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I was working at a psychic fair this week, and one of the dealers there was a card specialist. She had a pack of Lenormand cards for sale that I immediately fell in love with and bought straight away.

The cards are bridge size, and are a kind of fusion of tarot cards and playing cards. The 4 suits are spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs, but as well as having the regular playing card design on them they also have small tarot-esque pictures and a small fortune telling verse on them. They're beautiful!

I've already figured out a routine for them (an adaptation of something out of "Geist"), and am also doing my homework on how to do divination with them to add to my cold reading routines.

I just wondered if any of you guys had ever come across the Lenormand deck before? I certainly never have, but can't wait to add such a unique and beautiful deck into my routines.

Just found this link which might be of interest http://www.libralion.com/lenormand.htm

In Invisible Readings, Enrqiue Enriquez recommends these cards. Have you used them now?

Hi DrTodd. How does Enriquez recommend using the cards? The traditional method of using these cards is to lay out every card in the pack (36) in rows, and the divination is read by seeing which cards are close to the card that represents the sitter. It is an awkward method of doing a card reading because a large table space is required!

However I can imagine that it would not be too difficult to conduct a reading using one, three or five cards. The explanations of the card are produced on the face, but of course these can be embellished and added to as the need arises.

They are a really beautful card, and I usually use the (totally bogus) explanation that they are the missing link between tarot cards and playing cards. Although this is totally incorrect in so many ways, it actually sounds and looks right to the spec.

The reason I haven't done too much work with them is that my sitters often expect a certain amount of what they perceive as "authenticity" and you can't beat a good old pack of Rider Waite for that.

I have also been working on a fully functioning method of doing readings using playing cards (a little obsession of mine), and so the Lenormand cards have been sadly placed at the back of my magic box - a place they don't deserve to be.

He argues that they are the best set of symbols to use since they link to so many other oracles. His book is about how not to use the physical cards but to imagine their images and metaphors for doing an 'invisible reading'...very nice...just wanted to get a good set and start working with them...

Hi DrTodd. Yes, the more I think about this, the more it makes sense. On the one hand there is the "tarot-esque" image, then there is the "fortune cookie" style message, and also the number (numerology) and the traditional playing card suit. So that's 4 "pointers" from one card. Interesting...

I'm working at a "Friday 13th" event tonight purely as a psychic and reader. I've now popped the Lenormand cards in my bag and will give them a whirl. Will report back over the weekend.

where did you get yours?

Todd

DrTodd wrote:where did you get yours?

Todd

A psychic fair. I'd never seen them before or since. Perhaps cards4magic will be able to trace a pack for you? They do appear quite rare.

I bought a pack in France many years ago. The instructions are in French, of course.........

Barry

Hi:
These cards are also used in that Paul Harris gypsy thingy, forget its name. They are readily available in most new age shops, on the internet etc. However the ones I have seen tended to be poker rather than bridge.
Concerning invisible tarot readings, I don't remember Enrique saying use these images rather than tarot because of the linking with other oracles, if he did so, if, then IMO it is rather a naive statement considering the linkages in the tarot cards themselves.
Once more IMO magicians who do readings rarely seem to have any knowledge of tarot cards themselves. I hope the last statement isn't too disturbing.

bob1a

How many cards are in the deck? I have one that has 36 cards and I believe that's normal, but I think that some are a full 52 card deck.

In order, across the top, my ones have a playing card, some divinatory information, a description of the card's name (e.g. The Ship), then below that is the main picture, taken from mythology, then three smaller pictures across the bottom. There's a real wealth of information on them.

bob1a wrote:Once more IMO magicians who do readings rarely seem to have any knowledge of tarot cards themselves. I hope the last statement isn't too disturbing.

bob1a

Yeah. Me and others here know nothing about the tarot.

Part-Timer wrote:How many cards are in the deck? I have one that has 36 cards and I believe that's normal.

Yeah, mine have 36 also.

bob1a wrote:These cards are also used in that Paul Harris gypsy thingy, forget its name.

Deep Astonishment II, although they are Gypsy Witch cards. Similar to Lenormand ones, but not the same (at least not based on the quick comparison I have just made).

Incidentally, my quick search has revealed I also have a 54 card version of the Lenormand Deck. In fact, I have two, although one isn't remotely marked as such!

If anyone's very interested in symbolism, keep an eye out for Belline cards as well. The reason I've picked up lots of different fortune telling decks is that I like the archetypal images and ideas they use.

bob1a wrote:Hi:
These cards are also used in that Paul Harris gypsy thingy, forget its name. They are readily available in most new age shops, on the internet etc. However the ones I have seen tended to be poker rather than bridge.
Concerning invisible tarot readings, I don't remember Enrique saying use these images rather than tarot because of the linking with other oracles, if he did so, if, then IMO it is rather a naive statement considering the linkages in the tarot cards themselves.
Once more IMO magicians who do readings rarely seem to have any knowledge of tarot cards themselves. I hope the last statement isn't too disturbing.

bob1a

It was not linkages to Tarot but many other oracles and it is in his new book. It was sort of an efficiency argument