The Lenormand “Mystery Story” Spread & Example Reading
An online conversation about the use of tarot for exploring real-life “crime stories” brought out the observation that Lenormand cards can be used for this purpose too. Since my Lenormand work has been slacking lately, I decided to create a spread for the occasion. This layout could probably be used with Kipper cards and tarot cards as well but a different “hinge” card would have to be chosen in place of the Book.
Note that in the example reading I’ve used a little “imaginative revisionism” in matching the cards I received to the circumstances while staying within striking distance of the traditional meaning in each case, something that is always critical when working with Lenormand; there is very little room for intuitive free-association.
The following example reading is based on a real-life missing-person case. The young woman has been missing for a couple of years with no leads, so this spread picks up the story after the initial investigation had petered out. (This is the Heloise Lenormand by Lynn Boyle.)
The “Main Story Line” suggests that, at this point, the initial investigators (Rider) have reached a “plateau” (Anchor) where no new initiatives will be undertaken unless and until more clues emerge (Letter). The regional online news media occasionally refresh the young woman’s story (Letter + Woman) and cause a brief uptick of interest in seeing the “end of the road” (Coffin). However, the Woman followed by the Coffin implies that the she has almost certainly met her own end.
In the “Path of Hope” line, the overall picture is that “new life” would have been breathed into the case (Child) by the fated appearance (Cross) of “new twists” (Snake) that bring abundant and fruitful “new facts” (Fish) to the attention of a diligent detective (Dog). The crux of this line is what the uncoiling of the Snake’s convolutions might yield in the way of revelation.
In the “Path of Despair” line, the Clouds + Clover combination implies “bad luck” bringing on lonely isolation (Tower), while the Moon (“night work”) and the House (venue) could indicate what she was up to when she disappeared (drugs and prostitution are known factors in her past). The crux of this line is where the Tower might be pointing as a place to look for her. (If I were an investigator and had already examined her past associations, I think I might look more closely “under the Moon.”)
The Ship as “Last Word” card following the Coffin makes me think she has indeed “passed over.” My last tarot reading of this type that suggested “travel over water” included the RWS 6 of Swords, which I interpreted as the missing person being “transported over water,” and she was eventually found at the bottom of a pond. Some of the previous readings I did for the present case also implied being “under water,” so the Ship may deserve a more literal interpretation.
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on November 26, 2022.
