Hasta Sāmudrika Śāstra, also known as ‘Hasta,’ is the ancient Vedic science of hand analysis, or palmistry. In Hasta, the structure of the hand along with its lines and markings are interpreted as symbols that indicate the likely trajectory of one’s path in this lifetime. The hand becomes a portent, an omen, of our tendencies, talents, psychology, and all manner of underlying potential.
Hasta gives us a means to access the karmic blueprint that pervades and subtly colors our perceptions and behaviors. It helps us become aware of how our tendencies and individual filters influence our actions and hence the world around us. This awareness empowers us to influence the interplay between fate and freewill in our lives—the more we are aware of our propensities and strategies, the more we can exercise flexibility in our choices when we interact with our environment. For instance, if I know I have a tendency towards using speech that others often experience as being too harsh, I can use my attention and awareness to make my speech more gentle and kind. Understanding our karmic blueprint allows us to be less reactive, more in tune with our needs and those of the people around us, and gives us greater flexibility of expression in our interactions.
Hand analysis offers us the gift of becoming aware of our own patterns. But it also encourages compassion of others by helping us to understand their unique character as expressed through their hands. Someone with a hand that displays characteristics associated with the fire element, for example, may feel compelled to move on from a task before it is completed. When a person with a fire hand (in contrast to one with an earth, water, or air hand) encounters an obstacle at work or in relationship, impatience may drive them to give everything up. Empowered by the insight of hand analysis, such a person can learn to relax, invoke patience, and remember that there are more productive strategies available than walking away from it all. Likewise, it can give us compassion for what might otherwise be inexplicable actions.
Learning the language of hand interpretation and how certain behavioral patterns show up in our hands is a lifelong journey accessible to all who are curious about this science. The Hasta principles outlined in this almanac’s seasonal articles will give you some fundamental tools to begin this rewarding journey.
First and foremost, practicing Hasta properly involves the correct understanding and application of a series of principles. Knowing how these principles are categorized is part of the oral tradition of Hasta Sāmudrika Śāstra, and is necessary to the mastery of the subject. Yet you’ll be hard-pressed to find discussion of this in print. Have you leafed through a book on palmistry only to be left feeling confused? How are all those individual categories combined into something meaningful? Understanding what features are the strongest indicators of character tendencies is the most potent tool in the Hasta toolbox, and something that we attempt to illustrate in the following articles.
When examining a person’s hands, the tradition instructs us to first assess the overall structure of the hand. Is it a rough, firm, short-fingered, solid earthy hand or an elongated, soft, flexible, long-fingered water hand? Is it the hand of the impetuous fire type or the thoughtful intellectual air type? The overall structure of the hand gives us a solid foundation from which to interpret all of the other details that the hand reveals. Contrary to popular belief, to delve immediately into the lines and markings of a hand glosses over the overall landscape that ultimately contextualizes these details. It is akin to purchasing a house solely because you are enamored with its light fixtures, without taking into consideration the neighborhood the house is in, let alone the solidity of the foundation or the condition of the roof.
So we want to assess the structure of the hands first. To do this, we evaluate the shape and dimension of the palm in relationship to the length of the fingers. The palm represents ingrained patterns of thinking that have formed our attitudes and behaviors over lifetimes; this primal aspect of our nature can also be thought of as our unconscious or subconscious. The fingers act as a channel through which we consciously express who we are. At any given point in time, we are infinitely more aware of what our fingers are doing in space than of what our palms are doing.
Though palms vary in dimension, they can be classified as being wide (mostly shaped like a square) or narrow (shaped like a rectangle). Fingers, as measured in relation to the palm, vary from short to long. The wider a palm—the more it gives the impression of a square—the more stable, resistant, pragmatic, and objective the person will be. Those with square palms tend to value common sense and be guided by a strong need for security in their environment. They have strong survival instincts and respond better under pressure than do those with narrower palms. The narrower a palm, the more its shape resembles a rectangle instead of a square. Those with narrow palms are sensitive, idealistic, uncertain, intuitive, and emotional. These meanings come from the natural world, in which a square is a more stable form than a rectangle, the more so when the rectangle becomes overly narrow. A one-story structure, for example, will withstand an earthquake better than a skyscraper, all other things being equal.
Measuring finger length can be a tricky task. A technique used by savvy palmists helps make this easier. A skilled palmist may just ‘eyeball’ it; short fingers just look short! However, they also know that the average length of fingers (as measured by the middle finger) is about 3/4 of the length of the palm, from the base of the middle finger to the center of the wrist. So when in doubt, simply measure the middle finger and compare that measurement to the palm’s length; if the middle finger is less than 3/4 of the length of the palm, then the fingers are short. If the middle finger is longer than the 3/4-mark, the fingers are long. After measuring several hands, you will get the feel for it and will eventually be able to eyeball it like the experts.
Now that we know the palm width and finger length, we can determine the basic elemental structure of a person’s hands. Does the person have an earth, fire, water or air hand?
The combination of rectangular palms with short fingers provides the foundation for the fire hand, for example. What does this mean? It means that the qualities of that particular element are predominant for the person and will often characterize their behaviors. You will be surprised at how much you can learn about an individual simply by being able to recognize which type of hand they have. In the case of the fire hand, the qualities of warmth, sharpness, and mobility are found both in the structure and details of the hand and in the very nature of the person. A person with a fire hand will be ‘fiery’ in character. They will be friendly, have a quick temper, and will love physical movement.
Palm width and finger length are the primary ingredients used to determine elemental hand types. We can then add secondary details to our assessment of what is the predominant element by looking at the texture of the skin, the quality of the lines, and the type of fingerprints. These details are always going to be subordinate to the structure of the hand as indicated by palm width and finger length, but can provide useful coloration and help create confluence in our evaluations. Once we know the basic elemental type of a set of hands, we can then explore the lines and many markings found on hands and add to our understanding of overall character and potential as expressed through the hands.
May you enjoy this deep exploration of yourself through the ever changing and evolving mirror of your hands.