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lenormand grand tableau how to read

The Lenormand Grand Tableau: houses, near and far

Choose Grand Tableau in the tool, then the significator and the layout: the table appears with the significator highlighted, the cards around it and the reading of each zone. The layers for houses, near and far and the knight move switch on and off without a new draw.

What each Grand Tableau technique does

The Grand Tableau spreads out the whole deck. The traditional layout makes 4 rows of 8 plus a block of 4 cards, the modern one makes 4 rows of 9. You start from the significator, card 28 (Man) or 29 (Woman), who stands for the person asking, and first read what is right next to it, the up to 8 cards touching it, which show the most immediate circumstances. Cards above the significator are often read as what influences it and those below as what is more within its reach. The left holds what passes and the right what enters, a convention that another school, the German one, swaps for following the gaze of the figure on the card.
With houses, position N carries the meaning of card N, read left to right and top to bottom: position 1 is the house of the Rider and 36 the house of the Cross. The card that lands there is the resident and the one that names the position is the host. The Fox in the house of the Fish, for example, can point to a raise. Mary K. Greer describes houses as a later and optional addition, which is why the tool keeps them off until you switch them on. The four corners give the overall mood and the outcome, and the first three cards form a short opening message.
Near and far is where schools part ways the most. Andy Boroveshengra counts distance from the significator in any direction: 1 step is touching, 2 is proximity, 3 is an intermediate zone, 4 is far and 5 or more is very far. Other readers use a simple rule of up to 4 steps for near, and some read contact only. Readers in the German tradition say they do not use the method. As a rule, positive cards weigh more when near and warning cards weaken when far, and the tool shows the own near or far reading of 26 cards. The knight move, two steps one way and one across, clarifies the condition of the significator.

Table checks

First house

Input: Posição 1
Expected output: Casa do Cavaleiro (carta 1)

House N = card N.

Last house

Input: Posição 36
Expected output: Casa da Cruz (carta 36)

In the 8+4 layout it falls in the bottom block.

Block of 4 in the 8+4 layout

Input: Posições 33 a 36
Expected output: Fileira 5, colunas 3 a 6

Centered under the 8 columns.

Distance band

Input: 3 casas do significador
Expected output: Zona intermediária

By the simple rule, 3 steps is already near (up to 4).

Significator in a 9x4 corner

Input: Posição 1
Expected output: 3 cartas encostadas, 2 lances de cavalo

Corners have fewer neighbors than the middle.

Full tool FAQ

Are the baralho cigano and the Lenormand the same deck?

Mostly yes: baralho cigano is the popular Brazilian name for the 36-card Petit Lenormand, with the same numbering and the same pictures. Brazil also has its own school, which grew out of contact with African-matrix religions and reinterpreted some cards: the Clover (2), for example, appears in some materials as Obstacles, and Crossroads (22) as a long road rather than a fork. This tool follows the classic European reading and uses the Portuguese names most common in Brazil.

Which deck and which images does the tool use?

How does the card of the day work?

How do you read two cards together?

Which spread should I choose?

What is the Grand Tableau and what are houses?

How does the tool measure near and far?

What are significators 28 and 29 for?

Is the draw random and what does the link store?

Does the Lenormand predict the future?

Frequently asked questions

Which Grand Tableau layout should I use, 8+4 or 9x4?

The layout of 4 rows of 8 with a block of 4 is the traditional one, and the block is often read as advice or synthesis. The 4 by 9 is the modern one, and the central column can serve as the synthesis. The tool lets you switch without a new draw.

What if the significator falls in the bottom block?

Some readers find the reading harder and others say you should not read it. The tool reads it normally: the cards above are the neighbors, and you can switch to the 9-column layout, which has no block.

Can a beginner use the Grand Tableau?

Yes, as long as you start with what touches the significator and leave the layers off at first. The tool summarizes the mood of the nearby cards and shows the 8 neighbors with the text of each.

What does the Grand Tableau link store?

The order of the 36 cards, the chosen significator, the layout, the topic and the distance rule. Whoever opens it sees the same table, and you can switch layers without changing the cards.

Next steps

What each Grand Tableau technique does

The Grand Tableau spreads out the whole deck. The traditional layout makes 4 rows of 8 plus a block of 4 cards, the modern one makes 4 rows of 9. You start from the significator, card 28 (Man) or 29 (Woman), who stands for the person asking, and first read what is right next to it, the up to 8 cards touching it, which show the most immediate circumstances. Cards above the significator are often read as what influences it and those below as what is more within its reach. The left holds what passes and the right what enters, a convention that another school, the German one, swaps for following the gaze of the figure on the card.

With houses, position N carries the meaning of card N, read left to right and top to bottom: position 1 is the house of the Rider and 36 the house of the Cross. The card that lands there is the resident and the one that names the position is the host. The Fox in the house of the Fish, for example, can point to a raise. Mary K. Greer describes houses as a later and optional addition, which is why the tool keeps them off until you switch them on. The four corners give the overall mood and the outcome, and the first three cards form a short opening message.

Near and far is where schools part ways the most. Andy Boroveshengra counts distance from the significator in any direction: 1 step is touching, 2 is proximity, 3 is an intermediate zone, 4 is far and 5 or more is very far. Other readers use a simple rule of up to 4 steps for near, and some read contact only. Readers in the German tradition say they do not use the method. As a rule, positive cards weigh more when near and warning cards weaken when far, and the tool shows the own near or far reading of 26 cards. The knight move, two steps one way and one across, clarifies the condition of the significator.

Table checks

First house

Input: Posição 1
Expected output: Casa do Cavaleiro (carta 1)

House N = card N.

Last house

Input: Posição 36
Expected output: Casa da Cruz (carta 36)

In the 8+4 layout it falls in the bottom block.

Block of 4 in the 8+4 layout

Input: Posições 33 a 36
Expected output: Fileira 5, colunas 3 a 6

Centered under the 8 columns.

Distance band

Input: 3 casas do significador
Expected output: Zona intermediária

By the simple rule, 3 steps is already near (up to 4).

Significator in a 9x4 corner

Input: Posição 1
Expected output: 3 cartas encostadas, 2 lances de cavalo

Corners have fewer neighbors than the middle.

Full tool FAQ

Are the baralho cigano and the Lenormand the same deck?

Which deck and which images does the tool use?

How does the card of the day work?

How do you read two cards together?

Which spread should I choose?

What is the Grand Tableau and what are houses?

How does the tool measure near and far?

What are significators 28 and 29 for?

Is the draw random and what does the link store?

Does the Lenormand predict the future?

Frequently asked questions

Which Grand Tableau layout should I use, 8+4 or 9x4?

What if the significator falls in the bottom block?

Can a beginner use the Grand Tableau?

Yes, as long as you start with what touches the significator and leave the layers off at first. The tool summarizes the mood of the nearby cards and shows the 8 neighbors with the text of each.

What does the Grand Tableau link store?

The order of the 36 cards, the chosen significator, the layout, the topic and the distance rule. Whoever opens it sees the same table, and you can switch layers without changing the cards.