MAN AND WOMAN: THE LENORMAND SIGNIFICATORS

[EDITED VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION]

Any of us starting with Lenormand will notice that it has two special cards: The Man and the Woman. These two cards have little meaning on their own, so what exactly are they used for?

Let’s look at these two cards more closely in this video.

The Man and Woman are two cards that stand out from all the others in the Lenormand deck. It’s very obvious what they refer to. The Man card refers to a man and the Woman card refers to a woman.

But then so what? Why do we need two neutral cards that represent people, when so many divination methods easily do without having such cards or their equivalent?

Let’s dive deeply into these two cards which are pretty unique to the Lenormand deck, starting with a general overview of these two cards.

1. THE SIGNIFICATOR AS THE READEE 

The Man card simply represents a man, and the Woman card simply represents a woman. The important thing to note is that they represent real people.

Notice that the Man is the Ace of Hearts, and the Woman is the Ace of Spades. The fact that they are represented by Aces can mean that they are important cards. And they are. They represent the readee. Very simply, if the readee is a man, the Man card represents him, and if the readee is a Woman, the Woman card represents her.

I often get questions about the gender thing with Lenormand’s Man and Woman, and I discussed it in depth in a recent Q&A Call with my students. I’ll address this question a little later in the video so hang on for it.

The key to keep in mind about the Man and Woman is that either represents the readee.

2. THE SIGNIFICATOR IN THE GRAND TABLEAU

Now you might wonder if either card always represents the readee, and the answer is it depends on the reading, which brings us to the next point.

The reading where either the Man or the Woman always represents the readee is the Grand Tableau. If you’re not familiar with it, the Grand Tableau is the classic Lenormand master spread where all 36 cards are used and laid out in a grid of cards.

This amazing spread offers tons of insights by connecting the cards in all sorts of different ways. It’s the layout we aspire to master as Lenormand Readers.

The thing about the Grand Tableau is that all cards figure in it. And so with so much going on in a Tableau, the best way to read about events that most directly affect our readee or querent, is by having a card represent him or her. That card is simply the Man or Woman.

So we find where our readee’s significator is - the Man or the Woman - and we examine the cards that are closest to it. They tell us of the most important and often the most immediate events that await our readee.

The way we do this is by reading the Portrait around our readee’s significators, and the lines it is part of - the column, row, and diagonals where it figures.

So the second key to the Man and Woman cards is that their main use as significators is in the Grand Tableau layout.

3. THE OTHER SIGNIFICATOR

Now you might wonder, if one significator represents our readee, what does the other significator represent?

Classically, the other significator represents our readee’s love partner. This comes from older times when much of fortune telling was geared toward women at a time when a woman’s life pretty much revolved around marriage.

Now times have changed and the other significator doesn’t have to represent our readee’s partner.

But let me tell you that the vast majority of questions I get in private readings are about love. Love remains at the center of life, and there is no need to feel like we shouldn’t prioritize it because of the times we live in or because of other pressures. Just embrace your heart with whatever you feel you’re called to focus on. There is no shame in prioritizing love.

Now, even though the other significator card can refer to our love partner or the love we desire, it can represent different people in different lines. But this flexibility doesn’t apply to our readee’s significator card.

In other words, the significator card that represents our readee always represents our readee, never other people. But the other significator card can represent our readee’s lover and other people in their life.

For example, if our readee is a man, the Man card always represents. It represents him in every line the Man card figures in. And the Woman card can refer to our readee’s lover, but she might also refer to other women in his life depending on the different lines she figures in.

In this line the Woman refers to a lover because of the Ring and Heart, but in this one, she could refer to his mother or a boss because of the Bear. And in this one, she might be a friend or a sibling because of the Dog.

So the third key, is that the significator card that does not represent our readee can be taken to represent their lover - and / or other key people in their life.

Before we talk about the gender thing, I want to ask you what you thought was the use of the significator cards in Lenormand? Is your understanding of these two cards the same as what I talked about? And do you like having these cards in the deck?

Leave me your thoughts and comments, I always like to know how other Lenormand Readers see things.

4. GENDER AND THE SIGNIFICATORS

Now let’s wrap up with the gender thing.

These days, I often get the question about whether the Man and Woman always represent a man and a woman. I also get the question about same sex relationships and those who don’t see themselves as either a Man or a Woman or who have clients that don’t see themselves as such.

Let me tell you from the get-go: None of these are issues. Here’s why.

When looking at whether the Man always represents a man and a Woman always represents a woman, my answer is no. At least not in my experience.

Now, just in general, it helps to distinguish the man card from the woman card, so that we get more specific indications from our readings, right? We don’t want everything to be anything.

But it sometimes happens that the Man will represent a woman and vice versa.

In my own readings, there is a woman in my life who almost always shows up as the Man. She is not manly, she is not gay. She's just your typical woman and I do not know why she consistently shows up as the Man in my cards whenever I’m asking about this part of my life.

So keep an open mind for this possibility, but notice that this will most likely in your own, personal readings. If you’re reading for others, you might like to stick with the classical interpretation of the cards, unless your client has different preferences.

So on this note, let’s address the issue of same sex-relationships. Again, no issues, one significator can be taken to represent the readee and the other significator can represent their lover. End of story, it does not need to be complicated. 

Remember that the Man and Woman are totally neutral cards, they take all of their qualities from nearby cards. The same goes for those who don’t see themselves as either a Man or a Woman.

Again, they can pick one significator to represent them, and the other significator can represent their lover, and/or other people.

Now, you know that Lenormand’s cards have pip cards and some of those pips are Kings, Queens, and Jacks. So might suggest that these people cards can be better used to represent people who don’t really like the Man or Woman as their significators.

It’s a really good suggestion, but I would advise against it. Why? Because you would be taking up cards that are better used to give you insights instead of just representing the readee.

The Man and Woman are totally neutral, but the Kings, Queens, and Jacks, give you insights. Why use them up as a significator cards when you can have them tell you more interesting stories.

This is my thought any way, and you’re free to find the approach that works best for you and your clients.

And before I close, I want to add that it’s important to decide how you’re going to use the significators in a Grand Tableau before you draw the cards.

Explain this to your client if it’s an issue, and let them decide which significator card they want to have represent them. And yes it’s totally okay if it’s one significator card for one reading and another significator for another reading with the same client.

So this has been a good discussion about significators. I sure hope you’ve enjoyed it and it gave you an appreciation for their importance in Lenormand.

You might not be doing Grand Tableau readings yet, but the Man and Woman will pop up in smaller readings as well, so you can still refer to the tips in this video.

Don’t forget to let me know how you’re coming along with your practice. Leave me your thoughts and comments, and by all means send me your questions so we answer them in our next Q&A video.

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