Ankh Layout
Difficulty: Kind of tough
The Ankh Spread is for questions about the causes behind trends. It is similar to the Celtic Cross and Secret of the High Priestess layouts, but it covers the reasons behind the circumstances in question differently, perhaps giving a better explanation of why things are the way they are.
The loop of the upper section of the ankh reveals the spiritual background and causes of the situation, while the stem of the base focuses on prospects for the outcome.
The first two oghams represent the two parent causes of the situation. They will either complement each other or show two opposing sides of a conflict, depending on how they relate. These are the significator oghams of the Ankh layout.
3. This ogham shines light upon the early causes of the trend in question.
4. Pinpoints the causes that triggered the current situation.
5. Reveals the spiritual perspective of the subject at hand.
6. This ogham examines the reasons why this course of action had to unfold, as a means to this end.
At this point, it is good to pause to soak in the meaning of the first six oghams before moving forward to the last three oghams. The last three reveal prospects for the future.
7. The Next Step gives clues about the immediate future.
8. Surprising Experiences encountered en route to the result.
9. This represents the result.
Your Ankh Reading
Early Causes | Higher Perceptions ![]() Straif |
Triggering Causes |
![]() Coll Blocked |
Necessary Conclusions | ![]() Duir |
Significator #1 | ![]() Uilleann Blocked |
Significator #2 |
![]() Ur Blocked |
Next Step | ![]() Iodhadh |
![]() Fearn |
||
Surprising Experiences ![]() Beith Blocked |
||
Outcome ![]() Émancholl |

Significator #1
Ur Blocked
- Tree/Plant: Heather
- Kenning: ‘Flower of Dreams’
- Spiritual Lesson: Dreams demand roots as much as wings.
- Reflective Question: What fragile dream do I need to protect and nourish?
- Affirmation: ‘I dream with rooted hope.’

Significator #2
Iodhadh
- Tree/Plant: Yew
- Kenning: ‘Tree of Death and Continuity’
- Spiritual Lesson: Death is not the end—it is the sacred beginning beneath all beginnings.
- Reflective Question: What am I clinging to that refuses to die cleanly?
- Affirmation: ‘I descend to rise.’

Early Causes
Coll Blocked
- Tree/Plant: Hazel
- Kenning: ‘Wellspring of Wisdom’
- Spiritual Lesson: Wisdom must be lived, not stored.
- Reflective Question: What hidden knowledge am I being invited to embrace?
- Affirmation: ‘I drink from the sacred well.’

Triggering Causes
Duir
- Tree/Plant: Oak
- Kenning: ‘Door to Strength’
- Spiritual Lesson: Power without purpose is decay.
- Reflective Question: Where must I claim authority—or surrender pride?
- Affirmation: ‘I am the door that withstands all storms.’

Higher Perceptions
Straif
- Tree/Plant: Blackthorn
- Kenning: ‘Blade of Trials’
- Spiritual Lesson: Pain refines, not defines.
- Reflective Question: What suffering is trying to carve me into something better?
- Affirmation: ‘I transform pain into power.’

Necessary Conclusions
Uilleann Blocked
- Tree/Plant: Honeysuckle
- Kenning: ‘Hidden Sweetness’
- Spiritual Lesson: Not all that tempts is treasure—but real treasure rarely announces itself.
- Reflective Question: What unseen blessing have I ignored?
- Affirmation: ‘I follow sweetness hidden in shadow.’

The Next Step
Fearn
- Tree/Plant: Alder
- Kenning: ‘Shield of the Warriors’
- Spiritual Lesson: Strength is found not in stubbornness, but in sacred resilience.
- Reflective Question: What cause truly deserves my courage right now?
- Affirmation: ‘I am the bridge and the battleground.’

Surprises
Beith Blocked
- Tree/Plant: Birch
- Kenning: ‘Brightest of Trees’
- Spiritual Lesson: Purification requires surrender; beginnings require mourning.
- Reflective Question: What old story must I finally lay to rest to allow my rebirth?
- Affirmation: ‘I welcome the purity of the unknown.’

The Outcome
Émancholl
- Tree/Plant: Double Hazel / ‘Lover’s Vine’
- Kenning: ‘The Sacred Pair’
- Spiritual Lesson: True connection is mutual transformation.
- Reflective Question: What relationship calls me to become more than myself?
- Affirmation: ‘I grow through sacred union.’