Defects of the Line of Head

One of the first things to do in reading the Head line is to distinguish disease from character of the mentality.

To do this it will be necessary to use not only defects in the line arising from breaks, dots, islands, and similar causes, but also the narrowness and thinness of the line, as well as its proportion to other lines.

Inasmuch as the Head line indicates both the extent and character of the mentality and also diseases, it will be necessary at times when a defective line is seen, to distinguish between the two and to estimate whether your subject is lacking in character directions, or whether brain illness or insanity are indicated.

Any defect on the Head line indicates:

• mental disturbance, which may be the result of illness, or
• the unsteady character of the mentality.

In making a distinction between character and diseases the Life line should be examined to see if it is also defective at about the same period as the defect appears on the Head line. Anything abnormal found on the Life line will fix the defect on the Head line as an illness.

The nails must also be consulted in connection with the Head line.

• If badly fluted, they tell of great nervous disturbance which is emanating from the centre of nerve force, the brain.
• If in addition to a defective Head line, fluted and brittle nails are found you are warned that the subject is using up his nervous vitality faster than it can be generated and is in danger of paralysis. This is further confirmed if the subject be either a Saturnian, Mercurian, or Lunarian.

The color of the hand and particularly of the lines is exceedingly important in this investigation.

• If too white, the anaemic condition furnishes little blood, and the operation of the brain will be weakened.
• On the other hand, extreme redness will show that blood in excessive quantity and in too great strength is being forced to the brain.

Either of these indications show an abnormal condition and indicate disease, whiteness predisposing to weakness and insufficiency, and redness indicating liability to fevers or apoplexy.

The latter condition is to be read from the presence of stars, crosses, dots, or deep cutting of the line, red color being also present with these markings.

When a defective Head line is noted, use the Life line as indicated above, the Mercury line in the same way as the Life line, together with nails and color, for all these must be consulted along with the type of the subject, and from this combined point of view you will be able to distinguish health defects from mental defects.

The starting-point or source of the Head line must be noted.

In most hands, the line rises from the line of Life, to which it is slightly attached at the start (89), and branches away from the Life line, sometimes near the beginning of that line, sometimes farther along (90).

At this point, the Head line registers the early years of life.

• The sooner the line separates from the Life line, the younger was the subject when he began to think for himself.
• The longer the Head line is tied to the Life line the less self-confidence has the subject and the more he relies upon the advice of others.
• The longer the period covered by this union of the two lines, the later in life did the subject begin to rely upon himself.

The Head line is not often bound to the Life line longer than the 12th year.

Many Head lines are seen which only touch the Life line at its beginning, showing that as a mere child the subject was self-reliant.

In examining the beginning of the Head line note how sharp the angle formed by the lines of Head and Life. The more pointed this angle (90), the more sensitive the subject, the easier are his feelings hurt, and if in addition the sensitive pads are found on the ends of the fingers, this sensitive disposition will be extreme.

The subject will do almost anything rather than hurt the feelings of others, and the lives of such will be often made unhappy by unintentional slights.

The type of the subject and his finger-tips must be taken into consideration here. With pointed tips and this acute angle the subject will be entirely lacking in self-reliance, timid, cautious, leaning constantly upon someone else, and suffering a fall every time the support is taken away.

With thick fingers and square or spatulate tips the indications will not be extreme sensitiveness, but must be read as denoting prudence and caution. Often the Head line is merged in the Life line at the start, and in this case the head did not begin to assert itself, but the subject depended upon others until the year when the line breaks away from the line of Life. Sometimes the Head line does not leave the Life line until well along in its course (91).

In this case the mental activities began later in life. This even goes so far as to produce in some hands the formation of an obtuse angle (92), which shows the subject to be somewhat callous to slights. If, with this latter marking, the finger-tips be square or spatulate and the fingers and palm thick and red, the subject will be very dense, and if only the lines of Head, Heart, and Life are present, it will indicate elementary heaviness of intellect and unimpressionability.

These subjects will be cautious, non-committal, dependent on others, lacking ability to command, unoriginal, blunt, and tactless.

Separation of Head and Life Line

The distinct separation of the line of Head from the line of Life (93) primarily shows self-reliance. The subject:

• is original
• is not bound down by the views of others
• acts for and depends on himself
• can plan well
• is guided by his own judgment
• is independent and courageous in his views

This separation is a fine marking if it is not too wide.

The wider the separation, the greater the degree of self-reliance.

Cconsequently, the marking may degenerate into such boldness and self-esteem that the subject becomes foolhardy and not a safe counsellor.

With this separated line, note the tips. If the tips are:

• pointed, the self-reliance may run to idealism
• spatulate, this shows great energy and originality
  • It produces a brain fertile in new schemes,
  • The subject does not ask advice and is likely to commit grave errors.

Square tips are safest, for their good common-sense will be a restraining element.

Very short fingers show quickness in making up the mind.

• If added to the self-reliance of the separated lines, these easily lead to impulsive, hasty, and dangerous conclusions.
• If the fingers are also smooth, the impulsiveness will be intensified.

Knots indicate a restraining element that it is good to have present with these separated lines.

This marking, in whatever degree of separation it is seen, always indicates a subject with well-defined individuality.

The wider the separation, the more marked is the self-reliance and the consequent individuality.

Always regard this marking as requiring care, for the owner is an unusual subject, and everything must be weighed in order to determine whether the self-reliance and self-esteem shown by the indications run to a danger point.

The separated Head and Life lines produce most sensitive people. This is because such people are extremely self-reliant and confident of his own ability. His feelings are hurt by when others do not have as much confidence in him as he has in himself.