From the top: -Curved. -Average, straight line. -Long, straight line.
The life line provides information about the amount of life force available to us and how our life force expresses as physical strength, energy level, vitality, and recuperative ability.
This line is also a visible gauge of major happenings in our life, and is heavily used by hand analysts for timing events and obstacles. The part of the line under the index finger represents our early years, and the farther down towards the wrist the later portion of our lives. That is why, for example, in Vedic rituals to honor the ancestors, offerings are made by pouring libations from the palm towards the area between the thumb and the index finger, towards the origin of our life that our ancestors represent.
Length
Life lines can be short or long. Since this line starts between the thumb and index finger and travels towards the wrist, a long life line is going to be one that goes all the way down to the wrist. A short one, instead, is going to be one that ends somewhere before getting to the wrist.
A long life line, provided the line is unblemished, indicates someone who has great physical resources available. They possess more stamina and resilience than a short life line. The shorter the line, the less of these qualities, although truly short life lines are rare.
Contrary to popular misconceptions, the length of the life line is not an indicator of longevity. For example, a short life line does not mean that one is destined to live a short life. A short lifeline, though, can be an indicator of the necessity to make health and vitality cultivation a priority.
Curvature
Life lines have different curvatures, and the arc they form is a visual guide to how much energy is available. The wide-sweeping and curved life line flows out towards the center of the palm, creating a large area at the base of the thumb. This adds health and vitality to the lifeline. These life lines indicate a great enthusiasm for life, a willingness to undertake challenges, and the health and vitality necessary to support much activity. The straighter life line, instead, tightly hugs the ball of the thumb. This can be a sign of reduced endurance and a delicate constitution.
Quality
In general, the stronger a line, the more the characteristics associated with that line express in the life of the person. If you have a well-marked, clear, strong life line you can expect to have reasonably good physical health, vitality, and resilience.
Lines are conduits of energy, and as such we like them to be strong, clear, unobstructed, deep and thick so that the energy that they represent flows powerfully and without obstacles. The stronger the lifeline, the greater the life force. This energy is going to seek expression through physical activity and endurance. For example, athletes have more prominent and powerful life lines than intellectual thinking types.
The stronger the line, the stronger and healthier the person is in general. Having a strong life line does not mean that one is not subject to occasional ill health, but it does indicate a stronger constitution and a greater capacity to recover from illness and injury.
A weaker life line is one that appears chained, broken, feathery, islanded, faint or indistinct. Such a weak line denotes a delicate constitution and a tendency to run out of fuel easily. For weaker life lines, preventive health measures that boost vitality like exercising, eating right for your type, cultivating life-supporting habits and meditating to connect to our true nature are extremely important.
To sum it up, the life line is where we look at the palm to see the general level of life force, health and vitality of a person. The stronger this line is, the more curved into the palm, and the longer it is, the more energy, stamina, and fortitude is present in the life of the person. These life lines indicate a robust constitution that is blessed with the gift of reasonable health, all other things being equal.
The more the life line is short, narrowly hugging the thumb, straight, and poorly marked, the more the life energy is likely to be challenged or restricted in some way. For these people, health and cultivating vitality are a priority. It is also true that a challenged life line, and the often associated vulnerable health or health crisis that go along with such a line, can also function as an initiation into great spirituality. There is nothing like the vivid reminder of the impermanence of life to turn our hearts towards that which is eternal.