Considering a Lenormand

DesertDream

I have never worked with this type of divination deck. But I have found one I am in love with. I was wondering how to go about reading with this deck? Im guessing traditional meanings, with psychic flair help any reading deck. But what type of advice would you offer a noob like me?

Thank you beautiful souls!
 

Padma

Recommend that you read through German and French meanings (different) and then pick a system you like, and stick with it!

practice a lot;

Keep your meanings for the cards brief;

practice a lot;

remember that daily draws are quite literal;

practice a lot ;)

PS never treat them like tarot, the two systems are totally different!

Also another PS, there are several authors with great books out there - pick the one that best resonates, and again, stick with it. Examples are Rana George, Andy Boroshevengra (Andy BC) and Caitlin Matthews. Online resources, check out Donnaleigh (tarottribe) videos at youtube :)
 

DesertDream

Thanks for your vauluable input Padma! How different are the French and German meanings, worlds apart? What side did you decide to use and why? Which system came first? How do you go about your daily draws?
 

Tag_jorrit

A very good place to start is with the top sticky thread in this forum showing resources. Read through some of them and you'll get a good sense of what's in store for you.
 

Torann

I have never worked with this type of divination deck. But I have found one I am in love with.

Make sure that the images are very clear and simple. That is very important, you have to see what it is immediately. It is not like tarot where the imagery can be very detailed and abundant.
Otherwise: have fun!
 

danieljuk

yes I would really go for simple expressive artwork on cards first. There is many decks out there like that. My first deck was Titania's Fortune Cards. They are just the Lenormand symbol on a brightly coloured card and some of the cards are reversed colours. They are very modern but I found the simple design helpful for learning. I used the book that came with it so much in the early days but as I studied Lenormand I needed more from cards and meanings. With hindsight now I think her interpretation of Tree and Cross are much too positive! But the problem with Lenormand is there is the French school and German school and also a classical take on it and a more modern take with intuition used. There is nothing wrong with exploring every angle of it but I would suggest finding the method and direction that works for you and work out the base meaning of the cards for you. Maybe some keywords that you will always remember.

It's worth as you study to read a few different books or study courses and get different perspectives. But when you find a method that works for you, stick to it! I have exchanged on AT as I have been learning and the person I am partnered with has a different meaning to some cards and this freaked me out. But it's just a different take or school of thought. I think I get good readings with my system now and so there is a sort of getting comfortable with the system. Like in Tarot some people use reversals, some people use astrological associations, you find your place! That is my biggest tip, to explore it and there is no right or wrong as you learn :)

Start with cards with simple images and then buy more detailed decks as you go along :thumbsup:
 

Falcor

Actually I am about to try Lenormand too. I am waiting for my Alternate Realities deck to arrive and meanwhile purchased a small but an informative looking book for newbies in Russian.
 

DownUnderNZer

Simple decks are the BEST like the Blue Owl - no poems.

Understand each cards meaning first - as in a base meaning for each one.

Learn the differences between systems, but follow one. The FRENCH is lighter than the GERMAN system to some extent as well as the BELGIUM one I'd say. And ALL are LESS heavier compared to the Brazilian system which is steeped in "spiritual" and "magic" rituals etc.

I do not think too much of the Matthew book nor what I saw of Donnaleigh with her "38" card GT. :bugeyed: Remember GTs are only 36 card spreads.

Steinbach I feel should not be ignored as she does provide value with a lot of two card meanings in her book, however, her system is hard to grasp and therefore her book can cause confusion.

Rana George from what I saw was okay, but that was just one little video. Have not looked at any more yet. Have seen parts of her book and if you are fine with lots of personal stories as well as spreads and meanings - then it is probably the one to get out of all of them. Andy B use to be on AT and he uses the German system. It is a little more harsh than the French, but it also uses the "far" and " near" method in the GT which was my teething ring.

You are lucky there are a lot of resources available these days, but because of that it does cause some confusion. What I find interesting is how some do not know how to apply the cards to different situations or they read them like they are Tarot. So, it makes me wonder if it is because of learning from a PC or book rather than a person, or how they learn.

Keep to the basics is my advise, stay with the question, and do not add unnecessary crap. LEARN how to apply the cards to different questions like the HEART should be different in a LOVE question compared to WORK. The mistake I see a bit with readers is when they take it somewhere else completely when they see cards like HEART or MOON or FOX because they see those cards in a specific way.

DND :)
 

Nemia

What I did now to get into the Lenormand again (bought my Blue Owl and a basic book in German some 12 years ago) - I bought a blank deck of playing cards from a crafts shop and simply wrote on each card the associations. I find Andy BC's book very good and for a historical intro, Marcus Katz.

And now I practice with three cards to get the "vocabulary" back.

Lenormand is very popular in Germany, as well as fortune telling with playing cards. I follow the German tradition, if there is such a thing, simply because Anne Biwer's book was my first and Andy BC's has the same card meanings. I won't confuse myself with many different approaches right now; later I might add other books to the mix.

In tarot, many different points of view make the experience richer; in Lenormad, they confuse me.

I use tarot for meditation, self reflection, creative art, deep questions about my life, inner and outer.

The Lenormand really resembles old fashioned fortune telling much more and I find it needs different "intuitive muscles". With tarot, you can wrap things nicely in seven veils. Lenormand is much more pragmatical.

That's how I re-enter the Lenormand waters, ymmv.