It’s a warm mid-August night in Mombassa, Kenya. We sit in the centre of my family friend’s spacious courtyard, pleasantly tired from a day of swimming and sipping on still-salty-from-the-sea G and Ts. Under the soft warm light of kerosene lanterns my aunt suggests palm reading, a skill acquired in college. As a sceptic, the idea that life’s trajectory lies in the palm’s creases seems incredulous, but I join in anyway. I quickly learn more about my companions: fractious love lives explained by fractured ‘love lines’, talent for design yet maths deficiency foretold through a ‘head line’, and my premonition for clumsiness written in the many creases of my ‘life line’.

As the game progresses, my scepticism fades. My aunt too begins to change, transforming from her excitable persona into an oracle: a mirror to our innerselves, a translator of pasts and destinies. When the last palm has been read, the outside world creeping back in, the group’s dynamic shifts. Previously purely amicable, bonded by tanning and parlour games, we now know the deepest intricacies about each other’s lives, things typically difficult to say easily drawn out of us. This led me to consider the modern place of spiritual practices, their efficacy in building connections and inviting us to think more precisely about ourselves, regardless of any truth.

“The more hands I scanned over, the more I realised the deep intimacy surrounding the act”

So, I learnt to read palms. First clumsily copying the actions of my aunt, inviting my friends to bend their hands so the creases would become more pronounced while rattling off lines about love, luck and money. Always with a disclaimer: just for fun, don’t take it seriously! Palms discussed over lunch breaks, before exams, after parties in the tipsy light of somebody’s kitchen. But, the more hands I scanned over, the more I realised the deep intimacy surrounding the act. Despite the jovial contexts, the physical action of grasping someone’s hand in yours and tracing out their future undeniably creates a physical and emotional bond, and a great deal of trust is required. With this in mind I began to research new techniques and discovered the art of ‘palmistry’, its potential use as a tool of self discovery, its past use in ancient medicines, and its contested use in psychotherapies today.

The applications of palmistry vary, some approaching it from a purely medical perspective, spotting heart defects in swollen fingertips and deficiencies in Raynauds. While others see palms solely as maps of our lives, I believe their impacts are the same: closeness with another person, palms expressing things that can’t be put into words, a dialogue which may not otherwise have been opened. These are all productive outcomes if approached with an open mind and a degree of scepticism.

“Astrology and palmistry offers a degree of control, of certainty in your character which can be difficult to define”

One of the most accessible and targeted areas of spirituality is astrology. From tabloid horoscopes and TikTok predictions, to keychains proclaiming the owner’s star sign, it is undoubtedly the most popular, and most criticised practice. Horror stories about ex-partners blaming their behaviour on ‘being a Virgo’, and of people cutting friends off for ‘Gemini behaviours’ saturate the internet, often disproportionately targeting women due to the perception of astrology as female-dominated. However, I would again advocate for suspending one’s disbelief when it comes to horoscopes. Beyond the facade of tribalistic star signs and generic statements promising love on Monday and money on Tuesday, astrology can provide real tools for self compassion and understanding. As with any media, the meaning derived depends on the reader. If one can identify and ground themselves in their Libra moon irrespective of any basis in reality, so what?

Identity is a complex thing, often confusing and constantly in motion. Astrology and palmistry offers a degree of control, of certainty in your character which can be difficult to define. So while I don’t suggest going and buying a lottery ticket because Mercury is in retrograde, or approaching a palm reader for legal advice, the next time you see a horoscope don’t just take it to be a divine truth or a waste of ink, try and find yourself in your sign, and see what it reveals.