Rune: Othila

Names: Othila, Odal, Odel, Ethel
Represents: Inheritance, Separation, Retreat
Alphabet: O (long O)
Color: Brown
Sequence Number: 4 Blume, 22 Meadows, 23 Cooper - Thorsson, 24 Tyson
Aett: Tir
Gods: Var
Plants & Minerals: Gorse
Potency: Power of Accomplishment
Challenge: Be willing to look back, embrace and acknowledge your past because that is the seed of what you will reap in the future.
Primary Uses: Connecting with ancestors, raising spirits, connecting to latent talents, protecting property and strengthening relationships.
Stroke Order: stroke up to the right, then cross to the left and stroke down to the right, then from the point strok down to the right and then down to the left.

---

For Blume, the second rune in the Cycle of Initiation, Othila, is the rune of separation. Like a snake, in order to grow you must shed an old skin. Old relationships that no longer support you must be released. Submission or retreat are the council of Othila. Othila is more about the separation of outmoded aspects of self than of physical property, but any and all forms of separation may be required. Adaptability is the skill of Othila. When reversed, Othila calls upon the abandonment of old authorities and habits, but to do so only with clear intent and in accordance with the Universe.

Cooper, Thorsson and Tyson approach Odel as the rune of Inheritance. It is a rune of property, of lineage, and of fortune. It is primarily the fortune of inborn or genetic talents that Odel deals with. The rune is also used in commerce, merchantile and partnerships.

Meadows has a slightly different take on Odal, thinking of it as the Rune of Accomplishment. Meadows seems to address this in a matter of Karma. As we sew so shall we reap. He talks on how Odal helps us to accomplish through persistence and time, safe guarding our efforts so that it can be passed on and integrated into the whole. Not only actions of our present life, but of our past lives, build upon eachother as our spiritual inheritance... a lineage of accomplishments.

Ethel, according to Tyson, represents more than the sum of a single lineage, man's life, or inheritance. It has grown since it was first used by the Germanic Tribes and now also represents the "homeland". It is the sum not only of all of our heritage as a people in land and prosperity, but also of the moraes, laws, and sins of a nation. It is the karma of a people.

Odal maintains order and structure for our property, inheritance, and talents. Odal can help to develop your latent talents, recognize your limitations, maintain order, acquire prosperity, and honour the home (family, partnerships, etc.)