Nordic Wiccan: Haglaz Rune

Haglaz or Hagalaz is the name of the h-rune ᚺ, meaning hail, precipitation, transformation. The Elder Futhark letter has two variants, single-barred ᚺ and double-barred ᚻ. The double-barred variant is found in continental inscriptions while Scandinavian inscriptions have exclusively the single-barred variant. Hela.

Even a good life has its days.
As a hard rain good for the crops
turns to a hail storm that flattens them.
Even then the bad times don't last;
even the thickest hail
melts away.

The Hagalaz rune, above all others, represents the concept of balance; yin/yang, male/female, positive/negative, black/white .

Essential to the understanding of the Hagalaz rune is the idea that the destruction of the old brings necessary growth of the new. This concept is contained in the Norse myths of Ragnarok and of creation. Hagalaz represents a dramatic event or trauma which comes from outside your own immediate perceptions.

Challenges are occurring in your life, but these are to be embraced rather than feared. A hailstorm, for example, may seem daunting and scary at first, but if you catch a hailstone you will realize that it is only Water and is not to be feared.

Hagalaz is the rune that tells you to pay attention. Often throughout one’s life, we receive ‘wake-up calls’, which are often misinterpreted as ‘Divine punishment’ for some imagined wrong, when in fact they are merely a way of drawing your attention to a recurrent pattern in your life which needs to be addressed in order for you to progress, positively.

Change is definitely necessary. An adjustment on world-views and personal outlook may be indicated. Initially, all may seem catastrophic, but its aftermath will prove fruitful. Your power lies within your inner strength, and it is this that will provide you with support and guidance at a time when everything you’ve taken for granted is being challenged.