Ansuz (ᚨ) — Odin, Breath, Divine Communication

Ansuz (ᚨ), fourth rune of Freyr's ætt, is the rune of the Áss — the god, specifically Óðinn, All-Father and discoverer of the runes. In the Hávamál (stanzas 138–141), Óðinn recounts his self-sacrifice on Yggdrasill: 'I know that I hung on a wind-battered tree, nine full nights, wounded by a spear... I peered downward, I grasped the runes, screaming I grasped them, and I fell back from there.' Ansuz governs óðr — the divine breath, poetic inspiration, and ecstatic consciousness. It is the channel through which the Æsir communicate with Miðgarðr, the vehicle of galdr (incantation) and the spoken word that shapes reality.