The hagalaz rune (HA-ga-lahz) starts us off as the first rune in the Second Aett family, which is known as Heimdall’s Aett. However, hagalaz is the ninth rune in the Elder Futhark. It is an ice seed that can either nourish or destroy. Representing things that are out of our control.
Hagalaz Rune Meaning
The meaning of the hagalaz rune is hail. This meaning is the same in Old Germanic (hagalaz), Old English (haegl), and Old Norse (hagall). Hagalaz is also found within the Younger Futhark meaning snowflake.
Hagalaz is also known as the seed of ice or the ice egg. The idea is that the ice egg is a cosmic seed holding magical power. This ice egg held the seed of Ymir, frozen until the world formed with the collision of fire and ice.
Hail may be destructive and is not really welcomed by farmers due to the potential damage it can cause, but even though hail can cause destruction, it can be healing and nurturing once it melts. Ice can also be preserving, a time of stasis until later on when a new life can be formed.
Destruction is not always a bad thing like we tend to think. Without it, we cannot grow. We can learn this from plants. There are some plants that depend on forest fires in order to grow. The seeds cannot produce if the seed itself is not heated to a high enough temperature or is burned. Even though forest fires are devastating, it is also nature’s way of renewal and transformation.
As stated in the introduction of this post, hagalaz is the ninth rune in the Elder Futhark. The number nine is of high importance. There are nine worlds of the Great World Tree and Odin hung from Yggdrasil for nine nights to gain knowledge of the runes. There are many instances to which the number nine comes into play throughout Norse mythology. This is why the number nine is held in such high regards.
Using Hagalaz
When using hagalaz, it is not just about working with the material world around you. It is about working within your own psyche as well. Knowing that at any moment, our world can be flipped upside down and changed. And we have no control over it. This can be scary for those of us who are not fond of change, especially when change comes on so sudden.
However, we need to remember that there is an ebb and flow to the natural world. It is forever changing, ups and downs, life and death. We just have to learn to embrace these changes and morph them into something good and beneficial.
Rune Casting
Just like in tarot, when you cast your runes upon a surface, how they land is how you read them. There is an upright and a reverse. Upright meaning the symbol is facing the right direction. When it’s reversed, this means that the symbol is in an upside-down direction.
What do these rune positions mean?
Upright
Destruction, renewal, change, new beginnings, evolution, liberation, invention
When hagalaz is drawn, it is best to be prepared for some sort of disruption. But do not let this scare you. Sometimes the best things happen once we’ve experienced hell. It’s the balance of nature, the bad with the good.
Prepare yourself for possible drastic changes, allow yourself to move with these changes and transform yourself alongside them.
Reverse
Hagalaz does not have a reverse meaning, only the upright position. However, hagalaz is always operating in reverse.
Want to learn more? Check out the first eight runes in the first aett family here.
Sources
Taking Up the Runes by: Diana L. Paxson
Norse Magic & Runes by: Frederick Strom
Futhark: A Handbook of Rune Magic by: Edred Thorsson
The Book of Runes by: Ralph H. Blum