in surviving bits and pieces were part of a spoken tradition passed down through the generations, probably suppressed and squashed as subsequent cultures/languages came and went before written language was the norm. ( I credit the Romans for wiping out those pre-Christian cultures) That means most of what we "know" about the Runes is based on historical/anthropological research by "experts" , personal opinions/bias, New Age shill craft and plain old whimsy. This just seems to support the notion the ancient past doesn't have the corner on Seeing and Oracles, which makes the Runes alive and fascinating to me! A friend had this little book and I enjoyed the interpretations for the runes which were different from the interpretations in the other books I had. It is a small book, physically and content wise, concise and to the point. While all the interpretations were loosely the same as in other books, Blum has a way of verbally illustrating the symbolism which proved more understandable to me. I am happy to have it in my library!
Read the book, cast the runes and then make your own
Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2019
This book and set came out in 1983. They were given to me by my Grandmother when I was 13 and I've read them since then. Mostly for myself and a few close friends. Sometime after that I heard Mr. Blum talk about them in the basement of a small book store in Minneapolis. The book is the "bible" because the integration of ancient wisdom is amazing. They have been such a strong influence on my life. The reason that I have read the runes for over 35 years is because they simply take you out of your situation and see it from a different perspective. The daily rune is something everyone should do. A rune journal is also a great way to keep record of your journey. There are so many ways to integrate the runes into your life.
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A rune is a letter in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write Germanic languages (with some exceptions) before they adopted the Latin alphabet, and for specialised purposes thereafter. In addition to representing a sound value (a phoneme), runes can be used to represent the concepts after which they are named (ideographs). Scholars refer to instances of the latter as Begriffsrunen ('concept runes'). The Scandinavian variants are also known as fuþark, or futhark, these names derived from the first six letters of the script, ⟨ᚠ⟩, ⟨ᚢ⟩, ⟨ᚦ⟩, ⟨ᚨ⟩/⟨ᚬ⟩, ⟨ᚱ⟩, and ⟨ᚲ⟩/⟨ᚴ⟩, corresponding to the Latin letters ⟨f⟩, ⟨u⟩, ⟨þ⟩/⟨th⟩, ⟨a⟩, ⟨r⟩, and ⟨k⟩. The Anglo-Saxon variant is futhorc, or fuþorc, due to changes in Old English of the sounds represented by the fourth letter, ⟨ᚨ⟩/⟨ᚩ⟩. Runology is the academic study of the runic alphabets, runic inscriptions, runestones, and their history. Runology forms a specialised branch of Germanic philology.
The earliest secure runic inscriptions date from around AD 150, with a potentially earlier inscription dating to AD 50 and Tacitus's potential description of rune use from around AD 98. The Svingerud Runestone dates from between AD 1 to 250. Runes were generally replaced by the Latin alphabet as the cultures that had used runes underwent Christianisation, by approximately AD 700 in central Europe and 1100 in northern Europe. However, the use of runes persisted for specialized purposes beyond this period. Up until the early 20th century, runes were still used in rural Sweden for decorative purposes in Dalarna and on runic calendars. The three best-known runic alphabets are the Elder Futhark (AD 150–800), the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc (400–1100), and the Younger Futhark (800–1100). The Younger Futhark is divided further into the long-branch runes (also called Danish, although they were also used in Norway, Sweden, and Frisia); short-branch, or Rök, runes (also called Swedish–Norwegian, although they were also used in Denmark); and the stavlösa, or Hälsinge, runes (staveless runes). The Younger Futhark developed further into the medieval runes (1100–1500), and the Dalecarlian runes (1500–1800).
The exact development of the early runic alphabet remains unclear but the script ultimately stems from the Phoenician alphabet. Early runes may have developed from the Raetic, Venetic, Etruscan, or Old Latin as candidates. At the time, all of these scripts had the same angular letter shapes suited for epigraphy, which would become characteristic of the runes and related scripts in the region. The process of transmission of the script is unknown. The oldest clear inscriptions are found in Denmark and northern Germany. A "West Germanic hypothesis" suggests transmission via Elbe Germanic groups, while a "Gothic hypothesis" presumes transmission via East Germanic expansion. Runes continue to be used in a wide variety of ways in modern popular culture.