[Vilturj] 09 - Nauthija

[moonvoice]

Nauthija (NEE - thee - ya) - Also known as Naud, Nauthiz, Naudhr, Nyd, Naut, Nad, Nod, Neid, Nied, Naudiz, Nit, Not, Nauthur, Nauthrz (alternative Vilturr pron.)

Value - N

Numeric Order - 9 (usually 10)

Traditionally Represents - Need

Represents - Need. Norns. Crisis. Crow. Vulture. Raven. Spider. Ash. Alder. Willow. Elm. Black Horse. Dandelion. Nettle. Raspberry. Strawberry. Initiation. Testing. Need-Fires. Beech. Pig. Baba Yaga and in turn, Vavale and the Three Hands (of fate). Vasilia, the Maiden, in her need state.

The bond-maid grieves,
far from home,
a state of oppression
oh the toilsome work.

- Vilturj Rune Poem.

Nauthija is primarily the rune of fundamental need. In a situation where your life, spirituality or personality is threatened with the resistance of fate and the Norns, Nauthija encourages you to innovate and create until you meet your needs. If you do not act, then it was not a need in the first place. Nauthija is the rune that inspires hostages to find means of escape when there was thought to be none. It is the rune that gives courage to the initiate to complete the initiation. It makes one force themselves to work mundane jobs in order to receive the money that will keep them alive. It is a primordial force, complex and intense, and one that is not easy to voluntarily call up.

Nauthija says 'you are between a rock and hard place, so instead of going forward or backwards, go sideways, you'll find your way one day.' Nauthija can also say 'a rock and a hard place make an excellent brace so that you can climb your way to the top and get what you need.' It's message however brings with it hope, fear and desperation. It comes for a reason and with it brings the negative and positive connotations of the carrion bird - Vulture, and the death bird - Raven. After all, if the Norns are messing with your life, chances are, you're going to need all the Nauthija you can get.

Nauthija can be the rune that reminds you that you need to stay in oppressive circumstances in order to acquire the funds you need in order to get the lifestyle you need. It is the rune of social, political, local and spiritual oppression. There are Vilturj exercises of repetitive toil that are torturous and mind-numbing, but also needful and an expression of one's fate. The Shaolin monk, in order to complete his training, must go through incredibly taxing, repetitive work in order to be able to free his soul and his body, though it may take years to realise.

This rune has an important lesson to teach to spiritual beginners, and that is 'stick with something until you learn it.' One of the most frustrating lessons that the seeker, beginner and learner must learn is that it doesn't matter how interesting everything else looks, you MUST stay with something for a certain time until it becomes boring and tedious, to learn something needful. If this rune is drawn by a person who likes picking up new hobbies all the time, or can never finish anything or learn anything adequately, this rune is a bash on the head, and reminds you that if you don't persevere and stick with the unpleasantness, the Norns will find a more painful way of teaching you.

The shape of the rune is that of a straight line, crossed with an angular line, it represents the potential to move on despite the obstacle in front of us (the angular line). It also represents a crossroads, and the ability to follow the obstacle onto another path which will fulfil its own needs over time.

Nauthija is also the rune of self-initiated change, brought about by a kindling of the need-fire within. When presented with difficult times we often have many (all unpleasant) choices, the bravest and riskiest of changes are often the hardest, but also the ones that meet most of our needs. There comes a time when you need to stick with something, or stop something that supported you, in order to move on, and pass the tests that are presented to you. Remember, life presents you with a lot of initiations, most of these are acknowledged in a way by friends, family and co-workers, consider the ritual of the birthday and the new year. Both of these represent an acknowledgement that one has survived another year, met needs and will move on with a high head to the next initiation. However, there are also the initiations we meet ourselves, privately, where the only others who share our experience are the gods and spirits. These initiations are often failed, sometimes we can see this when someone commits suicide, or walks almost willingly down the path of the abyss. Passing these spiritual initiations of the soul bring us to new places where we meet the needs of our soul, and tell the Norns that we can meet their challenges, and accept our fates.

Nauthija also represents times of intense distress. Those times when we feel a tightness upon our chest, a constriction of breathing because fear overcomes us. Being taken hostage, being robbed or mugged, realising that your house has been burgled or car stolen, can prompt us to better secure ourselves and our territories. This feeling is also one that sometimes is quieter, a little niggling worry telling us to get our vertigo checked out, or telling us that maybe we should get that mole on our arm checked out. Nauthija says if you act on a need sooner rather than later, you may stop illness, injury or atrophy.

Nauthija is the determination of a POW not to let go of his or her integrity even though they know they will be tortured to death. It is still struggling to enjoy life when cancer has turned on you. It is the desperation in not giving up. The Holocaust was a place of Nauthija. Abu Ghraib is a place of Nauthija. These places represent severity and there is no glory in this rune, only the need to hang on while the Norns deal their severe blows.

Nauthija and Haurgl are partnered. There is a need for the destructiveness of Haurgl (hail) and there is, unfortunately for us, a need for terror, destruction, slavery and oppression.

Nauthija represents raw sexuality, the combustible spark which overcomes us and demands physical satisfaction. Why sometimes you find yourself needing the peak of orgasm, or physical contact. Nauthija is never sensual, it is never gentle, it is fast and consumes like a lightning bolt. It is also the raw agony of being separated from someone you love, a lover abroad, or a daughter or son on holiday. This need drives the frenzy of hugs and kisses that often happen before and after departure and leaving. In that sense, Nauthija is also the rune of raw grief, though sadness and grief is usually covered more thoroughly by other runes.

Merk - This rune Merked tends to represent a long, hard drudge through time for very poor or few rewards that barely meet one's needs. It is often a stark warning, 'get out of the lifestyle you live, NOW.' It can warn of hostilities around a person, or people that wish to make the client or rune-worker a slave to their needs. Yet oddly it also warns of taking the easy way out, which is a slave's way of itself

I won't go into too much more detail here, as the rune often acts with very negative as well as positive implications anyway.

In Ritual - Well, firstly, it's worth knowing that this rune has a long history of being employed in curses, and if you lean that way, and wish to bring terrible hardship upon anyone, this is the rune for you. However, it's a hard energy to summon, and simply drawing it on a black candle will not be productive. Secondly, Nauthija has many good sides which can be employed by the person who works with energy. Firstly, it is excellent as a strengthener for those in really oppressive situations. Those with terminal cancer, those with HIV, who seem to be in 'lost situations' or who fight for 'lost causes' are really aided by this rune, and find much innovation and creativity, as well as a sense of comfort and acceptance from its strength.

Nauthija can also be used to help one find the strength within in order to complete a hard project, so for those who have burned out before their end of year highschool, college and university exams, this is also an excellent rune. It fortifies those who are sick of the toil of study, and reminds one that there will be rewards for patience.

Nauthija has been reputed to have been used for divination and protection, but I tend to find it fairly worthless when used for these purposes. I would like it if someone could let me know how they go with this.