Trollrún: A Discourse on Trolldom and Runes in the Northern Tradition

Make no mistake, this is an academic text. Absolutely remarkable in its depth and research, this is not for the casual reader who is looking for a light quick read. Anyone seriously interested in Scandinavian folk history, magic, runes, and Norse mythology should have this on their shelf. Be prepared to take copious notes and take your time - the information is dense, fascinating, and crucial to a true understanding of Nordic cosmology. You should come to this book already having at least a basic familiarity with the sagas and Eddas - the author expects you to keep up and will not waste your time with 101 material. I purchased the book because I was interested in diving more deeply into the traditional uses of rune magic and healing - not the dubious divinatory system they are promoted for in witchy circles today. Did not disappoint, exceeded all expectations. I am very glad that Amazon had this paperback edition available, but I intend to acquire the gorgeous hardback edition at some point.

This is a rare book, a combination of scholarship and the use of a the magical imagination to enliven the pages. The author has himself clearly sat out in the dusk hours listening in to the natural world. He navigates subjectivity and objectivity, always with the North Star ahead, which is a treat and a relief to read.I am glad this book exists and I hope there will be more insights from Nicholaj in his future writings and talks.

I love this book, I’m taking a ton of notes. If you want to know how the northern German people actually practiced their spiritual traditions get this book. This is a witches take on the subject, but the author utilizes modern scholarship. This is not wicatru, only a deeply uninformed person could get that from this book. If you are only interested in upholding old fashioned ideas that originated from poor scholarship, then don’t buy this book. If you like this book I would recommend Simek’s dictionary of the northern tradition and Kivilhaug’s the seed of Yggdrasil.

The cover shows an image of Odinn hanging upside down by his foot like the tarot card, the hanged man. This sets the flavour of the book which is Scandinavian folklore and Norse mythology interpreted through the lens of Modern Traditional Witchcraft. Lots of the authors speculations throughout with inspiration from the likes of Nigel Pennick. The rune code section is only two pages and doesn't say much considering the amount of runic codes there are historically. The rune section goes through the Elder FUTHARK rather than the younger, and unconventional interpretation of data is used, such as Gaut meaning one who pours metals and Oddvitti meaning one who deals with spear heads. Yew tree rune linked to the wolf's angle with the sound SZ etc and magical rune association's such as coconuts.Also states things such as the 2013 edition of the Viking Way book when there isn't one.The section on sky lore is the authors speculations.Definitely not for Reconstructionists and possibly not for folk magicians but maybe more use to modern traditional witches.