Consciousness and Runes: Thorn, finding our essential defense system

The rune that comes to raise awareness and consciousness today is called Thorn and it actually looks like a thorn. Personally, this rune has recently begun to resonate strongly with the idea of “essential defense system”, meaning that the rose has thorns as part of its essence, to protect its purity, delicacy and beauty from clumsy or reckless beings, but which leave room for the rose to shine at its full radiance and share her aroma with those who appreciate it. So I wondered, is it possible that we, as human beings, also have a built-in, essential defense system that allows us to shine and thrive at the same time?

I've discovered we do. I've been able to spot two so far that are shared by the whole human species, they are: conscious awareness and self-love –go figure! And they both interact together. I’ll use an example to simplify. Let’s say that on a particular day I feel overly sensitive, wanting to keep to myself, enjoy the silence, a good book and a bath, but it turns out I've committed to spend the afternoon with a group of friends who I know to be very chatty and who do not really “get me”. If I am not fully aware of the internal call of my soul and if I consider that it’s more important to keep my word and go anyway because I don’t want them to judge me if I don’t, I am up for a full ‘attack’ of words and emotions that will necessarily come up to reflect my inner state of disrespect for myself. However, with my system of defense of self-love and awareness combined, the situation would be as follows: I tune in with my heart and become aware of what I truly desire, then I choose to honor and give myself priority over everyone else, knowing that going against my calling would not contribute to me nor the group. My friends may judge me anyway, it’s their choice; however, since I don’t judge myself -I love and honor myself instead- their judgment has no place to land within me and it cannot hurt me.

Going a little bit further, since we all show up differently in this world, I wondered whether there might also be some essential defense systems for different individuals. I was happy to find quite a few, which *require* the first two systems common to all to be well established. Let’s go with another example. I've found that a sense of humor could be an essential defense system for some. Let’s say that Joe, a person with a very spontaneous sense of humor, inadvertently collides with Peter on the street. If Joe comes up with a funny comment or jokes at the situation, Peter has two options: one, he can step up and have a laugh, too; or two, he can choose to get upset anyway but finds Joe so irreverent and ‘crazy’ that he just walks away. So, Joe’s gift and innate defense system has avoided him a potential ‘attack’. It is important to note here, though, that in order for Joe to use his gift in this way, he has to ‘love it’, in other words, be free of judgment for it, and to be aware of how and when to use it intentionally. If Joe had been judged since childhood for his sense of humor as being out of place, irreverent, silly, and so on, he’ll need to be free of that judgment in order to use his gift in this way. I found this so fascinating that I discovered that beauty, a way with words, vulnerability, cuteness (remember Puss in Boots’ disarming eyes in Shrek?) can also be essential defense systems, and what’s more, once we pay attention, we all surely have more than one at our disposal.

So this rune invites us to navigate these concepts, find what our unique combination of essential defense system is, and to put it into practice. Are you ready to discover this empowering piece of your puzzle?