Palmistry, also known as chiromancy, is the practice of foretelling the future of a person, by careful study and observation of the lines and other characteristics of the palm. Palmistry has existed as a method of predicting the future, for over a thousand years.There are notable studies and scripts on palmistry found in ancient Hindu mythology, Chinese astrology and even Gypsy fortune telling. Thus, we can safely assume that it has existed across cultures and since a very long time.

Somewhere in the Middle Ages, under the pressure from the Catholic Church, the practise of palmistry was suppressed and even deemed a hoax. However, around 1839, it was revived by palmist and author Captain Casimir Stanislas D'Arpentigny's publication on the subject, called 'La Chirognomie'.

In the current world, Palmistry is a well-known and followed belief. Although there are a lot of people who do not consider it authentic since it is not supported by scientific evidence, the believers hold it to be highly revealing. Scientists have also claimed the idea to be misleading because the constant movement of the palm and use of fingers leads to fine lines forming throughout.

Like most concepts in astrology, palmistry too has certain symbols and signatures that are used to predict or foretell.

1. Hand Shape:

There are four types of hand shapes recognised in palmistry, namely Earth, Air, Water and Fire.

Earth - Broad, square palms and fingers. Thick, coarse skin. Length of palm, from wrist to base of the finger, is equal to length of the fingers.

Air - Rectangular palms and fingers with knuckle protruding. Thumbs are low set and length of the palm is equal to that of the fingers.

Water - Long, oval shaped palms, with long fingers. The length of the palm from wrist to base of fingers is usually less, than the length of fingers.

Fire - Square or Rectangular palms, with shorter fingers. Length of the palm from wrist to finger base is usually greater, than the fingers.

Once the shape of the palm is determined, the next stage involves examining the lines of the fingers. These lines are said to be indicators of the different facets and stages of a person's life. Guess it's safe to say, shape matters!

2. Lines:

There are four major lines found on almost all palms and are considered the major lines.

Heart Line - It represents the love and attraction or human relationships. It runs from the end of the palm, below the little finger, across the palm. It deals with the emotional life. Apart from romantic perspectives it also talks of a person's ability to deal with emotions.

So a person with a chained heart line is said to be emotionally unstable. If the line is clear and well set, the person is supposed to be having good emotional stability.

Head Line - It runs from the end of the palm, between the thumb and the index finger, below the heart line. It represents a person's mind and the way his thoughts work.

This includes learning ability, learning style, working style, intellectual prowess and all other mental capabilities (tells you if you are thinking straight!).

Life Line - It flows from between the thumb and the index finger and moves downward to the edge of the palm, ending above the wrist. It slopes downward, creating a separate section for the mound at the base of the thumb. It reveals a person's vitality, vigour, general well-being, etc.

Earlier it was believed to be an indicator of the length of a person's life. However modern palmistry discounts the idea (Thank God for that!) and says that it only deals with the aspects of life and not the longevity.

Fate Line - It runs from the base of the palm, starting from the wrist and cuts through the heart line and head line, moving upwards. It is sometimes missing in some people's hands. As the name suggests, it indicates a person's fate, in respect of the life path he chooses.

In addition to the lines, there are also various other mounts and finer lines that are read for information. However the concept is one which is avoided in many practices on the pretext of being too ambiguous.

Some palmists read these lines, while others discount their importance. But the lines mentioned above are agreed to be the most important ones from the modern palmistry point of view.

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Author's Bio: 

My name is Vaidehi Vihari. I am a regular girl, living the twentysomething life.
I am a student of everything there is to learn. Spreading happiness one word at a time.