The most basic classification of hand analysis is elemental type. Learn how to distinguish the four elemental types and understand what each type means.
BY SISTER PALM
**When reading the hands it is paramount to assess multiple features before coming to any hard conclusions. Every “sign” (of a character feature in the hand) is either reinforced or diminished with other “signs” in the hand. I personally like to assess the elemental type, planetary archetypal combination, each major line, minor lines, special signs and fingerprint patters to see the common story each feature describes. For every feature there will surely be a modifier, sometimes multiple modifiers, and that’s the human nature! Determining the elemental type is really the most basic and “first” category in which to place the hands after assessing the size, posture, and skin texture. Read below to understand how to identify each elemental type of hand, and what that elemental identification means in terms of character analysis.
The broadest classification in which you can place the hands is by Elemental Type: Fire, Earth, Air, Water–same in astrology as palmistry. The elements differ in the hands with regard to shape, texture, consistency, number and quality of the lines, the fingerprint pattern, and other features that are possible to list, but are so infrequent I will not elaborate more on these minor features now.
Just like the astrological elements, every person is a combination of these elemental types (insofar as a person’s natal chart will never show every planet and important point in the same element). The first place to start in an assessment of the hands is to see which, if any, element is most strongly expressed in the hand as each element portrays a basic character disposition and life path.
A general and simplified description of the four elements is as follows:
Fire is classified by creative ability, abundance of energy, love of variety and a strong social nature.
Earth is described as steady, routine-oriented, tactile, simple (in the best way) and possessing a love of the outdoors.
Air is the intellectual, analytical type with a focus on communication, logic and research.
Water has the softest nature with an emphasis on intuitive abilities, emotional depth and creativity.
In traditional palm reading it is important to determine the elemental type, as it both paints a general picture of the prominent elements in the natal chart as well as describes the natural character disposition of the individual.
So what do these elemental types actually look like from a physical standpoint?
🔥 FIRE HANDS 🔥
A hallmark feature of Fire hands is deep, often red, “electrical” lines in the hands, and many of them. A Fire hand will never have only the three major lines marked. Because these people are very passionate and energetic, the actual lines in the hand will be expressed passionately and energetically. Sometimes it’s even hard to tell which lines are the Major Lines in a Fire hand because all of the lines– even the minor ones– are marked so deeply.
Often times, and it’s unfortunate, I hear the bearers of Fire hands were teased in school for having “grandma hands” because of the many lines or “wrinkles” in their hands at a young age. Of course, like many qualities that are seen as unusual in childhood but become assets in adulthood, the many lines in the fire hand show a very versatile, often successful and always artistic person with plenty of energy.
The much-talked-about “Simian Line”, which is classified by the Head and Heart lines running together to make one upper-transverse crease in the hand (as opposed to two separate Head and Heart Lines) is an example of “too much fire” in some methods of hand analysis- and oftentimes this Simian line serves as a verifier of other fire features in the hands, including “whorl” fingerprint patterns and a long ring finger (of Apollo, the Sun god which rules Leo) to name only a couple.
Fire hands will usually have a large palm and considerably short fingers. (If the middle finger is less than 3/4 the length of the palm you may classify the hand as having a “large palm” or “short fingers”.) It is natural to find a red tint to either the hands themselves or the lines traversing the palm on a Fire hand. Usually the fingers of a Fire hand are on the thicker side, showing the usually-sturdy constitution of a fire-type individual. Small hands are sometimes a sign of a Fire-dominant individual because small hands show a lot of energy (for this reason small hands can at times be attributed to the Mercurial kind as well).
Because fire is so versatile, energetic, social and interested in many different things, they historically run the risk of becoming a “Jack of all trades, master of none”. So it’s very supportive for people with Fire hands to embrace the need for variety by getting really invested in a hobby, keeping a wide social circle, and/or having some means of self-expression outside of their day job. Variety is truly the spice of life for Fire-handed people, as they usually have multiple of what other’s will only have one of: career, marriage, sexual orientation, hobbies, etc..
Three things are almost always true of a Fire-handed person:
1. They will have multiple careers in life (often working multiple jobs at one time).
2. They have an innate creative ability (either already expressed or currently latent).
3. They have a lot of energy and need to burn off their physical excess, otherwise running the risk of becoming irritable.
🌎 EARTH HANDS 🌎
Although the Earth hand shares the same basic shape as the Fire variety–a large palm with short fingers–in many ways the Earth hand is opposite of the aforementioned Fire hand. The main distinction of an Earth hand is that it has only the major lines marked, and sometimes the Fate Line is marked as well. Because the energy in the hand is not being expressed as many lines across the surface of the skin, the Earth hand always has a distinct dermal ridge pattern that actually makes up the surface of the skin. The Earth hand, like our beloved planet, is heavy looking in appearance– especially towards the base of the wrist where the planetary mounts of Venus and Luna reside.
Earth handed people are the least frequent types to get a palm reading quite possibly because the deep philosophy of inner physiological analysis usually doesn’t interest Earth types, who are known for seeing the virtue in simplicity. Unlike the other elemental types, Earth-dominant people really like to admirably “go with the flow”.
It is very usual for an Earth handed person not only to have thick fingers themselves, but specifically for the lower third phalanx (the section closest to the palm) to be a little thicker than the top two phalanxes of the fingers. This puts an emphasis on “The Material World” which is the plane in which the Earth person lives. Many carpenters, gardeners, and musicians have Earth hands. If the Earth-handed person is (traditionally) artistic they will usually be a sculptor or musician because these mediums involve a specifically tactile quality in expression. Conversely, the Earth person often times does well in business pursuits because of their no-nonsense attitude.
Quite obviously, Earth dominant people like to spend a lot of time outside enjoying the great outdoors. It could be very difficult for an Earth person to sit at a desk all day- and if they do, a walk outside after work is basically mandatory for them to sustain a sense of balance and mental well-being. Camping, hiking, gardening, and just being outside in general are wonderful recreational pastimes for the Earth person.
Interestingly, a person’s hand of any elemental type who meditates consistently and frequently will start to resemble an Earth hand to the effect that the subsidiary lines fade away and only the major lines are left in the hand, a feature that shows mental clarity and the ability to “let things go”- a virtue inherent to the Earth hand person. Simple Arches are the fingerprint pattern associated with Earth hands.
💨 AIR HANDS 💨
Air hands are classified by a smaller, square-shaped palm and long thoughtful fingers– with the length of the fingers usually equal-to or even exceeding the length of the palm. While the lines in the hand of an Air hand themselves have no other important quality except their noticeably long length, oftentimes the palm itself is naturally dry (like air), and the lines can resemble this dryness as well.
It is very typical for the Air-handed person to subconsciously hold their fingers splayed apart from each other, like the activated antennas they are. From a psychological standpoint the Air person is interested in “knowing for Knowledge’s sake”. These are people who love to read, research, philosophize, and investigate. Indeed, Air dominant people are the grand learners and communicators of the elemental types. Because the mental energy is so strong for these types, they can sometimes be too logical and miss connecting with their emotional side- especially during times of stress.
It is typical for the Air handed individual to have an interest in the metaphysical sciences because they like to research and learn anyway. Lots of people who have long fingers also have a Saturnian disposition, lest we not forget Saturn traditionally rules the Air sign of Aquarius, the intellectual and occult scientist of the zodiac along with Capricorn. The long fingers of an air hand show they like to really take their time and think things through before making decisions. Their methodical approach is very different than their fire-handed brethren–think of the difference between Capricorn and Aries personalities.
Because Air handed people like to learn and research with those long, thoughtful fingers and practical square palms, it of course behooves them to take up a career in which they can let their investigative talents shine. Any career including academia, research, investigation, communication or analytics suits the air types well.
It would be very natural to find square fingertips on an Air hand, because square tips denote practicality. This type usually has tented arches in their fingerprints, showing their somewhat high-strung nature.
💧 WATER HANDS 💧
Water hands are frequently seen getting palm readings because people with water hands are more intuitive and thus naturally drawn towards things like mysticism and self-analysis. The water hand is easy to spot because it is very long and narrow- both the palm and fingers are long and narrow, making a sort of rectangular shape, and the lines of the hands are always very faintly market (like the surface of water). It is common for the skin of the water hand to be naturally moist, even sweaty or wet at times. The myriad of tiny lines across the water hand represents all of the impressions and memories of this sensitive elemental type.
In hand reading, the width of the hand marks the Plain & Mounts of Mars, an indicator of a person’s vitality. If the palm is narrow, meaning the width of the palm is less than 3/4 the length, the person is said to have less physical vitality than a person’s whose hand is wider than 3/4 the length of the palm. Because water handed people have proportionately less physical energy, they have proportionately more mental energy, because energy is neither created or destroyed but simply transferred. So water hand people are more in the ethereal world than the physical world, and while their physical body may not be the perfect specimen of physical fitness, their power of mind makes up for it in stride.
Water handed people have a tendency to absorb the environment around them, like actual water. Because water handed people receive and absorb their surroundings, they are naturally more intuitive and empathetic than the other elemental types. The combination of this heightened receptive energy with heightened mental energy naturally lends itself towards worry and anxiety– and such is the plight of the intuitive individual because where “ignorance is bliss”, awareness can be agony. Excessive worrying can further zap the physical strength with this type, which is why it is very important for water types to have an emotional outlet.
It is considered very constructive for water types to engage in the arts, specifically music and writing. It is also beneficial for water types to spend time alone processing their abundant thoughts and feelings. The poets and musicians of the world usually have water hands.
It’s very typical for people with water hands to also have Sensitivity Pads, which resemble droplets of water on the pads of their fingertips. Sensitivity pads denote heightened senses on the finger in which they are found: the pinky finger shows a heightened sense of smell, ring finger is sight, middle is hearing, pointer is taste and thumb is touch. Most people with water hands have sensitivity pads on all of the finger tips.
In closing…
Everyone is a mix of the different elemental types in astrology and palmistry. The hand gives us important information about which elemental types are dominant for the individual- and that may differ from the person’s sun sign. * I do recommend an astrological assessment to see which of the planets appears dominant in your birth chart, as it is likely verified in the hand.
Along with examining the shape, skin texture, quality and quantity of the lines, fingerprint patterns, fingertip shape, and other features, we can classify the one dominant element or two dominant elements in a person’s hand, personality and life path. Some people, although rarely, will have hands that do not fit clearly into one or two elemental types. These people have “Mixed Hands” and we would expect their natal charts to be balanced between three or four main elements.
Sister Palm | Palmistry + Astrology + Psychic 