AUTHOR'S NOTE: During my studies I occasionally see a distinction being made between a narrative "storytelling" approach to explaining the cards in a reading, in which a series of scenes is presented much like the panels of a comic strip, and a less-anecdotal descriptive style that defines the broader relationship among the cards, often in … Continue reading Narrative or Descriptive Reading: A Cartomantic Divide
Lenormand – General
Don’t Accept “Maybe . . .”
. . . when "Yes" or "No" will do. AUTHOR'S NOTE: There is a strong bias in the cartomantic community against putting simple "yes-or-no" questions to the cards. Such efforts are seen as no better than a coin-flip, an odd-or-even roll of the dice or any other 50/50 divination method, and when they do invoke … Continue reading Don’t Accept “Maybe . . .”
“Exclamation-Point” Cards (!)
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I just came across the notion that some cards in a reading can add an exclamation point or "Aha!" emphasis to whatever message the rest of the cards are trying to convey, in effect imparting some certainty to the forecast. (Thank you Lisa Young-Sutton for the inspiration!) In Lenormand readings this honor falls … Continue reading “Exclamation-Point” Cards (!)
The Marginalized Significator: Five Solutions
AUTHOR'S NOTE: A unique challenge occasionally arises when throwing a Lenormand Grand Tableau in which the Significator Card (SC) lands in the far-right column of the layout with no cards to its immediate right. This results in an irregular matrix of surrounding cards that sheds a few of the interpretive angles typically present with a … Continue reading The Marginalized Significator: Five Solutions
Best Foot Forward: A Lenormand Personality Matrix
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Although I very seldom use the Lenormand cards for any psychological purpose (subconscious self-awareness, mind-reading, character analysis, personality profiling, etc), I'm always looking for legitimate ways to do so that won't outrage my non-mystical cartomantic sensibilities. Here's one that comes from a "best-case-scenario" perspective that can be used as a template for a … Continue reading Best Foot Forward: A Lenormand Personality Matrix
A Narrow Way
". . . strait is the gate and narrow is the way . . ." (Matthew 7:14, King James version) AUTHOR'S NOTE: I received my early mentoring in the Lenormand cards directly from Andy Boroveshengra when we were both members of the Aeclectic Tarot forum, and I've been partial to his stripped-down style of interpretation … Continue reading A Narrow Way
Cards of Success and Failure
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The presence of positive, neutral and negative cards in the Lenormand deck inevitably invites contemplation of which ones augur success or failure in any situation being considered from a predictive angle. These are my own opinions on the subject; although most of them align with the textbook definitions, a few differ based on … Continue reading Cards of Success and Failure
Lenormand Jottings: (Mostly) Simple Card Meanings
AUTHOR'S NOTE: My involvement with several online Lenormand communities has brought with it numerous opportunities to practice card interpretation, which has given me the confidence to post my own insights. My baseline in this regard is Andy Boroveshengra's Lenormand, 36 Cards (although I don't intend to plagiarize it), but I've gained considerable depth and breadth … Continue reading Lenormand Jottings: (Mostly) Simple Card Meanings
Architecture of the Grand Tableau
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It goes without saying that interpreting the Lenormand Grand Tableau is an "iterative" process in which the 36-card layout is reduced to manageable proportions via a variety of interconnected techniques focused around a central card that represents either the querent or the theme of the reading: the internal 9-card "box" in all of … Continue reading Architecture of the Grand Tableau
“Sex Cards” in Lenormand
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've always maintained that Lenormand doesn't need a unique sex card (just as it doesn't need a specific, universally-accepted "work" card or "health" card.) There are other ways to "flay the feline." Regarding sex, there are many cards that can deliver us to the brink (or push us down the slippery slope, as … Continue reading “Sex Cards” in Lenormand
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 