Yesterday, I worked in my garden. We’ve recently moved and I’ve been battling with a pretty insane amount of weeds and other plants as I try to get this plot of land healthy enough for flowers and herbs. Yesterday’s weed removal included some 2.5/3 ft roots that had been under the ground, and it was a physically taxing day as I tried to remove the majority of these deep, dead roots in the plot.
As I worked, I thought of the rune of ancestral land, Othala. The rune that connects you to the land that you and your family has claimed for theirs. That day, I felt that the land was taking a toll from me to remove these old roots. I gave it my energy, it yielded the roots and weeds that I asked for. It reminded me that the more I work the land, observing and respecting the earth that I currently claim, the more I am connected with it. The more I garden and reflect on the chain of humanity that has farmed and tended their plots, the closer I am with my ancestry.Â
Previously, I have always connected the shape of Othala with a sun rising over a hill. Yesterday, it began to change meaning for me.
The bottom part began to represent the roots that grow, both psychically and physically, when we act as stewards of our land and ancestry. The more we invest in these activities, the healthier our surroundings and our inner self will be. In that way, Othala is a balancing rune, looking backwards and forwards - we take our ancestor’s knowledge of the land and our selves and use it to move more wisely through the present.Â