Finger Counting and Planetary Finger Gestures

 

Mudras are defined as a symbolic or ritual gesture or pose in Jainism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. They are an Eastern cultural form. The West doesn’t have an analogous system, though some of the cultures the Western tradition stems from might have had corresponding types of systems regarding the symbolic use of the hands. There are plenty of bits and pieces of historical evidence that show the hands being used in symbolic or ritual ways. One example that comes to mind is the numerous hieroglyphs and representations of humans in various postures and poses in ancient Egyptian palace and temple art. Another example comes from the writing of the Christian monk of the eighth century, Saint Bede. Bede writes of a system of finger counting that can be used to communicate small and large numbers. In this article, I will explore a system of hand symbols that was handed down through Bede and another system that is part of palmistry, and propose a planetary system of finger poses.  

 

Finger Counting

There is a system of hand signs and poses that symbolize numbers and it may have existed throughout the Mediterranean region as far back as the days of the Roman Republic. The system of hand number gestures was passed down to us by the medieval English monk Bede. Bede wrote On Calculating and Speaking with the Fingers from De temporum ratione. It is suggested that calculating Easter correctly was important for medieval monks and that was part of the motivation for sharing the number system.¹ Not all the numbers are certain, but the first ten numerals are undisputed. The fingers are the thumb, the index finger, the middle finger, the ring finger, and the pinkie or little finger. Bede explains that one should start with the left hand and start with the pinkie finger. “If you wish to say ‘one,’ you must bend the little finger of your left hand and place its tip on the palm….” Bede tells how to bend the fingers to make other numbers. I have included both an old chart that mostly agrees with Bede and photos of the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, in this article. There is ample evidence of number counting in Roman times, and it seems to be the same system as Bede’s numbers from the available evidence.² Bede’s finger counting is likely a survival of a Roman era market and merchant system of number counting. Unfortunately, there is no surviving evidence of a Greek form of number gestures. There are Arabic sources that are much later than Bede’s eighth century work that use the same system as Bede. The system that Bede mentions might have been used in Roman statuary, and there is mention of a statue of Janus that held number gestures of symbolic significance. In conclusion, Bede finger counting likely was used in antiquity, and as a result, is the perfect system to apply to ritual and any religious symbolism that relates to numbers.

The numbers 1 through 10 can be connected to the Greek gods based on Pythagorean views, Classical period and Hellenistic era correspondences, and Agrippa’s planetary numbers. First, one can look to Pythagorean arithmology, which lists characteristics of each of the ten digits. Known collectively as the decad, the numbers 1 through 10 are associated with deities and mythological beings, amongst other things. Another tradition is related to ancient Greek isopsephy. The Greek alphabet was used to write the numbers, and partly as a result of that the numbers can have many other correspondences.  A good book for references and charts related to different types of number correspondences is The Greek Qabala: Alphabetical Mysticism and Numerology in the Ancient World by Kieren Barry. Last, the 16th century physician and occult writer Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa mentions the numbers that the planets are associated with in his Three Books of Occult Philosophy. Agrippa’s numbers are 3 for Saturn, 4 for Jupiter, 5 for Mars, 6 for the Sun, 7 for Venus, 8 for Mercury, and 9 for the Moon. These are some of the possible connections between numbers on the one hand, and deities and planets on the other hand.

 

Planetary Hand Gestures Derived from Palmistry

The hands are a great tool in communication. We can see it in everyday life, as hands are used to communicate along with language. In rituals, the hands can be a communicative tool as well. Mudras are one example of the hands be used in this manner. But it is within the realm of possibility that lost traditions that pre-dated Islam and Christianity had systems of hand gestures that took on great religious and spiritual symbolism. One can certainly imagine the temples of the ancient Near East having systematized hand gestures and symbols that were applied in ritual practice. One thing that would be important for any system would be a theoretical framework that assigned values to parts of the body, such as melothesia. Melothesia is an astrological concept that assigns parts of the body to astrological elements. Astrological melothesia was focused on the connections between astrology signs and body parts rather than planets.³ During my research, I couldn’t find any references to the individual fingers and parts of the hands corresponding to the planets in melothesia.⁴ However, there is a system that assigns the planets to the parts of the hand. The palmistry practiced in the West is a potential source of information on this topic. Palmistry, also known as chiromancy, includes astrology and planets in its description of the hand. Ancient Greeks practiced palmistry, but none of the manuals have survived. There are no references to palmistry in Latin until the 11th century.⁵ Scholars believe that Greek palmistry was focused on the meanings of the lines and was more of a branch of physiognomy, rather than having a connection to astrology.⁶ The form of palmistry that uses astrology to describe the hand is believed by some to have come from India, just like mudras.⁷ However, the existence of a Greek chiromantic fragment suggests that astrological chiromancy was known in antiquity. Franz Boll published the anonymous fragment in 1908. The fragment, entitled “ Prognostic from the lines of the palm,” names the mounts and fingers with the same planets from the later chiromantic texts. Roger Pack later argued that it had similarities to the earliest Latin works on chiromancy.⁸  Without more evidence, it is unclear whether the astrological correspondences in palmistry come from India or were widespread in the Mediterranean and Near East throughout antiquity. The fact that the chiromantic astrological system possibly was used in the Roman Empire in antiquity suggests it is more than suitable for the basis of a system of planetary finger gestures. Though it would be easy enough to just adopt mudras, I believe it is important to make a different system for doing rituals in Western traditions. 

The astrological side of palmistry assigns parts of the hand to the planets. The fleshy pads on the palms are called mounts.⁹ The Mount of Jupiter is under the index finger, the Mount of Saturn is under the middle finger, the Mount of the Sun is under the ring finger, and the Mount of Mercury is under the little finger. That leaves the mounts of Mars, Venus, and the Moon. There are two mounts of Mars, the Lower Mount of Mars under the Mount of Jupiter, and the Upper Mount of Mars under the Mount of Mercury. They are both situated on the edges of the palm. The Mount of Venus is under the Lower Mount of Mars and the Mount of the Moon is under the Upper Mount of Mars. The index finger is associated with Jupiter, the middle finger with Saturn, the ring finger with the Sun, and little finger with Mercury.   

The system of assigning planets to the parts of the hand in the astrological form of palmistry is a good starting place for creating a new system of using the hands to symbolize the planets. An interesting coincidence regarding the mounts and fingers of the hand is that the fingers and their mounts align with the diurnal sect, or the Sun, Saturn, and Jupiter. Mercury, which has no sect, is represented by the little finger. In an astrology chart, Mercury’s joy is the first house, where it straddles the horizon and shares both the sky and subterranean realm. The planets that don’t have fingers are of the nocturnal sect, in other words, the Moon, Mars, and Venus. Instead, they are the mounts that are part of the middle and lower part of the palms. An observation that can be made is that the planets of the diurnal sect are symbolized by the fingers and are a part of the hand that is active and assertive. The parts of the palm associated with the nocturnal sect planets are passive and receptive.  

There are two ways to use the hands, with the palms facing forward or oriented backwards. Again, certain qualities can be observed. The palm facing forward is receiving and grasping. The palm oriented inwards is of a disallowing action and is closed off. Two sets of planetary gestures can be created, one with the palm forward and the other with the palm inwards. For the planets of the diurnal sect and Mercury, it is easy enough to create symbolic gestures for them. But for the planets of the nocturnal sect, which only have the mounts of the palm, it is more challenging. The thumb is key to creating symbolic gestures for Mars, Venus, and the Moon.  

I will describe the symbolic gestures for the planets identified with the fingers with the palms forward, and then describe how to do it with the palms facing inwards. Rather than using straight fingers, I like the idea of curling the fingers and having the one finger associated with the planet slightly raised. For the planets of the diurnal sect, it is very easy to make a gesture that highlights the specific symbolic finger. Now, I will describe the exact gestures for each of the planets, starting with Jupiter of the day sect. To gesture Jupiter, the palm of the right hand should be forward and the fingers slightly curled. The index finger is curled as well, but it is slightly raised. To gesture Saturn, the palm of the right hand should be forward and the fingers slightly curled. The middle finger is curled as well, but it is slightly raised. To gesture the Sun, the palm of the right hand should be forward and the fingers slightly curled. The ring finger is curled as well, but it is slightly raised. To gesture Mercury, the palm of the right hand should be forward and the fingers slightly curled. The little finger is curled as well, but it is slightly raised. Now, I will explain the symbolic gestures for the planets that only have mounts. To gesture Mars, the fingers should all be straight and upright, and the thumb reaches to the edge of the palm, to the Mount of Mars. To gesture Venus, the thumb should be inside a closed fist. To gesture the Moon, the thumb should be held upright and the fingers should be brought down like a fist. All of the gestures can be flipped if one wants to have the palm face inwards. They will all have a unique appearance. One modification is that the fingers are not curled and the one finger signifying Jupiter, Saturn, the Sun, and Mercury is held straight. 

Both Bede’s finger counting and astrological chiromancy might have been widespread in the Mediterranean regions in antiquity. As a result, both systems are valuable tools for expressing numbers and esoteric symbolism through gestures of the hands. Bede’s finger counting system can express an array of things, from planets to gods, names to elements, and plants to animals. Astrological chiromancy offers a theoretical correspondence with parts of the hand that can be used to create planetary gestures. The possibility that it is of ancient provenance is invaluable in creating a system, since neither the archaeological record nor tradition has provided a system to people. One system of planetary gestures was described in this article, and it can be used along with Bede finger counting gestures in rituals to communicate sacred symbolism.   

 

 

Notes

 

1. Karl Menninger, Translated by Paul Broneer, Number Words and Number Symbols: A Cultural History of Numbers (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1969, published 1992) 890-895.
2. Menninger, Number Words and Number Symbols: A Cultural History of Numbers, 890-895.
3. Charles Clark, The Zodiac Man in Medieval Medical Astrology.Quidditas: Vol. 3 , Article 3. (1982) Available at: <https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/rmmra/vol3/iss1/3> 5-27.
4. M.F. Schreiber, “Late Babylonian Astrological Physiognomy” in Johnson, J. C. and Stavru, A. (eds.) Visualizing the invisible with the human body: Physiognomy and ekphrasis in the ancient world (Science, Technology, and Medicine in Ancient Cultures 10). (Berlin/Boston: De Gruyter, 2019), 119–140.
5. Charles S.F. Burnett, “The Earliest Chiromancy in the West,” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 50 (The Warburg Institute, 1987): 189–95.
6. Burnett, “The Earliest Chiromancy in the West,” 189.
7. Yoshiaki Omura, Acupuncture Medicine: Its Historical and Clinical Background. (Dover Publications, Inc., 2003)
8. Roger A. Pack, “On the Greek Chiromantic Fragment,” Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association, Vol. 103, (John Hopkins University Press, 1972) 367-380.
9. Editors Bridget Giles and Jane Johnson, Collins Gem Palmistry (London: HarperCollinsPublishers 2000)106.

 

Bibliography

1. Karl Menninger, translated by Paul Broneer, Number Words and Number Symbols: A Cultural History of Numbers (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1969, published 1992).
2. Charles Clark, “The Zodiac Man in Medieval Medical Astrology,” Quidditas: Vol. 3 , Article 3. (1982) Available at: <https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/rmmra/vol3/iss1/3> 5-27.
3. M.F. Schreiber, “Late Babylonian Astrological Physiognomy” in Johnson, J. C. and Stavru, A. (eds.) Visualizing the invisible with the human body: Physiognomy and ekphrasis in the ancient world (Science, Technology, and Medicine in Ancient Cultures 10). (Berlin/Boston: De Gruyter, 2019), 119–140.
4. Charles S.F. Burnett, “The Earliest Chiromancy in the West,” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 50 (The Warburg Institute, 1987): 189–95.
5. Yoshiaki Omura, Acupuncture Medicine: Its Historical and Clinical Background. (Dover Publications, Inc., 2003)
6. Roger A. Pack, “On the Greek Chiromantic Fragment,” Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association, Vol. 103, (John Hopkins University Press, 1972) 367-380.
7. Ed. Bridget Giles and Jane Johnson, Collins Gem Palmistry (London: HarperCollinsPublishers 2000).

 

Photo Credits

1. A hand makes a gesture. Photo by Min An, CC0.
2. Finger counting from the Summa de Arithmetica of the Italian mathematician Luca Pacioli, the first important mathematical work to be printed, which was published in 1494. The hundreds and thousands are made on the right hand, differing from the Venerable Bede’s version. Public Domain.
3. All photos of the symbolic gestures of the hands are by Mad Sage Astrology.