What housing system do you use ?

kwaw

That's interesting, kwaw, but I wonder how the Lenormand began to be read with houses. And especially how the houses were ascribed the same meanings as the Lenormand cards rather than the older method of the house designations you so aptly described.

The cards were originally meant to be laid out in sequence as (a grid-like?) positions in a board game, so I suppose rider = game position 1, became rider=house position 1, etc.,

I am not sure, but I think the instructions for the game had them laid out in order in a 8x4+4 grid? Or possibly that was in the PL instructions (can't recall off-hand without looking it up).

So in accordance with the original game, it would be natural that the house positions took on the same names as the game positions, and used an 8x4+4 grid.

I am not sure the other method (Foli etc.,) is the older method in reference to Lenormand. The names & meanings are older than both the board game & lenormand (from a text from 1788), but there is no evidence of these being applied as a method of Lenormand prior to L'Oracle Parfait, 1875. So it is a late adaption of an earlier method to Lenormand. The use of game-position = house position was possibly/probably used with Lenormand prior to that, and thus be the earlier/older method.
 

IHeartRescues

Thank you tag_j for reminding me to read Foli's book. It's very interesting and it's online to read for free! I don't know which system came first or if I will use a House system in the future or not. But am reading his book w/ interest.
 

Barleywine

I came to Lenormand reading with the advantage (handicap?) of a long history of astrological practice, in which the houses of a chart impart situational focus to the planets that reside there. I kind of fell into the practice of applying the core meaning of each card to its associated house, and then blending that with the meaning of any card falling randomly in that house (in astrology it's called "synthesis"). I tend to take a fairly narrow traditionalist view of the card meanings and don't pile on a ton of more modern associations (for example, little or nothing in the way of "psychological" connotations), so I find this approach quite manageable and relevant. In sports broadcating terms, the houses provide the "color commentary" and the cards of the reading give the "play-by-play."
 

IHeartRescues

...because my thoughts was, say if the house of fish is ALWAYS going to represent finances, then what about if your doing a GT based on romance and the heart card landed in this house.....do you understand what i mean, because then i wouldn't be wanting to read the house of (fish) as money, id more want to read it as having deep feelings or something along them lines.

So thats where my original question came from, that maybe the houses are much like the cards and depending on the question the GT's thrown for and what card lands in that house, then could this be possible that the houses can be fluid and change like the cards.

I also would like to see this addressed as a possible way of interpretation by someone who has considered this through to some kind of reasonable manageable conclusion, and practice. Will also be following this thread to see if this has been done before.
 

Sharla

I use the "master method" as described by P. Foli in Fortune Telling with Cards, The meanings of the various positions are quite different from the meanings of the Lenormand card numbers. The GT is still read using the method of distance. It's a great little book that covers cartomancy. The chapter that discusses the Master Method expands on the meanings of each position in relation to the various playing card suits which adds another degree of depth to the meaning of the cards that land on the various positions.

I would like to find the origin of the reading of Lenormand houses with the assigned meanings being the same as the numbered cards, as there was no mention of houses in the PL sheet.

Thanks Tag, im going to see if i can get my hands on this book...as i do also read playing cards too,
 

Sharla

Sharla, I'm also a beginner in Lenormand, and I have read somewhere online where this is true just as you present it. However, its not always easy for me to not assign more then one meaning to the house. So, I still treat the house like the card meaning--but for a more clearer picture of what it is about--I will also look at the cards surrounding it--esp. if the G.T. was for a broad topic--like "The Grand Tableau for the month of:***".

If I was doing a Grand Tableau for a specific focus, such as "Mrs. Y's future employment", then yes, more of a specific assignment of the meaning is easier to assign each house. So, in that light, the "Fish" card would be about the financial end of that future employment.

I could be doing it all wrong though--but I've never been able to find anything in a book or on the web to explain how to handle this situation--so I imagine its up to the reader. Same as in tarot-where people will have the typical 78 card Rider Waite based deck, but one person could have one meaning for the specific major card of say "the magician" and another person has a totally different one of their own. The first person might see the magician as a bit of a trickster where as the 2nd person sees the magician as someone who always seems to be able to handle things and get the best out of what life deals them.

hope you can follow me. I'll pay attention to this thread because I think its a great question and perhaps someone here who reads the Lennies will have a better answer that will make sense and help both of us learn! :D

Yes thats true what you say, that its up to the reader. And its not easy to assign more than one meaning to the houses, especially reading a GT....ive got myself in a tangle reading Gt's more so regarding the houses, and what they could or could not mean.

Even then i think...well i won't include the houses then, ill just read near or far, diagonals etc etc.....but then i think BUT i have to read the houses because they're there for a reason and are influencing the card thats fell in it.
 

Barleywine

My understanding is that the house system is an "auxiliary" method that is secondary to the main reading, kind of like knighting and mirroring that add depth to the picture but are not essential to the process (although, admittedly, I use knighting quite regularly, especially when two significators - for example, Gentleman and Lady - are connected by it). I see the house association as offering a way to turn a "two-dimensional" interpretation into a "three-dimensional" one, so to speak. Kind of like an outlet for expression of the card's energy in a slightly altered or oblique way. But I always pay attention to the direct interaction of the cards in the reading first, and add house meanings to the mix to flesh out the narrative when I've exhausted the rest of the analysis. Because I see Lenormand as quite literal, I find first impressions to be the most reliable, so I try not to dice things too finely unless it's the only way to make sense out of a reading.
 

Tag_jorrit

Also, bear in mind that you can get a perfectly clear reading without using houses at all. If it poses a source of confusion for you, skip it.
 

Sharla

Also, bear in mind that you can get a perfectly clear reading without using houses at all. If it poses a source of confusion for you, skip it.

I know i have thought of just skipping the houses before, but then for example if heart lands in the house of scythe for instance...and you have a mental note of the houses postions in your head already, like i have.....it's a bit hard to just ignore what house is underneath the card.....as it can change the whole reading.

Everything may look all good on the surface....but what's lurking underneath lol, that's how i see it.

Is that relationship (ring) really so good, that man who your in a r'ship with, is he really who he says he appears to be....why has he landed in the house of (snake)this is where for me, the houses come into play.

I know there is also near and far and knighting etc to use too...but i do think the houses play a big part too.
 

Tag_jorrit

There are some conventions, based on who taught you, but the way I read a GT is finding a theme card and see what surrounds it. Kind of reading a whole constellation rather than worrying about the location of the modifiers. It's kind of like how you "train" your cards. If you ignore houses, they are irrelevant -- until you place any weight on them. Does that make sense?