Ancient runes first come into popular media when it was introduced as a subject in the phenomenal Harry Potter book series. In the book, the Study of Ancient Runes is a theoretical subject taught as an elective to wizarding students starting their third year of study.
In real life, ancient runes do exist and are widely used in the practice of divination. The runes are an ancient Germanic language created even prior to Latin and has found great uses in divination and making magic.
Runes are an oracle from which people ask advice. They work best when you detail well the circumstances surrounding your question before actually asking it. To the naive, getting an answer from the rune may be difficult because they are usually answered in an obscure manner--the answers need to be deciphered first. This is where rune casters usually enter to enlighten you about the subject. They use their intuition to decipher the mysterious text of the runes.
Each of these runes actually has a mysterious meaning that is far away from its face or phontetic value. Each of these runes have some spiritual meaning attached to it and to a Norse God. Understanding this property of the rune make it easier to find out what they mean for every circumstance. The article from Wikipedia gives a more detailed approach to explaining the runes and the rune stones that serve as oracles. Meanwhile, SunnyWay.com gives comprehensive instructions on many different rune topics, such as rune casting and rune magic.
Sometimes, divination techniques that we have already become accustomed to are not enough to tell us the answer to life's questions, especially when the questions are very difficult. These alternative techniques, however, can be a considered a plus towards the acquisition of an answer.
Rune reading, although a bit unfamiliar with a lot of people especially those from the East, may present a viable alternative.
