Tarosophy Lenormand Lesson 3
Tarosophy Lenormand Lesson 3
Tarosophy Lenormand Lesson 3
LaCartomancieLenormandComplte
AvecMlle.TaliTarot
LArtdeTirerlesCartes[TheMethodofUsingtheCards]
Therollingdice,inwhomyourluckdoesstand,
(Withwhoseunhappychanceyebesowroth)
Yeknowyourselfcameneverinmyhand.
Lo,inthispondbefishandfrogsboth.
Castinyournet;butbeyouleveorloath,
HoldyoucontentasFortunelisteassign
[For]itisyourownfishing,andnotmine.
ThomasMore,FortuneVerses(c.1504)
TroisimeLeon:LeGrandTableau
HellofellowCartomanciens,andwelcometothethirdlessonofmyLenormand
introductioncourse,whichcoversthissalonstylereadingofcards.
InthislessonIwillintroducetheGrandTableau,whichyoumaybesurprised
tofindthatyounowknowhowtoreadusingtheskillswehavecoveredinour
previous two lessons. Whilst it will take practice, you have the essentials
alreadyinyourheadnowwewillapplythem!
Therewillbeanintermediateclasscontinuingonfromthisone,howeverthat
will be for Citizens and Patrons of TarotTown, who pay $1/month. You can
easilyupgradeyourmembershipatanytime,andthereisalotmorematerial
onCitizenStreets,towhichtheintermediateLenormandlessonswillbeadded.
Ialsohaveanadvancedcourseinpreparation,whichwillbeinanewvenuefor
themembersofallTarosophyTarotAssociations,whichwillbeannouncedon
WorldTarotDay,May25th2012.Wehavebeenpreparingthisvenueforover
six months now, and it is almost ready to go live for Tarot Professionals
worldwide.
You can find links to Lenormand decks and suppliers in our cosy TarotTown
LenormandSalongroup.
ACartomanticRevelation
Before we start this weeks practical lesson, I wanted to tell you something
reallyimportantaboutcartomancy,andthehistoryofLenormandandTarot.It
maytotallychangethewayyouthinkaboutTarotandisverysimple:
Originally,thecardsneverhadmeanings.
Ill say that again, the cards never had meanings. To historians, this is an
obviousthing;however,formanyofusTarotreadersitisperhapsalittlehard
togetourheadsaround,havingspentourliveslearningthemeaningsofthe
cards.So,letstakeanotherlookatthisrevelation,andseehowitaffectsnot
only the way we think about our cards, and how the Lenormand (and other
cardssuchasKipper,etc.)fitsintothetradition,buthowwereadthem.
ABitMoreHistory
Long before Lenormand and Tarot, there was a craze, (a little like the
Lenormand,whichisnowhavingasecondrenaissanceinEnglish),forfortune
books. These oracular books contained a variety of verses, giving both
questions and answers for all likely predicaments. They were consulted by a
rangeofmeans;bycastingdice,bypullingthreadsfastenedtovariouspages,
by turning a paper wheel embedded in the book, by counting the number of
lettersinyourname,andofcourse,bydrawingcards.
Onewouldthenconsultanappropriateportionoftext,whichwouldoftenlead
(a bit like a contemporary choose your own adventure book) to branching
avenuesofverseandoracle,basedonsomefurthercombinationofyourdice
ordecision.
ThesebooksweresopopularthateventhefamousThomasMoreandWilliam
Lilly translated one such book from the Italian, in about 1500. This was the
LibrodelleSorti(1474)ofLorenzoSpiriti.
ThereisasimilarfortunetellingbookbookinthelibraryoftheRoyalSocietyin
London,whichMarcusvisitedtoviewlastyear.ThisistheTriomphodifortuna
[TheTriumphofFortune]bySigismondoFanti,publishedinVenicein1527.
It is interesting that these books often chose the question as well as the
answer,makingitmoreofaparlourgame.
Thethingisthatastimewenton,oftenthesequestions,versesandanswers
were depicted next to the playing cards which might have been chosen for
thatparticularroute.Soitwasonlyamatteroftimeforpeopletosimplifythe
wholemethod(whowantedtobuyabigbookwhenyouonlyneededcards?)
by writing down a simplified form of the verses on a pack of cards. Also,
perhapsitbecameevenmoreobvioustohaveasmallvignetteonthecard,to
helpwiththeinterpretation!
Soovertime,thecardsbecamestuckwithonemeaning,oneimage,onesetof
interpretations. But this was not how they started they started as keys to
unlockaseparatebookofmeanings,amapofroutes,andasetoforacles.So
whenwearereadingplayingcards,theyhavenomeanings,theyjustpointus
topossibleversesandmeanings.WhenwereadTarot,theyhavetraditional
meanings.
TheLenormandstandsasabridgebetweenthesetwophasesthecardsonly
havemeaningswhenconsideredwiththewholetableau,andatthesametime
have some limited and fixed meanings, such as the cross being faith. In our
Lenormandreading,then,wemustrecall:
Thecardsarethekeys,notthedoors.
Formoreonthissubject,see:
FortunetellingbythecastingofdicebyW.L.Braekmanin
StudiaNeophilologica,Vol.52,Iss.1,1980.
TheGenesisofTudorInterestinItalianbyGeorgeB.Parks
in Publications of the Modern Language Association of
America,Vol.77,No.5(Dec.,1962),pp.529535.
LeGrandTableau
WehaveseenthattheGrandTableau(hereafterGT)canbelaidoutinatleast
twoorthreedifferentmanners,sowewillcontinuetokeepthingssimplewith
the9x4layout.However,beforewestart,wewilllookatsomesimplerlayouts,
startingwiththe3x1threecardlayout.
We also need to introduce the idea of charged cards now, which is to say,
thecardswhichactasourpegsinthereading,orcompasspointsaboutwhich
we navigate and find our bearings. These are somewhat similar to the
significatorinatarotspread,butjustenoughdifferenttorequireexplanation!
A charged card is taken out of the deck by choice to relate to the question
beingasked.Ingeneralcases,thisistheGentlemancardforamalesitterand
theLadycardforafemalesitter.Inotherspecificinstances,thecardischosen
accordingtoonescorrespondencesandkeywords.Herearesomemainstarter
cardsforyoutoconsider.
ChargedCards(KeyCards)
Relationship TheHeart
Health TheBear
SpiritualLife TheCoffin(sometimesusedforimmediatehealthissues)
Career TheFox
Home/Domestic TheHouse
Education TheBook
Contracts TheRing
Relocation/Travel TheShip
Theappropriatecardisfirsttakenoutofthedeckandcharged(inRunework
wewould callthisloading)byconcentratingonthecard.Therearevarious
otheractionsonecantaketochargethecard,wedonotcoverthemhere,a
momentofconcentrationwillsuffice.
Thecardisthenplacedbackinthedecksoweknowwhatwearelookingfor
whenitislaidoutwithothercardsinanyformoflayout.Itprovidesabeacon
for us to use in highlighting the Tableau. Consider it a lighthouse, shining
brightlyonthecardsaroundit(butperhapsmissingthoserightnexttoit)and
lessbrightlyonthecardsfarawayfromit.
Inanycaseofshuffling,youmaywishthesittertoshuffle,oryoushuffleand
allowthesittertothensplitthedeckintothreepiles(withtheirlefthand)and
thenrestackthembackintoonedeck.
CareerReading(ThreeCards)
Let us imagine our sitter has asked about their career. We are to perform a
three card spread. We have charged the Fox card, and then we shuffle (or
allowthesittertoshuffle)andperformathreedecksplit.Whenthecardsare
placed back in a single pile, we turn them faceup and work through them
carefullytolocatethechargedFoxcard.
Thecardimmediatelyaboveit,weplacedownonthetable,thentheFoxitself,
thenthecardimmediatelybelowit.Ofcourse,youcanselecttwocardsabove
andbelowfora5cardlayout,3cardsaboveandbelowfora7cardlayout,etc.
Illus1.CareerThreeCardReading
Inthisexample,theLetteristotheleftandtheLittleGirltotherightofthe
Fox.UsingmyseedwordsIseethisasaninnocentsentiment.Asasentiment
isacombinationofbeliefsandemotions,inconjunctionwiththeyoungchild,I
read this as being completely guileless with regard to career. Unless this is a
sitter who is looking for employment in childcare or other related fields (for
example,entertainment)thisdoesnotbodewellforcurrentjobhunting.
The letter itself may be read literally that they will receive an offer however
theyarenottogointoitwideeyedasotherwisetheywillbeeatenasthefox
hascaughtthebirdinthecentralimage.Thisisverymuchawarning.
NineCardReading(Romance)
In this next reading, we look at a charged card for relationships, the Heart.
Whilst generally in a Grand Tableau reading, we would look mainly at the
placement and relationships between the Gentleman and the Lady cards for
matters of romance, we can also look at the heart card to see how the
emotionalstateofthesitterissatwithinthesituation.
Inthisninecardreading,wehaveplacedtheheartatthecentreofthecards,
forthepurposeofteachingthiswillmakesenselaterinthislesson.Fornow,
justworkwithmeunmomenttolookatthislayout.
Illus2.HeartCard(Emotional)NineCardLayout
Now take a look at these cards in relationship to each other. One thing that
immediately strikes me is that the top three cards, bearing down on the
emotionalstateoftheheart,togethershow(readingrighttoleftinthiscase)
a proposal of faithful reliability. The sitters highest expectation of
relationshipistobegivenalonglastingstatementoftrust.Whenwelookat
thethreecardsbelow,wemightseethattheyhavereachedastandstillintheir
selfappreciation(anchor+thebouquet+coffin),thecoffindoublysignifyinga
recent change of state (perhaps a divorce or other breakup) and also their
selfinitiationandimage,sowiththebouquetthisturnstheappreciationinto
aselfimageandselfworthstate,ratherthansomeoneelseappreciating.
Ihopeyoucanseehowwemustreadthecardstogetherfirst,inbatches,sets,
montages,vignettes,scenarios,scenesandtableaux.Itmakesitmucheasier.
SowhatabouttheWaysandtheStorkeithersideoftheheart?Doesthisgive
thesittersomethingpromisingintheiremotionallife?
NineCardReading(Travel)
Lets change tack now and do another ninecard reading, this time for a
question about travel. A sitter has come to ask us about their prospects for
travelshouldtheylooktotravelorsettledown,forexample.
ThisrelatestothechargedcardoftheShip.SowecouldfirstplacetheShipon
thetableandthenshuffle,cutanddraweightcardstosurroundit.Orperhaps
wecouldshuffleandfindtheShipandthenplaceitonthetableandsurround
it by the next eight cards in the deck. I have another method which youll
learnattheendofthislessonfornow,unpetitmomentagaintolookat
thisnextlayouttogether.
ILLUS3.ShipCard(Travel)NineCardLayout
Let us also add that our Sitter in this case is a young man, so we can
immediatelyseethattheGentlemancardisappearinginthelayout,withthe
Cloudsaheadofhim,showingchangeandtransition.Whilsthewilllikelyseek
stability,theTree,ontheothersideofthatrapidchange,hewillbeforcedto
travelanyway,astheShipisabovehim.
Why not use our Keyword Kaleidoscope to see what the Snake here might
mean? So we take a look at Snake + Ship + Clouds as they corner the
Gentleman.ThatsStealth+Adventure+Transition.
Stealth+Adventure=Spying
Adventure+Transition=Exploration
Stealth+Transition=Disguise
And we can collapse our Kaleidoscope into one word, Spying + Exploration +
Disguise=Safari.Itcertainlylookslikethecardsaresuggestingahighoctane
adventure type trip, where the Sitter will have to dress up for the climate or
culture.
Now you do the same for the Scythe, Sun and Messenger in the topright
corner. They are further away from the Gentleman, but influence somewhat
hisactivitieswithregardtotravel,beingontheshadowsidetohimoftheShip.
NineCardReading(Education)
Letstakewhatwehavelearntandpracticedintheseninecardmethodsand
nowapplyittoaSitterwhohascometoustoaskaquestionabouteducation.
They wish to leave their current job, but are unsure how to go about re
trainingorlearning,whethertheyshouldinvest,doitfulltimeorparttime,or
stickwiththeircurrentcareer.Whilstthisisrelatedtocareer,itismoreabout
educationandupgradingskills,sowechargetheBookcard.
ILLUS4.Book(Education)NineCardLayout
Inthiscase,letusimagineacrossfirst,ofverticalandhorizontallinesandtake
a reading as to what is influencing directly the Sitters perspective on their
education,andthenlookatthediagonalcardstoseetheirroutesofchoice.
Icoverthismoreintheintermediateandadvancedcourses,fornow,letsuse
itasawayofapplyingourskillintwoseparateexamples.
ILLUS4a.BookCross.
I have not done anything here other than put together my own seed words
fromthefirstlessonwecanthenworkfurtheronourinterpretation,perhaps
byplacingthesephrasestogethertoreadyouwillreceiveanofferwhichwill
meetyourvision,andyouareadvisedheretocommityourselftoitabsolutely
cleanly,separatingitoutfromallotherconcernsitmustremainyours,and
doingitforyourownselfworth(notforothers).
Nowletsjustclarifythatwiththediagonals.
ILLUS4b.BookDiagonal.
Try using the Keyword Kaleidoscope on the four corners together, or other
combinationsoftheninecardsinthislayout.Youcanseehowpowerfulthese
simple9x9layouts canbecomewithjustafewsimpleskillsand practice.We
willalsoseehownearandfarcomesintoplayattheendofthislesson.
Inthesetwocases,Iwillgiveyouacoupleofpointers,thenaskyoutolookat
thereadingsandapplyyourskillsandpracticetointerpretthelayouts.
NineCardReading(Health)
ILLUS5.Bear(Health)NineCardLayout
PremierExercise:BearReading
WhatwillbegoodfortheSittershealthaccordingtothislayout?
WhattendstodrawtheSittertopracticeswhicharebadfortheirhealth?
WhatistheimportanceoftheMice+Birds+Scythe?
LookattheimagesoftheBear+Broom,whatdoesthissayaboutwillpower?
DeuximeExercise:CoffinReading
ILLUS6.Coffin(SpiritualLife)NineCardLayout
Whatmightflowersofallkindssignifytothespirituallife?
Whatisthedifferencebetweenahouseandagarden?Whatdoesthatmean?
Comparethetwocolumns,leftandright.Whatmightthesesuggest?
TheGrandTableau
So,wehaveseenhowwecanderivesomuchmeaningfrom3x3cardlayouts,
and you may be wondering when you will build up to the incredible 4x9 36
card Grand Tableau. Well, madams et monsieurs, I, TaliTarot, have a grand
surpriseforyouyouhavealreadylearnttheGrandTableau!Cestvrai!
It is indeed true. Take another look at all those 3x3 layouts you have been
reading,andthentakealookatthefollowingsingleGrandTableau.
ILLUS7.TheGrandTableau
Thats right! Every single reading you have done in this lesson, whether it be
three cards for the career of the Sitter, nine cards for health or spiritual
purpose,whetheritbefortheirrelocationconcerns,orfortheirromanticlife
theyareallfromthesameoneGrandTableau.Thisistheincrediblescopeof
learning Lenormand; one singular layout can be utilised to read the entire
rangeofconcernsandissuesanysittermaypresent.
Soyoudonothavetokeeplayingoutdifferentcardsorspreads,likeonemight
have to do in a Tarot reading the method is actually a lot simpler than
shufflingandsearchingforchargedcards,orcountingpiles,oranythingjust
layoutallthecardsandreadtheTableaux.
TroisimeExercise:NearandFar
In this exercise, if you have completed the previous two, you may consider
how the various 3x3 layouts relate to each other where they overlap (and
how you read the same cards differently in each case!) where they are far
apart.Whichchargedcardsarenearandfartoeachother,andhowmightthat
add another layer to your reading? Which cards that caused concern in one
partoftheTableaualsocausedconcerninanother?
Conclusion
Itmaytakeawhiletorealisejusthowpowerfulamethodthisis,andhowyou
can now profoundly apply the essential skills you have already learnt to
interpretingafullTableau.Inmynextlessonwewilldeepenourreadingwith
anintroductionoftheHousesofLenormand.
IrecommendyoucontinuetopracticewithfullTableauxevenifyouonlyread
part of them do not get into a lazy learning habit of just laying out a few
cards,asyouwilltrainyourbraindownamorelimitedavenue.
Feel free to share in TarotTown or ask questions. Like any practice method,
its a lot easier to do than explain, youll soon see how easy it is, and how it
starts to do strange things inside your head when you next read the cards,
whetherLenormandorTarot.
OptionalExercise
Execer2:PoeticLiaisons
WhenIvebeenreadingoldercartomanticandfortunetellingbooks,manyof
themuseaparticularverseformfortheiroracles.Thisisnotquitethesameas
usedinGermanversesfortheLenormandcards,norEnglishequivalentssuch
asthoseontheUSGamesSystemsdeck,whoseverseswerewrittenbyStuart
Kaplanhimself.
Theotherinterestingnoteisthattheseverseswereoftenintwocouplets,the
firstcoupletapplyingtoamanusingthebook,thesecondtoawoman.
Soyouroptionalexerciseistocreateversesinthisparticularformatforyour
36 Lenormand cards. It is fun, helps you learn the cards and can provide an
oracular game all in itself at parties, as people choose a card and you read
themtheirversefromyourownfortunetellingbook.
Theformatoftheversesisverysimple,andthosewhohavebeenonourother
courseswillknowweteachalotofpoeticpatternsfromHaikutoNorseSagas,
sothisisanothertoaddtoyourrepertoire!
FortuneTellingVerses
Foreachcardwritea4lineversecomposedoftworhymingcouplets.Thefirst
couplet applies to a gentleman sitter, the second to a lady. The lines of both
coupletsshouldbe7syllables.Thisgivesaverysimplebeatandstresstothe
verse,suitingittooursalonstyledelivery.Asanexampleoftheform:
Itsveryeasytodo
Writingthisformeandyou.
Thedeckyoucanmakecomplete
Withtheserhymessoshortandsweet.
Andheresonefromafortunetellingbook:
Bythisfourweclearlysee
Fourbratsmustbelaidtothee.
Shewhogetsthesamewillwed,
Tworichhusbandsbothwellbred.
oranotheroftheAceofSpades,bodingillforbothladiesandgentlemen:
ThouwhogetsthisAceofSpades
ShaltbefloutedbytheMaids,
Whenitisadamselslot,
Loveandhonourgotopot.
Sohaveatry,rememberingineachthatthefirsttwolinecoupletappliestoa
malesitter,thesecondtoafemalesitter:
Whenthebearispulledbyyou,
HealthandWealthareinyourview,
Whenfacedbyawomanswhiles,
Itportendsalifeofsmiles.
Ilookforwardtothebest(andworst!)ofyourSalonversesfortheLenormand.
Votretrshumbleettrsobissanteservante,
Mlle.TaliTarot