Futhark: Rune Magic 101 - Teiwaz/Týr (T/t)

“Winning-runes learn,
if thou longest to win,
And the runes on thy sword-hilt write;
Some on the furrow,
and some on the flat,
And twice shalt thou call on Tyr.”
 - Sigrdrífumál 

Literal Meaning & History 

Brace yourselves, there’ll be a fair bit of history here, or at least more than is the norm so far. Please read it though. To know this is important to knowing the rune. 

Literally, the name of this rune is Týr, the ás, the god. 

Týr was once worshipped as much as, if not more than, Odin and some of the names Odin wears today are borrowed or inherited from Týr. 
Týr was the original god of war in the nordic system. 
And even further back, Týr may have been the universal name for “god”. 

There are many stories of Týr where he’s put in positions no other god has been put in. For example, only twice has a god’s raw strength been compared to that of Thor’s. Once it was Týr and later it was the son of Týr. 

The most famous of all the stories of Týr is the story of Fenrisúlfur and this is the origin of Týr’s nickname as the one armed or one handed god. 

Týr was the master swordsman of the gods. None was his equal in battle, so great was his skill with a blade. 

Fenrisúlfur was the child of Loki and Angurboða (literal meaning “messenger of pain”). Angurboða was a witch and a giantess. She had been burned to the ground but Loki had found her heart still beating in the ashes. So, to protect her heart, he swallowed it. 
This was a heart of evil that overwhelmed him, grew within him, and eventually gestated into a wolf that Loki gave birth to. 
As this creature was the child of Loki, though it was a being of malice, the gods allowed it to stay in Asgard and grow up there. 

While the wolf was intelligent it was also a beast of hunger, fury and hate, and it grew large. So large that by the end the only one of the gods (Loki included) that dared approach the beast and feed it was Týr, the bravest of all the gods. 

Eventually the beast became so large and so terrifying a presence that it was decided that the beast needed to be bound, contained, controlled. 
Not killed, no. After all this was the child of Loki, blood brother to Odin himself. 

So they fashioned a binding and tempted the wolf to try and see if he could break it, which he did. 

Again they fashioned a binding and tempted the wolf, and again he broke free.

The third binding was made by the svartalvar, from six ingredients. 
The sound of the cat’s footsteps.
The breath of the fish.
The bird’s spit.
The woman’s beard.
The roots of the mountain.
And the bear’s tendons.

This time the wolf was suspicious so he asked that one of the gods would place his arm in his mouth. Týr, again, the bravest of the gods, volunteered. Though some versions of this tale cast Týr as the caretaker of the wolf, or adopted father as Loki is said to have no interest in the wolf once it was born. 
So what exactly made Týr brave enough to do this isn’t known, but what one can assume is that if any god knew where this would end, it was Týr. 

And so, knowing what was to come, the greatest swordsman in all of Asgard, placed his sword arm in the mouth of the beast. 

This time the binding held.
And Týr lost his arm.

Figurative Meaning & Symbolism 

As this is the rune of Týr, the name of Týr, Týr is at the heart of the meaning of this rune, though “Warrior” is a pretty good word to keep in mind. 

If you write and invoke this rune as a part of a spell you’re invoking Týr himself, so be advised that appropriate offerings to Týr are mead (or beer as an alternative) meat and blood. 

This rune refers to justice, true justice, not just the law. 
This is a rune of self-sacrifice. 
This is discipline, especially self-discipline. 
This is responsibility.
This is conflict. 
This is injury, wounds, hurt feelings. 
This is the law, the rules, and what they mean. 

This is repeating the physical motions in preparation for the recital for the thousandth time, ignoring pain from blisters and fatigue. Because this needs to be perfect. 

This is standing, arms locked, with your fellow man in protest, crying out for justice.

This is standing guard at the other side of the street, trying to serve the law, questioning your motives and those of the men standing around you. 

This is being responsible for the well being of another living being and standing up to the task, to that job. 

This isn’t fighting for your personal gain. 
This is fighting for what’s right, for what’s important, for what you should. 

This is… This is Týr. 
Standing with his hand in the mouth of the wolf. 
The wolf he fed. 
The wolf he raised. 
Knowing that the beast, however loved, must be controlled. 
And knowing the price is your sword arm. 

As such, this rune does not just represent the battle, or the victory, but the sacrifice. Not necessarily of what you are or what gives you worth, but of what you may have to lose. 

Context is key.

The small poem above reads; 
Týr is the one-handed god
And the wolf´s leavings.
And the guardian(/prince) of the temple.

Suggested Homework

What is your battle?
What do you fight for?
What is important to you?
What are you willing to sacrifice to win?

Don’t answer instinctively or immediately and without thought. 

Think. 

Dig down and look for an honest answer. 

What will you let go of for the sake of victory over injustice?

Are you ready to take this battle to it’s bitter end?

It’s okay to not be ready. 
It’s okay to pick one’s battles. 
It’s okay to be afraid and to be unsure. 

If you can’t give an answer with certainty, then “I do not know” is an answer. 

But try to find an answer. 
Try to know.