Ear is the rune of the grave and endings. It represents death, the complete loss of what is. Unlike the transformation of Hagalaz or Eihwaz, or the catharsis of Ior, Ear extinguishes all that was. Some say this end that comes to everything should be viewed as a beginning to something else. Like the fruit in the above verse, though it may die and rot away there is still a seed left, a chance at a new beginning. However, I do not see this concept is outlined in the historical refrences to this rune, nor am I sure it is a early Norse concept.