Life Palace

In Mian Xiang

Mian Xiang, classical Chinese face reading, maps the face onto the Twelve Palaces and the Five Officers. The system is descriptive and structural, read for self-reflection rather than prediction. Its working canon was set down in the Song and Ming dynasties and remains in active use today.

How Life Palace is read

The area between the brows, read in Chinese face reading for general fortune and the cast of the present chapter. Within mian xiang, a reader weighs life palace against the rest of the chart rather than reading it on its own. The practitioner notes how it interacts with the neighbouring features, and the result is offered for self-reflection, not prediction.

Related terms in Mian Xiang

• Career Palace

  The centre of the forehead, read for vocation, public standing, and the long arc of work.

• Wealth Palace

  The tip of the nose, read for accumulation, resourcefulness, and one's hold on money.

• Marriage Palace

  The smooth area at the outer corner of each eye, read for partnership and the texture of close bonds.

• Children Palace

  The pads just below the eyes, read for family life and warmth toward the next generation.

• Property Palace

  The upper eyelids, read for inheritance, real estate, and what is held in keeping.