Rune Divination for Beginners — reading a crush's true feelings

Supervised by Usatoko WHITE
Professional fortune teller & spiritual advisor

☾Introduction

Rune divination isn't something most people have heard much about, but depending on the method you choose, it can be a wonderfully simple and accessible way to read your fortune.

Nyanta

What kind of fortune telling is rune divination, anyway?

Nekosuke

It's a mystical divination method that uses "runes" — ancient Nordic letters. You read messages from characters carved onto stones or cards.

We'll introduce the roots of rune divination, how to read the letters, the tools you'll need, and different reading methods — perfect if you're thinking about getting started.

Rune divination tends to give sharp, to-the-point answers, so once you've gotten comfortable with the basics, try using it to explore your compatibility with someone you're curious about.

✦So what exactly is rune divination?

Simply put, rune divination is like drawing an omikuji (fortune slip) — it's a form of "cleromancy" (divination that reads meaning into randomly drawn objects, like tarot or fortune slips), using letters from the ancient Nordic runic alphabet.

A rune set typically consists of 24 stones or cards, each inscribed with a letter, plus one blank stone or card — 25 pieces in total.

How did rune divination come about?

The roots of rune divination trace back to the era of the ancient Germanic peoples, around the 1st to 2nd century.

Unlike the Roman alphabet, each rune letter used at the time carried its own distinct meaning — each one deeply rooted in the daily life, customs, culture, and beliefs of the ancient Nordic peoples.

Rune divination is the practice of interpreting the meanings carved into these stones.

People of that era carved runes into stones and tree branches to perform divination and rituals, using them as a form of communication and connection — and this practice is considered the origin of rune divination.

⚖How does rune divination compare to tarot?

What they have in common

Both rune divination and tarot fall under "cleromancy" — divination that reads meaning from randomly drawn cards, much like drawing an omikuji.

Rune divination reads meaning from letters, while tarot reads meaning from imagery, but both use upright and reversed positions (though some runes have no reversed meaning), with the position affecting the interpretation.

Both also offer beginner-friendly one-card or two-card spreads, known as "one oracle" or "two oracle" readings.

Neither method requires personal data like a birthday, so in both cases you're interpreting whatever letters or imagery come up — that's another shared trait.

Where they differ

Tarot uses a large deck of 78 cards — 22 Major Arcana plus 56 Minor Arcana — so it takes time to memorize the meaning of each image, but the artwork itself conveys an overall mood that makes the meaning easier to grasp intuitively.

Runes, by contrast, have fewer symbols overall (24 letters), but since each card or stone shows only a single letter with no illustration, the meaning is harder to sense at a glance — you really need to know what each letter stands for.

✧Why is rune divination said to be "more accurate" than tarot?

You'll sometimes hear people say "rune divination hits closer to the mark than tarot." The reason given is that rune divination demands strong intuition.

As mentioned, runes have only 24 symbols — far less information than a tarot deck — so beyond knowledge and experience, a reader also needs sharp intuition to give an accurate reading.

While there are simple, beginner-friendly ways to use runes, reading them at a professional level is actually an advanced skill, which is why many professional rune readers tend to have especially strong intuitive abilities.

If you want a proper reading done, it may be worth seeking out a reader known for strong intuition.

♡What is rune divination best at?

Relationships and the subconscious

Rune divination shines in two areas: "someone's feelings" and "the subconscious / deeper psyche."

Because runes are well suited to reading things that change quickly, or the near future, they're great for moments when you want to know how someone really feels about you, when someone has grown distant, when there's tension at work, or any time you're wrestling with a relationship issue.

For the "subconscious" side, runes are useful when you're torn on a decision or can't quite settle on how you really feel. For example:

• A friend invited me on a trip — should I go?
• Should I bring it up myself, or wait?
• There's something I want — should I buy it now, or wait?

Runes are well suited to questions like these, where you urgently want an answer.

Not ideal for the distant future or long-range fortunes

Rune divination excels at short-term, quickly-shifting circumstances and the near future, so it isn't well suited to reading the distant future or long-term fortunes.

Runes can capture the near-term dynamics and direction of a relationship between two people, but for a longer-range outlook, you're better off turning to a "fate-reading" method such as Four Pillars of Destiny (Shichu Suimei) or Western astrology.

☀How to do a rune reading

Two main methods

Rune divination typically uses rune stones or rune cards, and the exact method varies depending on which you use. Here are the two most common approaches.

The Drawing Method (One Oracle)

The Drawing Method involves selecting a single stone or card at random, making it a great beginner-friendly approach — the exact steps depend on which item you're using.

• With rune stones or wooden runes: place them in a pouch, focus on your question while shuffling them inside, then draw out just one.
• With rune cards: spread the cards on a table, shuffle them, gather them back into one stack, spread them out again, and flip over a single card by intuition.

Then read the meaning of whichever stone, wooden rune, or card you drew.

Since this method interprets the meaning of just one randomly chosen letter, it's a great everyday practice — like drawing an omikuji — or a good way to practice your reading skills.

The Casting Method

"Casting" means "to throw," and in this method you toss the stones or cards and read the outcome based on how they land.

Here's how the Casting Method works:

• ① Focus on your question and hold it in mind while concentrating on the stones or cards.
• ② Place the stones or cards in a box or pouch and shuffle them thoroughly.
• ③ Take the stones or cards in both hands and toss them freely toward the center of a prepared mat or cloth.
• ④ Remove any stones or cards that land outside the mat or cloth, or that land face-down, and read only the ones that remain.

Since you'll be interpreting multiple runes at once, the Casting Method is best attempted once you've grown comfortable with rune divination — it lets you read more efficiently.

✦How to read the runes: the full alphabet

Here is a quick introduction to the meanings of all 24 rune letters.

Runes can be read in two traditions — the "Anglo-Saxon" system and the "Germanic" system.

Below, blue text marks the Anglo-Saxon name and red text marks the Germanic name.

The meanings listed above describe the upright position — for the reversed meaning, simply interpret them in the opposite sense.

(Note: runes 7/G, 9/H, 11/I, 12/J, 13/Y, 16/S, 22/ING, 24/D, and 25/Blank have no reversed meaning.)

✧You can even make your own practice runes

When starting out with rune divination, you don't need to buy a full professional set — you can make your own practice runes at home.

It's simple: just pick up items like glass beads, plastic tiles, or small pieces of wood from a dollar store or craft shop, and write one rune letter on each.

Unlike tarot's detailed imagery, runes are just letters, which makes them easy to make by hand.

Rune cards work the same way — just write the letters on coated blank paper or cards. If you'd rather use cards than stones, this is a great option too.

Getting started with rune practice does require gathering some materials, and since there's a huge range of rune products at every price point, choosing one can take a while.

Rather than investing in a full professional set right away, it might be worth starting with something you can put together easily yourself.

♡Beginner practice: reading someone's feelings with a one-rune draw

Once you have a decent grasp of the rune meanings, try the one-rune (One Oracle) method to read how someone you're interested in really feels.

Since the One Oracle method draws just a single letter to reach an answer, it works best with a question that can be answered "yes" or "no." Here's an example question and reading:

Example question: "Does this person think about me?"

Rune drawn: 18 (B / Beorc), upright

Since this rune represents a tree or plant growing, it suggests there's real potential for the relationship to develop further — meaning the other person likely is thinking about you too.

Rune drawn: 14 (P / Peorth), reversed

This suggests the other person isn't currently thinking much about you — but since this rune represents dice, it also means the relationship could still turn in your favor depending on the effort you put in.

That's the basic idea behind reading a One Oracle draw.

Beyond the One Oracle, there are also Two Oracle and Three Oracle spreads that can handle more complex questions, or questions spanning past, present, and future — once you're comfortable with the rune letters, it's worth trying these other spreads too.

Nyanta

I didn't realize you could use runes to read how someone you like really feels!

Nekosuke

Runes give you pretty direct messages, so they're actually really approachable even for total beginners.

☾Summary

Rune divination excels in the realm of relationships, making it a great fit for anyone wrestling with communication issues — whether at work, in love, or elsewhere in life.

Reading someone's feelings through runes might help you find an answer for how to handle the situation, how to carry yourself, and how you should approach the people around you.

Because rune divination also relies heavily on intuition, it's often said to be even more accurate than tarot.

It may be worth seeking a reading from a skilled rune reader who also has strong natural intuition.

If you're struggling with a relationship issue, consider giving rune divination a try yourself, or consulting a professional rune reader to help find a way forward.

Reviewed by

Usatoko WHITE

Professional fortune teller specialising in tarot, oracle and Lenormand reading. Usatoko supervises every divination guide at Luna Factory to keep them accurate and beginner-friendly.

Written by the Luna Factory Editorial Team