Fehu: The Opening Rune
Fehu (ᚠ) is the first rune of the Elder Futhark — the ancient alphabet of the Norse and Germanic peoples used both as a writing system and as a magical/divinatory tool. As the first rune, Fehu carries special significance: it initiates, begins, and sets the tone for everything that follows.
The name Fehu means "cattle" or "livestock" in Proto-Germanic — and cattle were the original form of portable wealth in the ancient world. Fehu is the wealth rune: the rune of material resources, abundance, and the responsible stewardship of what you have.
Core Meanings: Upright Fehu
- Wealth and material abundance — an increase in material resources, financial opportunity, or the recognition of what you already have
- Luck and good fortune — a generally positive auspice for material and worldly matters
- Creative potential — Fehu represents not just stored wealth but mobile, generative wealth — the kind that grows when shared
- New beginnings with material support — starting something new with resources behind it
- Success in business or financial ventures — favorable for commercial dealings and material projects
The Deeper Meaning of Fehu
Fehu isn't just about wealth accumulation. In the ancient world, cattle wealth was meaningful only when it could be given away — in feasts, in gifts, in hospitality. The wealthy person was the one who could be generous. Fehu therefore also speaks to the right relationship with wealth: not hoarding, but circulating, giving, and using resources to connect and nourish community.
Fehu Reversed
When Fehu appears reversed (if your runic tradition includes reversed readings):
- Financial difficulties, setbacks, or loss
- Poor management of resources — waste, greed, or misaligned priorities
- The need to examine your relationship with money and material security
- Warning: don't make significant financial decisions right now
Fehu in a Reading
In practical rune readings, Fehu upright is almost always welcome — a sign that material conditions are or will be favorable. It can indicate a job offer, financial windfall, successful business venture, or simply the recognition that you have enough. Reversed, it asks you to look honestly at your finances and your relationship with material security.
Fehu asks: what is your wealth for? Resources that aren't circulated stagnate. The most fertile soil is the most generously tended.