Runic stones

The runes of Northern European peoples (such as the Germanic peoples, Celts, and Vikings) were not only characters that functioned like a "regular" alphabet, for example, to convey messages and express thoughts, but also had a magical, ritual, and prophetic function, allowing the gods and other higher powers to be invoked. This invocation of the gods and other higher powers was primarily done to answer (specific) questions or to guide life (in general) in a broader direction.