An exhilarating journey exploring the relationships between myth, magic, man and nature, through the symbol of the dragon and guided by the oracle of the runes. Here is an immersion into the revival of the rich living tradition from Scandinavia. The stories, folk-magic, sagas and world-literature offer us insight into the resilience that can be discovered in our lives, ecology and community today. The lesser-known branches of the great World Tree of Yggdrasil are explored as we hear about reconciliation as a road to wisdom. Much of this material has never before been translated into English. Praise for Waking The Dragons: "A wonderful book that leads us to the deep wellsprings of ancestral knowledge. Andreas writes with a wealth of understanding of Norse myth and its contemporary significance in tackling the biggest issues of today: reconciliation with each other and climate change." Philip Carr-Gomm, author of The Prophecies and DruidCraft: The Magic of Wicca & Druidry "Andreas Kornevall wields a rare ink. It is a combination of academic rigour and poesis. This work will go down as both a reference point and inspiration to all fortunate to read it in the years to come." Rev. Peter Owen Jones, Author of Everest England "Andreas Kornevall has immersed himself in the Uthark runes for many years; in this new book he takes each rune in turn and uses it as a point of departure for metaphysical reflections. His explorations are a testament to the power of these runes to spark deeper philosophical considerations" Dr. Christina Oakley-Harrington, Founder, Treadwells Bookshop "We live in an age without myth, in a culture which has lost its connection to spirit and to Earth. We are in desperate need of saints, shamans and storytellers. Andreas Kornevall here offers us a series of pathways back to our ancestral memory: to a reconciliation between Earth and Sky. It is an illuminating and vital book." Paul Kingsnorth, Award Winning Author of the Wake Trilogy Today, in the flurry of social media, instant information and short time spans, there is a surprising revival in the mythic imagination.  As the images in the stories and myths take on metaphors, meanings and significance, they form a pattern of understanding within our own emotional lives - they reveal psychological and spiritual insights.  As a storyteller, I have told Norse myths on hillsides, by campfires, and in the deep forests and it is a delight to bring the Northern wisdom to a wider readership through Green Magic Publishing; much of this has never been translated into the wider English language or ventured much outside of the lecture halls. The purpose of writing this book is to take you on a discovery into the mythic imagination and to view the stories and folklore with new perspectives, in particular the psychological and the spiritual.  All stories are based on original sources, but some will deviate by hundreds of miles as many are my own improvisations by the campfire or a performance at a festival, where words jump out from the tongue unscripted.  But you will find that the "bones" and message of the originals are still intact.  I have a view that we can deprive myths and stories of essential life and oxygen when we bury them into the tombs of history, there they are in danger of becoming bound, unmovable and changeless.  The Norse myths themselves point to the dangers when we bind Loki.  It is after his binding when the end of the world awaits.  You see, if you bind the trickster, you bind the life force that moves within all stories, including your own.   When we bind the trickster today, it can result in fundamentalism, conceit, cynicism and resistance to change.  This creates polarisation where life can become stuck.  For old myths to remain alive and thriving, they need to accommodate the trickster. We have to keep a watchful eye when society attempts to take Loki to the cave. I also explore how ritual can be a driver for positive change in our individual lives and society as a whole.   I invite you to take the first steps towards the "Sacred Grove," a place where trees are known to be our original ancestors, and where a dragon is beginning to open its heavy eyelids. Andreas Kornevall is an author, storyteller and ecological activist. He grew up in South America, Sweden and Switzerland, and now directs the Earth Restoration Service charity. In response to the sixth mass extinction, he was the catalyst behind the Life Cairn movement: memorials for species rendered extinct at human hands. As a storyteller, he works with old myths and fairytales which shine a torchlight on life's journey; his stories tend to gravitate around the Norse material which have led him to lecture and perform in universities and other educational centres. He is also a prize-winning author, whose work has been published in magazines such as Resurgence, The Ecologist, Permaculture magazine and in the Dark Mountain series. He is a member of the 'Forn Sed' (Ol