Relationships between runes: The family and the hearth

In previous posts I wrote about the relationships between:

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and
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In this article, we’ll discuss the relationship between:

and

Lets look at the Anglo Saxon Rune poem for each of these runes:

Ing was first seen by men among the East-Danes,till, followed by his chariot,
he departed eastwards over the waves.
So the Hearding as named the hero.

If we just look at this stanza, we’re left confused about what this rune means.   But, if we turn to the tale of the god Ing, or Yngvi, we begin to get a picture of this rune.  Another name for Ing is also Freyr.   Regardless of which name you ascribe to this deity, they are considered to be the progenitor of the Norweigan kings.

So that’s where we derive our meaning from.   This rune is about family, and family relationships.   It’s about a healthy family relationships and creating them.   When we consider this rune, we look to the relationships in the family and whether they are healthy, or perhaps not so healthy.

Now lets look at the next rune:

An estate is very dear to every man,
if he can enjoy there in his house
whatever is right and proper in constant prosperity.

Here we can derive meaning without having to decipher any names.   This rune is about the “physical aspects of the family” or the hearth, or the estate.    So when we consider this rune, we’re considering the physical aspects, the house, the possessions, inheritance and similar items within our family.

In many respects, these two runes, in combination, serve as an excellent description of our hearth.   The former represents the relationships in the hearth, while the latter represents the physical aspects of the heart.