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Our History

The Rune-Gild was founded in 1980ev as the first authentic rebirth of the elder Runic tradition to be available to the new Gilders in about a millennium. Over the ensuing years, the Gild has grown and changed its form as new information and impulses entered into its knowledge base and as its leadership became more initiated. However, our aim has remained true and steadfast: to see the elder Runemasters again make their wisdom known and felt in the world of their descendants. This is a great task, for those interested in the heritage of the Germanic or Gothic peoples, and this includes all those who live in countries where a Germanic language (for example English) predominates. It may in fact be the greatest task that lies before us. For without the deep level spiritual heritage to guide us we will surely be lost in a morass of cultural confusion. The Runes stand ready, and the Masters know their duty. But, each Gilder must work for his or her own initiation. The doors of the Gild-Hall now stand open: enter with heart; enter with mind, and learn again the ways of the Runemasters.

With the publication of Futhark: A Handbook of Rune Magic, Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology, and The Runecaster’s Handbook: At the Well of Wyrd, the gates were opened. The time has now come to have those of you who will to do so, enter the first doors of a gradual approach to Rune-Work and Rune-Craft. In the Rune-Gild you will be introduced to a graded series of exercises known as the Nine Doors of Midgard. In these exercises you will learn various Runic Techniques: Rune-Thinking (meditation/contemplation), Rune-Casting (divination), Galdor (incantational or verbal magic), making of Rune-Tines (talismans) and other forms of Rune-Craft (operative magic) and, most important of all, deep Rune-Work (self-transformational activity), as well as many other techniques that were only touched on in a cursory fashion in Futhark and Runecaster’s Handbook. The first three books by Edred were the beginning; the Rune-Gild itself is a road which is itself a goal.

The foundation of the first permanent Hall of the Gild—the Yrmin-Hall—was laid in late 1993 and it was fully erected in the early part of 1994. It is situated on 30 acres of land near Austin, Texas. The estate is known as Woodharrow.

From 1997 to 2005 the Gild held annual Gild-Moots in urban areas around the world. After that time, the Gild became more decentralized, and its activities became more widespread. Several Gild Halls have been raised in the USA, offering instruction and community to initiates in California, Georgia, Vermont, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas, England, Scotland, and Germany. The whole history of the Gild, up to the year 2018, is outlined in the book: History of the Rune-Gild: The Reawakening of the Gild 1980–2018

An important dissolution, transformation, and reintegration of the Gild took place at the World Gild Moot on November 11th, 2011ev. Through ritual re-dedication and pragmatic reorganization, the Gild affirmed its essential unity and common purpose. There are many abroad in the world today who may have been part of the Gild in the past, but only those who were there when the Spear was raised and the Stone was carved—together with those they have named as fellow travelers—will truly know the shape of the Gild and do its work in years to come.

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