Ansuz~ Ansur~ Mouth
Germanic tribes were steeped in strong, oral customs and traditions; all their necessary wisdom and knowledge was acquired by passing down stories and specific information from generation to generation by the spoken word only. As a result, the image of the mouth is very powerful. Ever notice how much emphasis is placed on the mouth in the Bible? “In the beginning, was the Word and the Word was God.”
This rune, the rune we call Ansuz or Ansur, can show that the person for whom the runes have been cast and read, is about to go through an enlightening experience. The experience may even be said to be inspirational. Ansuz implies a state of reception rather than of actual speech and often appears in a rune cast when the person being read is about to go through some form of test or interview perhaps. Ansuz drawn upright implies that the individual being read will do very well. The rune of Ansuz is also associated with apprenticeship, symbolizing that any learning process will prove to be highly productive. It can denote a chance meeting with someone who is able to shed new light on the situation.
The essence of this rune is advice and deliberation. It presents itself when hasty action by the person being read will cause further difficulties. The best course of action is to take the advice of elders or to spend time deliberating before taking any action. Ansuz is regarded as being closely aligned with the planet Mercury, so when this rune presents itself in a reading there is a chance that a journey of some sort is being signified.
Ansuz Reversed
If upright Ansuz is all about good advice, then guess what? Reversed, Ansuz announces bad advice. Whatever the situation, the person who is being read should not listen too closely to what he or she is being told because the information is not in their best interest. The person being read must be careful not to become so involved in the situation that they become unable to make decisions. Reversed, the implication is that the person being read has become “unable to see the wood for the trees” and must therefore be objective and ever so cautious.
