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“The beginning and end are set. What’s in between is yours. Nothing is in vain, all is remembered.”
Perthro - “Per-throw” – Literally: unknown – Esoteric: The Norns, Fate, Lot-Cup
Rune of fate and the unmanifest. Rune of probability and the role of luck in the evolutionary process of the all things. Universe at play.
Psi: co-incidence, living with the unknown, the art and magic of guessing, pattern recognition, prophecy
Energy: evolutionary force, luck, nothingness, the unborn, the unmanifest
Mundane: gambling, random occurrences, guessing
Divinations: Good omen, knowledge of örlög, fellowship and joy, evolutionary change; or addiction, stagnation, loneliness, malaise, delusion, fantasy.
Governs:
Perception of the layers of örlög and wyrd
Manipulation of cause and effect
Placing runic forces in the stream of Nornic law
Alteration of probability and dependence on luck
The creation of favorable circumstances
Chance, gambling, divination and the art of guessing
My Notes:
It is important to remember that the true meaning of Perthro is unknown to scholars, as it is not a recognized word, and though many have agreed that the idea of a ‘lot cup’ seems fitting, I think that this ‘unknown’ or ‘nameless’ quality is extremely significant.
A ‘lot cup’ is an ancient dice box from which ‘lots’ were cast by warriors seeking knowledge of their fate before a battle. Perthro represents orlog, a concept of the larger matrix of the universal law of cause and effect. It encompasses the fixed and unalterable law of action and reaction. Wyrd is the working out of the law of cause and effect on a personal level. It is not unalterably fixed, like orglog is. A person can move about within the web of their wyrd in accordance with their degree of conscious development (and using the rune Nauthiz).
There is a large portion of our unmanifest future that rests on an element of chance. This awareness must be incorporated into the lore of Perthro and divination is a way to discern the parameters of that element of chance. Divination through casting of lots using dice or runes provides conscious indicators of unconscious ‘lay’ or pattern of cause and effect as it pertains to any specific future happening.
Of all the runes, this one is the most mysterious, perhaps next to Eihwaz before it, because Perthro deals with the mysteries within the runes themselves and the birth of the universe. On one hand this allows you to intuit original knowledge about the runes that may have been suppressed, destroyed or incompletely passed on over the centuries. On the other hand, the ‘how to’ techniques are less defined than with other runes, for we are dealing with fundamental mysteries of the universe. Orlog plays out as the consequences of the cosmic and primal laws themselves unfold from beginning of the universe until the end. All patterns are interdependent and interwoven, throughout all existence.
The proper relationship between Perthro and Nauthiz is that Perthro allows you to become aware of the hidden and relatively fixed workings of the deep law of cause and effect, which in turn give us the ability to see into the unmanifest and peer into the unknown. This is wyrd, and lay within our influence if we have knowledge of how our personal fate can be manipulated. Nauthiz helps you get around the workings of orlog, using the forces of resistance to change direction of the flow of wyrd. Together, these two runes govern the magic of ‘the Wyrding Way’.
All the records of all events are stored here, so Perthro’s power helps the recollection of knowledge that is hidden within the collective unconscious of humankind, especially human lore lost over the course of the centuries. The same process is responsible for prophecy. Perthro will assist the birthing of a great idea into your environment by raising awareness of the forces arrayed against its manifestation. Co-incidence and deja vu play an enormous role in the recognition of the fundamentals of this rune.
Other topics: quantum probability, Akashic records.
For more in-depth exploration, read Perthro – Rune Meaning Analysis.
You can leave your comments on what you just read using the box below. I always try to reply within 24 hours. Your insights become a permanent part of this article!



April 14th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
[...] PERTHRO represents the unknown, ALGIZ represents the courage we must exercise in order to face our fear of [...]
October 15th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
this rune called to me/was cast upon me by fate/chance several times. a friend who was learning to read runes said she didnt understand that one, and it kept being thrown in my reading and so it threw her off… it was given to me by a friend as a keepsake for our friendship out of his set of runes once, i pulled it from a quarter machine that gave out rune necklaceses.. none of the times did i choose it or pick it.. it picked me. i now wear the quarter machine one on my glasses strap and thus it is constantly on the back of my neck… ive had all these experiences through the past… oh fifteen years, before it even seemed like it might be something i should consider significant (well in the last five i did such) and i am considering getting it as a tattoo on my wrist now. as i read your description, i consider it ironic that i have always had the ability (even before the rune found me that i am aware of) to discern events by examining the surroundings of the situation… in ways i considered simple, but everyone else around me seemed blind to. i feel literally like it has helped me become more aware of myself, since ive accepted it. … i guess this isnt a question, any more than.. does this make sense to you? thank you for your input.
October 15th, 2009 at 3:19 pm
Makes great sense, Dustin.
I’m curious, did your friend have a ‘blank rune’ in her set? It’s my belief that adding a blank rune will confuse the meaning of Perthro, because so much of Perthro is the same as a blank rune would be… but so much more.
I believe if you go to http://runesecrets.com/rune-meanings/perthro-rune-meaning-analysis I’ve written even more down about Perthro that might be helpful. I’ve taken a really good look at it, glad you find this helpful and THANK YOU for commenting :)
October 16th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Dustin:
I do think that we are drawn to (certain runes) come to us as particulalry meaningful for us in this lifetime. It would seem that Pertho is definitely one for you. You might want to just hold off on doing the tatoo for a while though – at least until you feel certain of what the rune means for you.
October 28th, 2009 at 8:46 am
Pertho–”The Cave” To enter The Unknown/The Cave for the Wyrding Way of Growth,in so-called “hibernation”.To have the courage to go into Cave and ask questions that may or may not be answered! But will grow you for Spring.Pertho does kind of resemble Cave/uterus—-both dark to our vision or is it? Munsey
November 9th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
Great imagery again Munsey. Definitely some room for pondering on this one.