Yes/No Lenormand readings, how do you do them?

prudence

Hi,

I'm just wondering if you do yes/no readings with Lenormands, do you just pull one card or three or more than that? I'm curious about how others who are fluent in Lenormands approach these readings.

Thank you for your help! :)
 

Teheuti

There's no one way to do yes/no readings but it does help to have a system even if you are flexible with it.

First: the question has to be correcly phrased - see comments at the end.

I use a line of cards—usually five—and the classic positive and negative cards as my main indicators. There's approximately 9 of each although these may vary according to individual experience. I simply count how many of each and that gives me my basic answer: yes, no or undetermined.

Then I check the remaining "neutral" cards. Are they more positive than negative? Or completely neutral? Do adjacent or mirroring cards influence each other to be more positive or negative? I adjust my response according to these, which may change an indeterminate or closely-called answer to lean more in one direction than another.

Finally I look at the cards as a timeline from left to right and tell a story regarding them. This won't change a clear answer (i.e., three negative cards followed by a final positive one does NOT give a yes answer!).

ESSENTIAL: Restate the question as part of your answer! It keeps you honest and on-point.
- Yes, he will ask you out sometime this month.
- No, your dog will not recover.
- It's unclear if he truly loves you; he appears to have mixed feelings.
- I can't tell if she will win the vote; the matter may not yet be decided.
I *might* then expand on the answer given with more detail based on the cards. I try not to get into advice unless it was an advice question ("Should I . . . ?").

THE QUESTION. It needs to be clear, unambiguous and preferably with a timeline (if warranted).

- Will he pass the test or not? This is really two questions. Rephrase it one way or the other or do two readings. Also, it is skirting ethics to ask about someone else without their permission.

- Will I ever get married? Usually predictions work best over a relatively short period - a couple of months at most. Time-delimit your questions whenever you can. Will I get married within the next six months?

- Will the picnic tomorrow get rained out? What is your answer if the Sun card comes up? Yes, it will rain, or no, it will be sunny? Phrase your question so that positive cards indicate positive outcomes: "Will the weather be nice tomorrow for our picnic?" If unsure, ask yourself what the answer would be if Sun or if Coffin (or other strong cards) come up.

Yes/No questions can be:

- Predictive. Will he call me tomorrow? Will my house sell by the end of the month?

- Advice: Should I call him today? Is ____ my best course of action?

- Descriptive/Informational: Does he love me? Is there another option? [It's less ambiguous if you to follow up with a separate question regarding that option.]

And less often:

- Ability: Can I eat another cookie? Yes, you can, but should you?

NOTE: Caitlín Matthews uses a different system. I'm unsure of the details but I believe she counts the number of red and the number of black suits on the playing card insets.
 

Teheuti

Does anyone here use a different method for answering Yes-No questions? Afterall they are, by far, the most frequent questions you see asked of the Lenormand deck.
 

Padma

yes, I have a different method.

I only use one card, or at the most, two.

I always put the question in positive terms, so that if a positive card turns up, I know for sure it is a yes.

so, e.g. : will the results from the test be clear and good? Or, will the doctor tell me some good news after the test is interpreted? For a medical test, I don't want to ask if the results will be positive, because a positive result in medicine is bad! :eek:

But, for other things - will my dog like this brand of food? Or, will he call me tonight? Or, will I find the perfect outfit today while shopping? Or, will my parcel arrive this week? That kind of phrasing.

I shuffle while focusing on the question, and cut the deck in two, and pick up the card on the top of the right sided pile. Usually, I get either one very positive or one very negative card.

If I get a really neutral card, and it feels too ambiguous, then I also look at the card on top of the other pile. If it is also neutral, then I assume that the cards themselves are suggesting a "maybe" and will try again a day later, providing the question was not for that day itself.

If the second card on the left is negative, then I assume a no, but not with bad results; and if it is positive, then I assume a yes, but likely more lukewarm than I would have wanted!
 

jayaso

half up / half down

Hey there,

I've read about a method where you turn half of the cards upside down and keep the rest upright. From there, you shuffle them and pick a card. If it's an upside down card, then it's a no (regardless of the card) and if it's upright, then it's a yes.
 

Tag_jorrit

For a timing question like "will my house sell this month?" that question wouldn't have any nuances that something else might, like "Will I get this job I just applied for?" If that answer comes out to be a positive, the next thing I would want to know is if it was a good idea to accept it!

For yes/no questions with options, I like to be informed. Like a lot of things, sometimes the outcome of something that you find disappointing allows something even better to happen because of that outcome. Conversely, if something turns out the way you wanted it, you may have missed a better opportunity that would have presented itself. Sometimes an absolute yes or no may not be the best answer to a question.

My favorite way to ask a yes or no question is to do two 3-card spreads with the question phrased something like, "what will be the outcome if I do this?" or "what will be the outcome if I don't do this?" With 2 decks or using one to lay out one spread then picking up the 3 cards, re-shuffling and laying out the 2nd answer.
 

Barleywine

Most of my Lenormand work has been with the GT or the 9-card square. But I've been working on a "Yes-leaning/No-leaning" binning method for tarot that I could easily port over to Lenormand, where the positive and negative nature of the individual cards is already fairly well-defined. I have a similar "weighting" technique for cards in combination, and would definitely stay with an odd-numbered line in order to have a central "focus" card with which to relate the "modifier" cards. I like 3-card lines for "Yes/No" but if more detail on the "why" and "how" is sought, I would go to five cards. I'm on the fence about any "time-line" sequencing, since that kind of question would seem to imply the need for a broader perspective and more variables.

I also recall that Caitlin Mathhews relies on the playing-card suits and colors (in general, red = Yes; black = No; Hearts = Yes; Diamonds = probably Yes; Clubs = probably No; Spades = No). It's been a while since I read her last book, so don't quote me on that!