CHILDREN IN INDIA: A Palm Reading Study in Gokarna of Young Beach Vendors

When in Gokarna, India I met a friendly and happy group of children selling jewellery on the beach to travelling Indians and tourists. One of the girls spoke very good English and was very excited when I asked to look at her hand. Naturally, 3 other children came with us and insisted I took their prints too!

Comparing Hand Types

I got the prints of two boys, both called Jake (their ‘tourist name’). I want to have a quick look at these prints examining the similarities and differences.

Jaek 13 (age) has got an Air shaped hand – he has long fingers and a square shaped palm. His lines are fine and of clear quality. Jake 12 (age) has much shorter fingers with a stockier look to the hand and more intense Fiery lines. This is more of a Fire hand.

(Though neither children go to school…)

Although Jake 12 is a year younger, he has many more lines on his hand, which are also thicker and deeper. The lines are not caused through hand use or creasing remember and are solely a reflection of brain activity.

Physical and Mental Health Indicators

Health Signs

On the base of the fingers Jake 12 has many vertical lines. This is a sign of depletion or overworking the body. There is a lack of vitamins/minerals and the body is under strain. These lines can come and go. When working at festivals, I will often see a lot more of these lines on the hands of clients on the final day due to lack of sleep e.t.c., although the will be fainter than Jake 12’s, which are much more long term.

Confidence Patterns

Jake 12’s hand posture is slightly different from his friend. His thumb is held much closer in; this is a sign of timidity, feeling a bit nervous or not having control of life or situations. When people are confident the body language of the hand holds the thumb further out, as with Jaek 13. Like a dog tucking its tale between its legs, thumbs can retreat and show shyness. The larger and more outstretched, the more someone is in control, open and able to manipulate their life. Jake 12 also has a very short Index finger which shows a lack of self-esteem.

Mental Development Analysis

Jaek 13’s Head line is separate from his Life Line. This can sometimes be difficult when found on Indian hands as it shows freedom of thought and a lack of conditioning. The reason this can cause problems is because when in a culture so rooted in tradition, someone who thinks differently from their peers or their family can be seen as being a loose cannon!

This of course might not be the case, but is something I have regularly come across. In relation to Jaek 13, the gap between the Head and Life line combined with his Air hand, shows a high capacity for original thought, individual ideas and an ability to grasp new ideas and concepts. He certainly will be intelligent in his own way.

Jake 12 has a more typical Head line which is attached to the Life line, but the quality of the line is too thick and crude. Compared to Jaek 13, who has quite a fine and precise line, Jake 12 shows a sluggishness in the mind and is the type of line that could be found on someone with learning difficulties. Below is the Head line of an illiterate adult with learning difficulties. The line is much thicker and of poorer quality than Jake 12’s, but you can see similarities.

Life Line Analysis and Stability

Before looking at the similarities in both Life lines, I first want to look specifically at the start of Jaek’s 13’s Life line. Under the Index finger we see a string of islands on the line, before it becomes smooth, at the time of his mid-twenties.

This shows current difficulties with the home, family and upbringing. When there are Islands someone will feel isolated and it will be a challenging time. It seems this will continue for a while longer before he finds his feet in just over 10 years (this is always subject to change though as the lines do).

Both Jakes have surprisingly similar bases to the Life line. There is a small gap at the bottom and the Fate line intercepts this. This shows a lack of stability in their lives and that their job or duty is functioning as their support. Their job has become their ‘life’.

Sadly both children have problems with the fathers, one is an alcoholic and the other lost his at an early age. This will add to the lack of home stability as reflected in the Life line and put more pressure on bringing money in from a job as seen by the Fate line replacing the missing part of the Life line.

So it is no surprise that all the hands of the children selling jewellery with similar mobile life styles were missing the bottom of the life line.

Summary

Above all, it appears that the lifestyle of these children, working away from home and moving between cities, greatly effects their structure and sense of security and feeling grounded. In relation to Jake and Jaek, although both boys are of a close age and live in a similar environment, a quick look at their hands reveals noticeable differences on a mental and physical level.