Berkano (Berkana) is the half-month stave through 30 March. Algiz is the intuitive rune, and Perthro reversed indicates the voice of the Ancients’ message to us. Read right to left is Berkano, Algiz, then Perthro reversed.
Berkana has been the reprieve it’s touted to be, and just in time. Tiwaz, at least in combo with Merc R, was rough, and we’ve earned this downtime. Though with Berkana, downtime means something more than just lounging. Because of course it does.
In sharing TWR last week I jokingly introduced Berkana as the damage control from Tiwaz, though I was only half joking. Tiwaz brought to our epicenter some radical change that we were required to initiate and follow through into the new thing. It required us not only to make that change, but to [healthily] process the grief and emotions that came out of it. Not to project, but I didn’t enjoy mine, and I gathered many others didn’t, either. The richness of Berkana is that we get a bit of downtime to regroup.
Berkana is a nuanced rune, inviting deep nurture and care. Often when we think of those things, we think chillaxing or some other tapped out, escapist pursuit. Those are viable coping practices in their own right, though they’re not the ones Berkana emphasizes. As I mentioned in the Equinox Runecast, we’re tasked with being actively involved in our processing of the events of Tiwaz. Yes, we can chill and relax, though there must be substantial effort put into moving on with a new plan for the new way. That isn’t going to come from couchsurfing.
Algiz gives us insight into what’s most needed to regroup and proceed healthily, and that’s boundaries in the form of protection. It’s reaching back into our animistic community (communities) and standing with the strength of our Nature allies. Algiz is the rune of protection, particularly as it stems from Nature. That means this week is a good time to re-introduce self into those relationships, dust off the bonds, and engage in some reciprocity. Where possible, ask the elements that have support to give to do so.
Reassert needs and boundaries this week, to self and loved ones, to Nature allies. To self. Come back into the deep bonds that connect self where it stands, and reassess those, as well. This is the spring cleaning that the Equinox really demands. This is the kind of raw, visceral eldering that is demanded by our time here. This week gives us a template to carry forward into the rest of the year for how to greet conflict, change, grow, and live.
Perthro reversed visited us last week, which is telling. The intuitive runes don’t often repeat, so when they do, I pay close attention. This week that message comes from a voice that identified itself as “the Ancients,” whom I fell to be the Jotun, raw forces of Nature. Again, we tend to fear those, as well. We freeze up in their presence and stall. We forget that we are them. Perthro reminds us of things being beyond our control, and challenges us to have clarity and a process for how we’re going to respond to it. As with Berkana, in general, the emphasis isn’t on that there’s a process, but on how we are active within that process to shape it, thus how we move on.
We forget that we have choices, which the subtext of Perthro, of the unknown.