Dec
Feeling the Jer Rune
Jer is the Rune of the Year, Harvest and Expansion. For folks who speak English, the J is pronounced like the Y in Yes. Scandinavians and German already know this pronunciation of J. Here are exercises for Jer:
The nature of Jer Force is to pull outward and upward, as opposed to the downward and inward push of Naud. Jer is an ever-expanding thing, much like our universe, the orbits of planets, etc. In fact, Jer is behind the passage of Sun and Moon, symbolized by the Sun and Moon carts of myth.
1) Do this at your own risk. Take a cord, light chain or cable of three to six feet and hook a weight on the end. You can use a fishing sinker, padlock or bunch of keys. You do not a need a lot of weight. A half pound is plenty. Attach it securely to the cord and then go outside where you have a lot of room. Swing the cord in an circle overhead. Swing it in arcs. Feel the centrifugal principle forcing the weight to the outside. Feel the pull on the cord. Try varying the speed and the angle. What you are actually feeling is Jer force in action. The cord is not pushed. It is pulled taut by centrifugal force. That force is one of the manifestations of Jer in action.
2) The principle of Jer is akin to the process of planting. The crop is planted, it is tended so that it grows, and then it is harvested. This is a long term process. Unlike the short-term weekly paycheck, Jer requires weeks or months to pay. Go back to your own experiences of long-term projects, be it planting a garden all the way to running a political campaign. The idea to which you are linking is that of the lengthy process whose fulfillment requires time. If you do not have such an experience, create one. Try growing a plant from seed to flower. You can use an indoor plant, if you want. You can substitute a food-bearing plant, if you wish. Whether the result is a flower or a tomato, you have an example of Jer’s long process.
Alternate exercise: Mothers can understand Jer as a long term project, The process of pregnancy is a perfect example of Jer as a process. Mothers can think back on their experience in terms of beginning, process and birth. It is similar to planting, growth and harvest, except that the end result is a rug rat.* Because this Jer process occurs within the mother’s own body, it is a highly personal example of Jer at work. Fathers might be able to think of Jer in terms of their experiences with the expectant mother right on up to the little one’s birth. However, try as they will, they will not get this exercise as well as the mother.
Jer the Year is the long cycle, as opposed to the short cycle of Dag the Day. A good exercise is to mentally review your own year. Start with the point at which you were last year. Go through your year, noting the highlights and key events. Look at how each one leads to the next. Follow them to your present place. Consider how your circumstances have changed since last year: socially, financially, physically. This process is an example of Jer working in the long term.
Look into your past and think of how it felt to achieve a long-term goal. This means several weeks to months and even in some cases, years. Consider the effort and patience necessary. Try to draw up the way you felt when the goal was accomplished. Think of how you felt when you received the pay-off.
Have you made an investment that paid off? Have you started a project with a small investment of materials and turned it into a larger harvest of profit? If you have, there is another personal experience of Jer’s expansiveness
Jer pulls up and out. The Bjork Rune pushes up and out. This is an essential difference worthy of consideration. Jer is the Rune of expansion; Bjork is Growth. A subtle differences, but significant.
****
We have decided to run our book sale until the end of December. We offer our own books on Heathenism, Rune magick, spellcraft, Norse Tradition, Recovery, Magickal Safety / Psychic Defense and Myth & Magick at discount prices. You can find our discounts here: http://www.thortrains.com/UncleThors/specials07.htm
