Palm Reading Chart
Seven lines · Six main mounts · Five hand types
To read a palm, first learn where the main lines and the raised mounts are. This chart puts them on one page: where each sits on the hand, what it is read for, and what its common forms traditionally mean.
FaceReading Editorial Team ·
Read my palm from a photoWhere the Lines and Mounts Are
A right palm. Every hand differs in length and depth; the chart shows the usual course of each line.
Seven lines
- Life LineVitality, stamina and resilience
- Head LineHow you think, learn and decide
- Heart LineHow you love and connect
- Fate LineCareer path and turning points
- Sun LineRecognition and reputation
- Wealth LineMoney sense and business instinct
- Marriage LineCommitment in close relationships
Six main mounts
The Seven Lines
Almost everyone has the three main lines: life, head and heart. The fate, sun, wealth and marriage lines vary from person to person; on some hands they are clear, on others barely there.
The three main lines
Starts between the thumb and index finger and curves around the base of the thumb toward the wrist
Its length says nothing about how long you live.
More on the Life Line →Starts with the life line or just above it and runs across the palm
Starts at the little-finger edge and runs across the top of the palm toward the index or middle finger
The minor lines
Rises from near the wrist toward the middle finger; also called the career line
Many people have a faint fate line or none at all — it does not mean no career.
More on the Fate Line →A vertical line under the ring finger; also called the Apollo or success line
Many palms have no sun line.
More on the Sun Line →A vertical line under the little finger; some readers also count the Mercury line, which slants up toward the little finger
Short horizontal lines on the outer edge of the palm, below the little finger
The number of lines is not the number of marriages.
More on the Marriage Line →The Six Main Mounts
Mounts are the slightly raised pads below the fingers and along the edge of the palm. Palmistry reads how full each one is to see where your energy and talents gather. These are the six most often read.
Warmth, vitality and love. A full Venus mount shows energy and a love of life.
Confidence, leadership and ambition. Full: driven and ready to lead.
Responsibility, steadiness and independent thought. Balanced: grounded; very high: serious.
Talent, taste and reputation. Full: artistic and good at presenting yourself.
Communication, business sense and quick wit. Full: sociable and quick.
Imagination, intuition and sensitivity. Full: creative and perceptive.
Five Elements Hand Types
Before the lines, Chinese palmistry reads the whole hand, sorting it into one of five types — Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal or Water — as the base of your character. Most hands mix two or three; the strongest one leads.
Long, narrow palm; long fingers with visible knuckles
Thoughtful and idealistic; suits research, culture and planning
Palm narrower at the fingers; pointed fingertips; ruddy colour
Passionate and quick; suits creative work, media and new ventures
Thick, broad palm; short, sturdy fingers
Reliable and patient; suits management and long-term building
Square palm; square fingertips; firm flesh
Decisive and principled; suits finance, law and organisation
Soft, rounded palm; full fingers
Adaptable and diplomatic; suits business, diplomacy and service
How to Read Your Own Hand
Read both hands
One hand tells only half the story. Start with your non-dominant hand, then your dominant hand, and compare them to see how you have changed. Why, and where "men left, women right" comes from, is explained below.
Whole hand first, then details
Start with the hand type and how full the mounts are, then the three main lines, then the fate, sun and other minor lines. One line on its own is easy to over-read.
Use even light
Open your palm in daylight; the lines show best. For a photo reading, face the palm to the camera with fingers slightly apart and the whole hand and wrist in frame.
Palm reading is a cultural tradition, and lines change over the years. Treat it as a mirror for reflection, not a guide for major decisions.
Which Hand to Read: Left or Right?
Which hand should you read? It is the question palm readers hear most. The traditional answer and today’s usual view differ a little; knowing both makes it easy.
The old rule: men left, women right
Chinese palmistry traditionally read a man’s left hand and a woman’s right. The rule comes from yin and yang: the left is yang and the right yin, and men were linked with yang, women with yin. Variants abound, such as reading the left hand before thirty and the right after, and schools do not agree.
Dominant and non-dominant hand
Today the usual view applies to everyone: the non-dominant hand shows the temperament and gifts you were born with, the dominant hand your experience, habits and effort. As most people are right-handed, it is often put as "the left shows what you were born with, the right what you have made of it".
If you are left-handed
Simply swap them: your left hand is the dominant one, read for experience and effort, and your right is read for your natural temperament. If you use both hands equally, take the one you write with as dominant.
Two different hands are normal
The lines on your two hands are almost never identical. Small differences suggest a character and way of life that have stayed consistent; large ones suggest experience has changed you a good deal. Comparing them says more than reading either hand alone.
Questions
Which hand do you read in palmistry?
Both. The usual view is that the non-dominant hand shows what you were born with and the dominant hand what you have made of it; Chinese tradition also had the rule of men left, women right. If you read only one, start with your dominant hand.
What does "men left, women right" mean?
It is a traditional rule in Chinese palmistry: men’s left hands and women’s right hands are read, following the yin-yang idea that the left is yang and the right yin. Today most readers go by the dominant hand instead, for everyone.
Which hand should a left-handed person read?
For a left-handed person the left hand is dominant and is read for experience and effort; the right hand is read for natural temperament. Reading both together gives the fullest picture.
Is palm reading accurate?
Palm reading is a long-standing cultural tradition and can be one way to reflect on your tendencies, but it has not been scientifically validated and cannot predict specific events. Big decisions are best made on your own judgment.
Read Your Own Palm
Upload a photo of your palm. We mark the lines on your own hand, find your Five Elements hand type and read each line.
Upload a palm photo