Perthro

Perthro is the Rune of luck and destiny.

The exact meaning of the rune-name peorð is uncertain. The Proto-Germanic name has been reconstructed as *perþ(r)ō, also based on the evidence of the alleged East Germanic (Gothic) letter name, pertra, attested in the runica manuscripta. It has been speculated that it may have referred to a fruit tree such as the apple or pear. Since this rune did not become a part of the Younger Futhark row that developed in Scandinavia, we have no comparative material that might further illuminate what it signified. Judging from the context of the stanza, OE peorð seems to imply a wooden
board game or a form of gambling (based on dice or lots) that would have been enjoyed by men seated in a drinking hall.

From the sources we know that the Germanic Peoples were very fond of gambling. So the act of gambling is closely connected to the concept of luck, which was not seen as something that was determined by chance as we believe it to be these days but was actually seen as a part of a person’s Self and was called “Hamingja”. This Hamingja could be strengthened through showing bravery in the face of difficult situations like on the battlefield, by honoring the Gods, the Vaettir and the Ancestors, by staying loyal and being helpful to your kin and by being ambitious and tenacious.

The concept of Hamingja is also intertwined with the idea of destiny (Orlög) which was dealt out by the Norns. The three Norns Urdhr (that which happened), Verdhandi (that which is happening) and Skuld (that which should become) live at a holy well, the Urðarbrunn, which is directly located on Yggdrasil. There the past is stored, Orlög means “primal layers”, and from these threads coming from the past the future is woven an allotted to humankind.

Perthro can therefore be used to increase ones Hamingja, to investigate a person’s Orlög and to find the strength to face it playfully and with laughter…