Lines of Influence Navigation

On the Mount of Venus and inside the Life line are a set of lines, some
of which run parallel to the Life line and others which run across the
Mount (277). These are called Lines of Influence, and are the first
introduction in this work to any factors outside of the subject
themselves, forming a part of what is called their "environment". Only
those indications which my own experience as well as that of other
careful investigators has fully verified are here considered, and all
matters which are traditional or hypothetical have been left out. The Hindus have
an elaborate system of using these lines of Influence, and depend upon them for a
large part of their work. Only lines which run inside the Life line are properly lines
of influence, and I have found that they indicate persons who have strongly
influenced the life
either for good or ill, and that they generally represent members of one's own
family or the closest of friends. If the latter class, and blood relationship is not
present, they are those who have grown into the life and have become a part of it.
In all cases they have strong influence, hence their name.
In some hands few of these lines are seen, in others there are many, and the more
there are the greater the number of persons who have exerted strong influence. The
less the number the more self-contained is the subject; they make few close
friendships, and even blood relations do not greatly influence them. The reason
these lines are seen is because the influences have made strong impressions on the
mind of the subject, and these mental impressions have shown themselves in the
hand. The Lines of Influence, both vertical and horizontal, form what is commonly
called the Grille on the Mount of Venus. This generally indicates an increase of
Venusian qualities, particularly the sexual appetites. This general reading of a large
number of Influence lines on the Mount of Venus is correct, as has been clearly
demonstrated in the hands of subjects known to have strong sexual appetites. Every
line of the Grille represents an influence which has affected the life, and the more of
these there are, the more the Mount will have Currents which excite it, and
consequently fire its qualities. The absence of lines on the Mount of Venus shows an
absence of electrifying Currents, and this calm Mount expends its energy in a love
of beauty, gayety, color, art, and dress, instead of in sexual desires.

The line of Mars is a sister to the line of Life, running inside of that
line and parallel to it (278), This is really an Influence line, but it is
an influence upon the health of the subject, sustaining and
strengthening it, and does not relate to the influence of other
persons. The line of Mars is comparatively a rare marking ,and the greater number
of lines seen along alongside the Life line are simply Influence lines. The Influence
line which runs closest to the line of Life is the closest influence. This may be
mother, father, a brother or a sister. I have noted that a line starting near the
beginning of the Life line and running close to it is generally the mother (279), as a
mother's influence begins earlier in life than that of any one else. Next to this line,
counting from the Life line, comes a line representing the father and line line which
represents this parent is usually found to be deeper than the others.

Next follow other relatives grandparents being generally the

fourth line. The length of these lines tell the duration of the
influences as factor in the life of a subject. In most hands a new
Influence line is seen to appear at some age between twenty and
thirty (280). This is generally the husband or wife, as it is at about this age that most
marriages occur. This line becomes the dominating influence of the subject from the
time of its appearance it the marriage is happy, but it only shows faintly if the
marriage has made no more than a passing impression on the subject.
In many cases there is a fine line connecting this Influence line with the Life line,
showing that the influence has merged into the life of the subject. On the Mount of
Venus, then, are congregated the close influences of a subject's life. Many things
which happen to the persons who influence the subject are also shown on the lines
of Influence, but they are events which have made a considerable impression on the
subjects mind.
A star on the end of a line of Influence (281) will indicate the ceasing of that
influence, whatever it may be; and, while you cannot state definitely who the
person is, yet by noting the distance between this Influence line and the line of Life,
you can determine whether the line represents one closely connected with the
subject or a more distant relative. This is an important indication to master
thoroughly, for the death of a relative will often change the course of a life, and if
some indication be encountered which cannot be explained in any other way, a line
of Influence with a star on it may give the clue. In connection with the lines of
Saturn and Apollo it is of constant service. The death of relatives also seriously
impairs the health of some subjects, and thus in all directions Influence lines are
valuable indications.
When lines of Influence are deep, strong, and well colored, the influence is
powerful; when they are thin, shallow, chained, uneven, or broken
in any way, the influence is not strong (282).
When an Influence line begins deep and then grows thin, until it gradually fades
away, the influence was strong in the beginning, but has gradually grown weaker
until it has no effect (283). If this line should be revived and gradually grow
stronger, the influence will return into the life of the subject and grow in power
(284).

- If an Influence line draws away from the Life line and grows
thinner at the same time, the influence gradually grows away from
its nearness to the subject, and finally disappears (285). This is an
indication of the estrangement of some near one. The ages of each one of these
occurrences can be read from the Life line.
- If an Influence line, beginning early and ending in a star, has beside it a line more
distant from the Life line, which grows stronger after the star, it indicates that the
mother or father has died at the age shown by the star, and that a distant relative
has come into the life and taken the parent's place (286).
- If an Influence line begins thin and grows stronger and breaks, and is replaced by
another line, and this by another, it shows that, one after another, relatives have
replaced each other as the leading influence with the subject (287).

- If the Life line be very defective, being thin, chained, broad, and shallow, islanded
or broken, and a line of Influence be strong (288), it indicates that while the
subject's health has been delicate, some relative has been their mainstay in life. This
line just described has the same effect on the subject as a line of Mars, and the
influence may, by constant nursing, have kept the subject alive. I incline to this
opinion rather than to the idea of the line being a line of Mars.
- If the Head line be poor early in life, and gradually grow stronger, and an
Influence line be strong in the beginning and grow farther away from the Life line
or become thinner, the weak mental condition of the subject in early life is
sustained by the strong influence of someone during the time such help was needed,
and, as the head grew stronger, the influence was no longer needed and faded away
(289).
The rising branches from the Life line indicating an upward
tendency in the life of the subject are sometimes cut by Worry
lines (290). This marking shows an impediment to the career
of the subject, a check to the upward tendency. These worry
lines frequently start from an influence line (291), and this will indicate that the
influence has caused the check. In a large number of cases these Worry lines cutting
an upward branch from the Life line have been verified as indicating a legal
difficulty. Older palmists used this marking as an indication of divorce. The single
indication must not be given this reading, but with this marking and other
confirmatory signs it can be so interpreted, viz, if the line cutting the rising branch
from the Life line cross the hand and cut a line of union which is forked (292), this
reading will be found correct.
- If the Worry line start from an Influence line, the influence has made the trouble.
By itself the marking indicates a check to the upward career.
- If a Worry line starts from a star on the end of an Influence line and cut a rising
line from the Life line (293), it indicates that the death of a relative caused the
trouble.

- If the Influence line be deep, then thin, and alternates in this

way, the influence is strong, then weak, and only exerts its
power spasmodically (294).
- If an Influence line begins away from the Life line and
gradually comes toward it, growing stronger as it progresses (295), it indicates that
the influence of some distant relative is gradually coming nearer to the life of the
subject and growing stronger. This line may cut through other Influence lines lying
closer to the Life line, showing that it is becoming more powerful than they.
- If a line of Influence break and after a short space start again, and this be repeated,
it shows that the influence of the person on the life of the subject vanishes and then
begins again, having disappeared and returned several times (296).

- If inside of a broken line of Influence, starting at twenty to

thirty, there be another line which begins early in the life of
the subject, and continues uninterrupted past these breaks, it
shows the intermittent character of the wife or husband's
influence, strengthened by the constant influence of the mother or father. Often
such a marking will heal and correct a poor marriage (297).

Islands on Influence lines parallel to the Life line indicate a delicate condition of the
influence, and such a line ending in a star, cross, dot, or cross-bar (298) will indicate
that the delicate influence dies, the age to be read from the line of Life.
Horizontal lines on the Mount of Venus (299) are persons or events which have
crossed our lives and impeded them.
Parallel lines are not impediments, and while they may be weak or defective, they
are not influences strongly hostile to our best development.
Cross lines both impede influences and worry and harass us. This is why these cross
lines cutting the Life line have been called Worry lines.
- If deep and red, they are serious impediments; if thin and puny lines, they are only
annoyances. These Worry lines which continually cross the Life line must be
regarded as more or less serious, according to their depth and extent. When deep,
they indicate illness of a serious nature.
- If these horizontal lines cross the entire Mount of Venus and Life line, from top to
bottom, they are continuous worries.

- If only short lines, they are temporary annoyances. If they cut

some particular Influence line repeatedly (300), that influence
will have a continual life of worry and impediment.
- If a line of Influence, cut by a strong cross, line, show after
this cut an island and end in a star (301), some disaster has happened to the
influence which has brought on delicacy and ended in death. If the cutting line be a
deep one, and the cut line begin so early that you judge it to be a parent, the cause of
the cut has often been verified as the father. I have seen several cases of this kind;
the father having died, or been injured, has so shocked the mother that she never
recovered.
- If a number of Influence lines run parallel to the Life line, and these are cut by
numerous small lines, the family life of the subject has in many cases been found to
suffer constant interruption and be unhappy (302).

- If a cross line has an island in it, there will be something most

unpleasant connected with this impediment. It will be a bar to
the subject's life owing to some fault not of their own (303).
- If this line only cut the lines of Influence inside the Life line,
it will be expended on the relatives, but if it cut the Life line it will affect the life of
the subject. Do not confound this marking with the island from Saturn indicating
rheumatism.
- If an island on a line of Influence have running from it numerous small bars
cutting the Life line, the delicacy of some relative will prove a constant worry to the
subject (304). If on the life line an island appear after this point in life, these cares or
worries will seriously affect the health o the subject. Probably close nursing of some
invalid relative breaks the health (305).

- If an Influence line deep at the beginning gradually grow

thinner and end in a star, and Worry lines cross from it to the
Lifeline, which grows thin and has a dot on it, the increasing
delicacy of a relative ends in death, and the worry over this
case brings on delicacy of the subject ending in a severe illness (306). If the Life line
end on this dot, the subject will not recover; if it go on, they will regain their
strength.
- If an Influence line end in a star, and a Worry line connect this with a dot on the
Head line, the death of a relative will bring on a severe illness of the brain (307).
- If a line of Influence ends in a star, and this be connected by a Worry line with an
island on the Head line (308), the delicacy and death of a relative produce a
weakened mental condition of the subject.
In each on of these cases it is understood that you are to try and discover how near
a relative has died by the closeness of the Influence line to the Life line.

- If lines rise from the lines of Influence and run to, but do not cut,
the Life line, it shows that relatives will uplift the subject, but it
lines droop from the influence lines to the Life line, the subject will
be continually pulled down by his kin (309). If a line of Influence
which has been diagnosed as the wife or husband have a line rising from it to the
Mount of Jupiter, it indicates that this relative is most ambitious (310). If the Saturn
line be more than usually good after this period, it indicates that this ambitious
partner has spurred the subject on and increased their success.

- If a Line of Influence rising early be supported by one which rises

at about the time of marriage, the wife or husband has supplanted
the mother completely (311). If the marriage influence by thin and
the mother influence deep and strong, the wife is under the
domination of the mother, maybe her own, maybe her husband's (312).

The general principles which must be applied to lines of Influence are the same in
all cases as those which apply to other lines. Remembering that these lines
represent other people, and by discovering who these persons are in relation to the
subject, you can estimate very closely what effect they have on their life. Defects on
Influence lines, connected by Worry lines with defects on other lines, will show that
the influence has caused the defect. Changes in the Life line, following defects or
changes in Influence lines, show that the influences have affected the life in a
harmful manner. In all such cases the character of the Life line will tell what this
bad effect has been. In estimating the Influence line which represents the husband
or wife, it should be borne in mind that in women's hands it will begin at from
eighteen to twenty-five, and in men from twenty-five to thirty, these years
representing the average years when marriages occur. In reading Influence lines
always proceed slowly until you have gained practice enough to work out the
combinations. As students, do not hesitate to ask questions, and find out where you
have made mistakes. Acquire the general principles, and apply them with good
methods of reasoning to the Influence lines, and they will prove to be an increasing
source of benefit.

References
The Laws of Scientific Hand Reading- A practical Treatise on the Art Commonly called
Palmistry 1946 Benham, William. Printed and published by R. J. Taraporevala for D. B.
Tarporevala Sons & Co. Bombay