Kari’s Voluspa

Things that concern the health of our Folk Soul,our Human Soul, and our Planetary Soul.

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Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

I am a Völva. Völva is Old Norse for “staff carrier,” the traveling spiritual guide learned in the ways of my European/Scandinavian Folk Soul. Like Thorbjorg from Eric the Red’s Saga, I am invited into communities to lead ceremony, share information, impart wisdom, and perpetuate the folk ways through song, story, and dance. I heal oorlag at it's source and read wyrd for individuals and groups.

Monday, January 30, 2006

A symbol, a sound, a word

The power of our words is so vast like the ocean.

My words speak power from a Godzilla movie.

My words they speak truth from a lab coat and glasses.

My words they speak worlds from the molecules that make me.

My words they speak spirit, wordlessly, in my breath.

Breathe in(om) ...Breathe out (mmmm)000

Breathe in 23,456, 2,3,4,5,6

Breathe out - Tsheuwwwwwwwwseee

HeeeeBreeetheimmmm......

Tap your feet in time with your breath.

This is how we begin staving.

Kari

Friday, January 27, 2006

An Ansuz sort of day

Ansuz is the mouth of the river defined. The mouth of the river visual looks like this.

Today I am getting ready to host the parent volunteers for the Art Adventure Program. I am preparing what I will say and what the visuals to help teach will look like. It is creative time but I am also aware that this is information that will flow to at least 6 others. An artist from Brazil, a mother dentist from the Philipines, a mother artist from Mexico, a father artist from Guatemala, our PTO co-chair mom, and an active volunteer and community builder mom..I am going to archive this process so I want to be prepared to speak with wisdom and allow the other estuaries of knowlege contribute to the mouth we are creating in the sea of children who we serve.

Ansuz and isa,
Ice. A fast freeze and a cold snap are doom to speeders.

Kari

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Ah, this part of the book is done!

24 runes in 24 days, random rune pull and journal writing by Kari Tauring began after the Western New Year in 2006 and was finished by Imbolc, 2006.

Hmmm....what next? As my editor works with this portion of the great book (as opposed to the Little Rune Book, 2003) I have decided to go outside.

The unseasonably warm weather has Katie, our chicken, almost ready to lay. I told her not yet. I've been telling all the plants not yet and heaping chips on them where I can.

Budding out too soon is a danger
Frost comes in the Spring
What dies in the cold
Births the next thing

So, Beorc reversed I would say.

What I shall do now is commence my blogging with you.
I spent 24 and some solid days writing about what comes to me from the rune symbols I draw at random. So now I will ask:

What rune symbols are drawn to me out of what I am doing in the world?

Huggin and Muggin flew overhead. This is Saturnalian, lesson learning. They are thought and memory. What is in my thoughts? How is my memory holding?

Time to take in more Lecithin (a nutrient essential to propper brain function). Nied, I would say.

Kari

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Huldre prepare for Spring

What do the Huldre do after the rice pudding is gone and the cider is starting to go "hoopy hoppy" as my great grandmother would say?

Imbolc is the old Celtic name for the February 2nd holiday we sometimes call Groundhog's Day. It is the begining of Spring (where Winter Solstice is midwinter and Equinox is midspring) This is the time when we take the seeds out of the tins and dark cool cupboards to see how they survived the winter. What is viable and what is spoiled?

We take the best seeds saved from last fall's harvest and we bless them. Some of them we need to start soon such as tomatos and peppers. Some of them we keep an eye on so they don't mold as days grow lighter and warmer because they need to be sewn directly, such as corn, peas and beans. The Huldre were the folk that taught the early Nordic people the best practices for agriculture and animal husbandry. As children of the goddess Freya, Queen of the Vanir, the Huldre will celebrate the life that stirs slowly and deeply in their underground homes.

The legend of groundhog must have come from the early people of the hill. If we see our shadow, we may get frightened and stay in our homes beneath the earth for another 6 weeks (until Spring Equinox). Why would our shadow frighten us?

Winter is a time for shadow, deep reflection, hibernation, and the dream time. If we have not integrated our shadow self enough during this time, we need to do it some more. Only through integrating our shadow side do we become whole psychologically. We need to understand the darkness of humanity, the difficult side of things, the choices we have to do great good and great evil. If we do not understand this, we are not able to use our free will to choose the great goodness we are capable of. Huldre understand this.

So, at this cross quarter point between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, the Huldre are busy sorting their seeds, using the cider-gone-vinegar to cleanse and purge their systems, restoring balance to their bodies and to the Earth Mother from whom we all are born. They are starting to prepare the goats and cows for the trek up the mountain to the Summer pastures. They are finishing their spinning and mending using up the last of the previous year's wool and flax. They are finishing their songs and poems to be sung as the Spring draws near. As the last of winter's candles burn bright they prepare for change.

Ah...the Huldre are a busy lot!
More on Huldre

More on Seasonal Holidays

Finding my Muse - Again

So, what is a muse anyhow?

The word comes from Greek mythology. They were the 9 daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne. They help to inspire artists, musicians, scientists etc. In Celtic myth, the muse of poets would be the goddess Brigid. A muse is someone or something outside of oneself that inspires them to do certain creative work.

My latest muse? John Faeth. He was a great bass player in the later days of Rose Absolute and the early days of Thorn (two of my first bands). He seemed always to sense a great work was about to come out of me. He encouraged, nurtured, provided resources and direction.

While compiling my discography for my site I was wondering what he was up to. So I Googled his name and what do you think, he works for the University of St. Thomas, my alma mater, right accross the river from where I live! So I emailed him and we had a great reunion lunch. I was telling him about all the performance art and music I am doing. Once again, he senses what I could do and provides me with resources and focus to get these things accomplished in a fraction of the time it would take to do it on my own.

Well, on account of John Faeth, you can hear songs from these old band projects and you can now purchase a copy of the 1998 release "Faith in Me" once only available on Mp3.com. And soon you will be able to see and hear my latest work with Huldre as we plunge into a video project together!

So, that's a muse to me. An energy outside myself that inspires me to create more art more deeply than I would ever be able to do on my own.

Thanks, Johnny.

Forthcoming book

I am sorry I have not been publishing random rune pulls for you. I've been trying to write a rune book for David (who commented on the previous entry) for many years. I finally know what he wants and it has to do with random rune pulls. So I have been engaged in pulling a new rune each day and writing about it. This book should be completed and ready for publication before the end of 2006. But the bulk of my writing will be done within the next two weeks (before Imbolc).

So, until then, I will not be able to blog much for you but look forward to our continuing relationship as spring forces it's way to the surface of my world.

Until then, remember: Runes are all about relationships.

RunaKari

Nordic Roots Class Schedule

About my hand made runes (with pictures!)