Thorn is most sharp, for every thane
who graps it, it is harmful, exceeding cruel
To every man who rests among them.
Continuing our series examining modern pagan practice via the Elder Futhark, we move on to the third rune, Thurisaz. As with the others, the rune-poem above gives us a place to start.
The themes around this rune involve the value of being sharp and painful in order to protect yourself and others. This rune is also associated with Thor, and at least in the lore Thor seems to be most concerned with protecting himself and his tribe through violence. As for how this might affect modern paganism, the logical area to look at is when and how modern day pagans need to act to protect themselves, even if cruelty might be required in order to do so.
This is particularly difficult for those that see pagan society as a world of peace, love, and happiness. But these threats exist, and need to be protected against.
The fact is, because pagan circles often at first glance appear to be perfectly safe spaces where everyone is peaceful and loving and extremely tolerant, terrible people can be attracted to it as a space where they can commit their crimes more easily. The risk is usually not violence: After a violent incident, word quickly spreads about who to not let into your coven or grove or festival. Instead, the threats are usually more quiet and less easily detected. Some of the more frequent problems:
Sexual Predators: These will attempt to quietly coerce others (younger women, including teenagers, tend to be targets of this) into sexual acts, including but not limited to making videos and/or photographs. We will be talking a lot more about sexual ethics when discussing Wunjo in a few weeks.
Financial Scammers: These will attempt to demand large sums of money for their teaching and/or sell services at outrageous prices by suggesting they and only they can solve a problem for you. The idea that there is secret pagan wisdom for sale for thousands of dollars is simply false, but these kind of people survive because a lot of newcomers do not yet know that. This type especially likes to prey on people coming to paganism from a New Age background, where spirituality is frequently bought and sold at hundreds of dollars a pop. This isn't to say that nobody will want to charge you for services, but those charges will be typically in the tens of dollars for small services like a divination or healing session and a couple hundred dollars for more complex services like training or special rituals.
Charlatans, Frauds, and Cranks: These will simply make stuff up and pretend that it is part of some kind of ancient tradition or secret wisdom. We will be discussing this in the upcoming essay on Eihwaz - what actually counts as ancient wisdom, what is approximate guesswork, and everything in between.
Bullying (Would-Be) Leaders: These will use various forms of social and physical intimidation and threats in an effort to control the other people in their group. Part of this control, of course, is never letting someone outside the group know that this is going on. They frequently demand sexual favors, large sums of money, and/or oaths of loyalty from their members once a member is thoroughly committed to a group. Characteristics of these groups will be discussed in our future essay on Manaz.
Unfortunately, people who fit these kinds of descriptions are not that difficult to find at pagan or spiritual gatherings. Smart event organizers make an effort to police it, but they will not necessarily know about the activities of these folks, especially if they are new to the local scene.
The basic principle to operate on in these kinds of settings is to bear in mind that even though you are in what seems to be a safe place, many of the people you will be encountering are complete strangers. And while meeting complete strangers is the only way you are going to get to know newer people, you have to bear in the back of your mind that you do not yet know anything about them, really. And that means you would be wise to find out as much as you can before you, for example, wander off alone with them to the woods or a tent.
The strongest information you are going to get is from how a stranger interacts with you - look for signs that they are trying to get your commitment without actually building a relationship first, or are pressuring you to abandon boundaries you have set (e.g. this may be a clothing-optional bonfire, but you have chosen to wear clothing, and they are trying to convince you that you should choose otherwise). The next-best information you can get is from others who know the person: Are they all part of a particular clique, and if so how much freedom do they seem to have?
A few other suggestions:
Up until now, this has been about the power of an individual to be rude and mean in order to protect themselves. But it is also important to extend that to the wider community. If you encounter somebody putting somebody else (particularly a newcomer) in the position of having to be rude, cruel, or violent to protect themselves, especially if you are considered a leader or organizer in your community, you should take responsibility by responding. If you are an organizer or leader with official power, have standards of behavior, publicize them, and be prepared to enforce them by calling the police or even immediate violence if necessary.
Thurisaz isn't fun. Most people do not what to be seen as prickly, thorny, sharp, or mean. But it is the fool who refuses to take up that side of their personality to protect themselves and others.
One last point: Even today, after decades of feminism, even in the relatively feminist modern pagan culture, women more than men need a reminder of the value and importance of the energy of Thurisaz. Women are often taught (by mothers, teachers, family friends, and society at large) to be polite and nice towards men, even when they are right and the man is wrong. This is not a good instinct to have when it comes to protecting people - the first step is to recognize that being rude is not only sometimes necessary but sometimes the only useful response. If you are wronged, tell someone with the power to do something about it. If you are the person that someone reported to, say something and do something.
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