Sowilo Rune Meaning





The holy solar wheel.

Germanic Gothic Old English Old Norse
sowilo saugil sigil sól
sun sun sun sun

Solar wheel, Magical will, Guide, Goal and path, Success, Honor.


  • Strengthening of the psychic centers, hvel.
  • Increase in spiritual will.
  • Guidance through the pathways, “enlightenment.”
  • Victory and success through individual will.

The S-rune is the archetypal sun and the light of that sun symbolically expressed as the solar wheel. The concept of the turning wheel (ON hvel) is central to the understanding of the rune. This is represented as the wheels of the solar wagon, : ᚱ : as well as the disk which is borne by that cosmic vehicular force. This symbol complex is the center of the ancient hyperborean sun cult, which was at its peak in the Bronze Age. The sun was known by two special names in the North. These are reflected in Old Norse sól and the cult word sunna (both feminine) . In the ” Alvíssmal” (stanza 16) of the Elder Edda we read:

It is called Sól among men
and Sunna among the Gods.

Sól represents the phenomenon, while sunna is the noumenon, the spiritual power residing in the concept. The mystery of the sun is essentially a feminine one – the sun and solar power were considered feminine attributes by the ancient Germanic peoples.

Sowilo is the magical will that is active throughout the multiverse. Within the individual, this will is expressed through the “spiritual wheels,” the hvel. This word is an exact cognate to the Sanskrit ćakra. In this aspect, it is a counterforce to the power of cosmic ice. The S-rune often has been connected to the power of the lightning bolt, and thus to the concepts embodied in thurisaz.

Sowilo is the eminent spiritual force that guides the vitki through the paths of Yggdrasill. It is an aspect of the goal, and also the active, willed path toward that goal. The S-rune may serve as a dynamic connection between heaven and earth (Ásgardhr and Midhgardhr). Sowilo is the rune of the Germanic code of honor, a powerful path to ecstatic experience.

In later times this rune became known as the “victory rune.” Indeed, it is a potent, willed force. This can bring great success and victory to an individual when properly applied. But the true sigrun (victory rune) of the ancients was the T -rune.


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Elder Futhark Rune Meaning