Ansuz- Part 1

There's a little story to this one.

So this morning I was in my morning devotional.  I pray to Sigyn each morning for healing, for a healthy community, for strength as well as softness where appropriate.  I love Her.  And I am working with Her to aid me in building and strengthening community.  She can be soft and loving, but also hard as nails when need be.  I've only seen her "slightly perturbed" once.  Do not wish to repeat.

She stuck around this morning when Loki popped in and "encouraged" me to choose my next rune.
She seems to have a "civilizing" effect on "the Boys".  I do think Sigyn and Frigga might be the only goddesses that could pull off calling Odin one of "the Boys".

As I am doing this rune study, I have since the beginning asked for help from Odin.  It makes sense given the runes came from the tree, to Him, and then to us humans.  Need help with runes? Odin is the ultimate/obvious source.

But I admit, I have the opposite problem that most people have. I love Loki. He has my trust.  But Odin scares the shit out of me.  I get practically paralyzed if I sense Him around.

But this morning, seemingly at the mention of runes, He popped in.  He's not a casual visitor like some of the Others have been.  When He shows up, there's a flippin' purpose.

So I sighed and basically said, let's get started. I don't think He liked my tone, because I couldn't even bring myself to pick up the bag of runes.

He wanted to know what I'd give Him.  A gift for a gift.  So, I got up and poured Him a glass of mead and put it on the altar.  This seemed acceptable.  I asked him for help again, and He agreed.  Mostly just nodded, but that's how it is.

One of the stones in the bag tingled, not under my finger but further down.  So I reached for that one.
When I pulled it out, I started laughing, and called him a smart-ass.  I think he let me have that one, as I have not been smited yet. He gave me side-eye, but I'm still breathing so far.

Ansuz

Odin's rune.

The rune of communication, the mouth.  In the myths, Odin was one of the three brothers that gave the male and female tree, the breath of life.  Basically, the three gods, Odin-Vili-Ve were walking in the world and came across two trees, a bit more evolved than the others. Odin gave them the breath of life, Vili gave them inspiration, and Ve gave them pulse and hue.  The gods did not create life, but helped to evolve living beings that already existed.

So communication, or the mouth, has many meanings.  One is a source of breath.  In literature, breath is often considered to be a sign of the spirit or soul.  Breath/Wind and birds are sometimes used as a literary device to signal the passing of a spirit, the presence of spirit, or the blessing of spirit.  Birds are often divine omens.

As Odin's rune it makes sense that the gift of breathe/soul from the lore is represented as well.  But this rune isn't just about connecting to the spirit, it is literally using the mouth and breath as a tool.

Taking in as well and giving something out. There's that equal exchange again.

Hoarding is considered one of the "evils" in Germanic/Norse society.  Fehu teaches not to hoard wealth, but to circulate it for the health of the community.  Dragons are often used as symbols of hoarding, the vice of greed, in literature and religious stories.  We still see this today in sci-fi where any creature that is part dragon is often an expert thief and keeps a ton of secrets.

Ansuz teaches not to hoard knowledge, but to share it.  We speak to others in order to convey the inspiration of our minds and souls.  We receive wisdom from magickal working, communing with the gods, and throughout our travels.  We then impart that wisdom through speech in order to inspire and enrich others. We plant seeds of ourselves wherever we go and speech is often the tool most used to do this.

Breath and voice are also tools of magick.  We change our breathing patterns in order to influence our consciousness or mental state.  We chant, galdr, and sing in order to raise our vibrational frequency mentally and physically. These exercises help us travel astrally, commune with the gods, and travel the world tree.  Breath and vocalization are powerful tools that all shamans, rune leaders, witches, etc. will inevitably invoke and teach to their students.  You can't get away from these tools in occult studies.  And you can't get anywhere without them.

You also see within this rune, Laguz.  I haven't gotten to the study of this rune yet, obviously.  But the presence of Laguz, which means lake, points to the subconscious, life and activity deep beneath a calm surface.  In Tarot, in the elements, water is representative of the mind, the subconscious, and deep New Moon workings.

 The symbol Laguz looks like a closed mouth.  The second mark in Ansuz opens the mouth.  First, we do our workings in silence and secret. Gain what wisdom we can, mark the omens.  Then, we open our mouths and share that wisdom with others.

And of course there is Isa again in this rune.  Isa is potential, stillness, and a warning against stagnation.  I see ice as a hard surface, a solid foundation to walk across.  Always with a warning that it could break with one wrong step.  But beneath that surface, the waters of life still move, animals still live their daily lives, and seeds in the soil wait quietly for the warmth of the sun to germinate.
The two marks across Isa help to "break the ice" and give the world a peek of what may be quietly waiting below.

We even use the term "ice breaker" for an activity that breaks an awkward or frozen community situation.

So these are my initial thoughts. I'll get to the diagrams and research sources in the next entry.
I haven't sat down yet with my books.  In the next couple of days I'll compile the research.

This entry on Ansuz will be a bit different, as in the last one I included my initial thoughts as a section.  I'll leave this entry to stand in that section's place.   And devote a whole entry to the research angle.