Strength Is A Quality Forged In The Hottest Fires!… All Growth Is The Result Of Conflict, Struggle And Hardship!… Uruz Is The Essence Of Evolution!!!
Strength is a quality I have found to be greatly misunderstood. Usually strength is seen as the ability to hold oneself against challenges without being moved or effected by them. Like in the physical sense someone who can take a harshly thrown punch and taking no hurt from it at all. Now while strength can be taken in this very literal sense there is also another aspect to strength that while greatly romanticized by folks who feel a need to mask their own weakness, does have some great insight.
It is not often we associate the butterfly with strength, and yet its transformation into the butterfly and the breaking of its cocoon is a demonstration of strength that mesmerizes the few who truly contemplate growth. Simply put strength comes through struggle, strife, conflict and hardship. Additionally, these things are essential for any form of growth or evolution to happen. The butterfly however is a perfect example of one of the first lessons I received in my work with Uruz.
When the caterpillar ends up in the cocoon it breaks its entire body down and over time forms a butterfly. The butterfly has to break the hard shell of the cocoon in order to set itself free. However, at this stage the butterfly struggles and fights its way through the hard shell. If the butterfly is helped it will inevitably die. If the butterfly is denied of its fight through the cocoon it will not be strong enough for it to fly and as such survive. It is because of the struggle through the cocoon that the butterfly is strong enough to survive afterword.
There is an important lesson in this example. Struggle, Hardship and Conflict are essential for any form of growth or evolution. Even among humans (who let’s be honest tend to think of ourselves outside the rest of the animal kingdom) is essential to survival. Now this strength is not only physical strength but strength of all aspects. Mental strength is just as important, a strong mind is often more valuable than a strong arm.
However, this is more of a reference to becoming strong, again in which ever aspect that may be. Life is the metaphoric gym for this analogy. In order for us to become strong we have to go through certain trials and experiences. We have to experience pressure, hardship, conflict etc. A strong sword is forged in piping hot fires. It is the intensity of that fire that allows the sword to become strong. We are no different. In order for us to grow we have to allow ourselves to be forged through life’s struggles, hardships etc.
If we help the butterfly it will die… what does that mean for us though? In many of these situations we experience we cannot let someone else fight the battle for us. If we always have someone to take away the struggle, pain, conflict we will never be strong enough to evolve.
Let’s look at plants as another example. In the very early stages of plant life the small organism inside of the shell has to push though the hard outer-shell in order to grow and flourish. Nature has all these patterns that if we look closely enough we can begin to see. This is why it is so important to look into the pattern of the runes also.
Our Most Valuable Experiences Are Typically The Ones We Hated To Experience!… We Learn From Our Failures!
It has been said that we learn most from our mistakes and this is something I fully agree with. Our failures are our biggest lessons to learn and this is another facet of strength I find paramount to true progression. Being able to embrace our failure and learn from it, instead of running away and hiding from that contributes greatly to our progression; be that in a specific area or just life in general. It is the chaos of life that teaches us and molds us into who we are. Uruz in this sense is not just the embodiment of strength but also the essence of change. If Fehu is creation Uruz is the progression and change of that creation. A far deeper core than most will reach.
Uruz in this mind is not really strength at all but the power to embrace life at its bitterness and use that as an advantage rather than an excuse. The ability to charge head on with chaos and using it as a ladder to further evolution. Like the aurochs we stand strong and fierce on the uphill battle of life’s trials.
Old Norwegian Rune Poem:
“Dross comes from bad iron;
the reindeer often races over the frozen snow.”
Old Icelandic Rune Poem:
“Rain is lamentation of the clouds
and ruin of the hay-harvest
and abomination of the shepherd.”
Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem:
“The aurochs is proud and has great horns;
it is a very savage beast and fights with its horns;
a great ranger of the moors, it is a creature of mettle.”
This does speak solidly to the other translation of Uruz which is water. Water adapts to the terrain in which it resides in. With all the rocks and crags in the waters road it none the less flows through even with the resistance. This is an analogy that should be taken quite personally. Being able to adapt to the surroundings or circumstances is one of the greater concepts of Uruz many do not touch upon. This quality of adaption is again one of the many facets of strength that is vital to the progression and evolution of the self.
So, let’s sum up as best as we can here. Uruz is the rune of growth and change. It embodies the concept that conflict, struggle and hardship is the medium to which we can grow. Embracing and using those to our advantage is the way forward in our paths. Ascension is climbed by the ladder of chaos and in order to progress anywhere we have to get out of the comfort zone and into pressure. To learn from our mistakes and allow the trials of life to guide the way to the success and evolution we seek. Like a river we need to be able to adapt to those situations and the uncertainty of circumstance.
However, how does this apply to ritual work? How can Uruz be implemented into practice beyond concept and theory? Well there are a few simple applications as always. To take Uruz in the typical physical strength aspect it can be used as a means to try and bring good health or literal strength. One of these methods I use to use was putting Uruz on my arms and legs when working out at the gym. Additionally, placing the rune around the heart area can be a good method for bringing in good health.
Yet, with these methods I find using Uruz as a means to induce change being one of the better applications. Evoking this rune to bring change into ones life or alternatively using this rune to bring conflict and hardship to others. Always remember the runes can be used in a more malevolent sense. I personally, would say person change is better fit.
If you would like to discuss the runes with me and receive some one to one mentoring you can book a consult at: https://gumroad.com/l/dDsxl
Additionally, you may also be interested in my upcoming book on the runes, Beyond Prophecy: A Practical Guide To Rune Magick here: https://gumroad.com/l/xljLN
Stay True & Stay Awesome
Asbjorn Torvol
