Physiognomy

Physiognomy is a means to examine a person’s outer appearance, especially the face, to understand the character and personality that lies beneath. In absolute predictive physiognomy, the belief is that there is perfect correlation between the person’s appearance and the soul. It is related to palmistry.

And like palmistry, physiognomy has been proven correct to a certain extent by science. There are some correlations between physical features and character traits. For instance, there seems to be a strong correlation between finger-length ratios and a number of character traits; high testosterone, which correlates with aggressiveness, also correlates closely with square jaws. We have just begun to scratch the scientific surface of these observations, partly because physiognomy has for so long been discounted by science.

Physiognomy has been around for millennia. The Greeks were especially concerned with physical beauty, and often used the physiognomy of an individual to determine how he or she would be treated. Aristotle referred to many theories around physiognomy, and in fact integrated the idea of physiognomy into some of his own writings. In fact, the earliest surviving treatise on physiognomy came from Aristotle’s school, and defined correlations between human form and character, using animal behavior as a basis.

The core of the idea, however, is that the soul shapes the person. All of us have known someone who, without the soul inhabiting the body, would be plain or even unattractive; but with the vibrant soul they possess, they are attractive and brilliant to others. In this way, we all know that one’s soul shapes one’s appearance. There may not, in this case, be an actual physical change, but there is certainly a change in something.

The problem is, physiognomy has been used by charlatans over the centuries to affirm their own teachings. It is difficult to sort out from the vast body of work which facets of physiognomy are accurate and which are complete baloney. And then there are the aspects of physiognomy that have been used to support racist beliefs.

But go back to the idea that the soul shapes the appearance, and you might have something. There are girls who look “hard;” for the most part, they are bad prospects for long-term relationships. There are men who look menacing, and often are. Women who have just fallen in love glow. And your desires shape your appearance; if you have tanned far too much, there is obvious damage to your skin. Age comes out in the face and body. A love of food comes out in the body.

In the same way, magick can be used to shape the physiognomy. You can’t wish for beauty and have it, naturally. But you can transform your soul to reflect inner beauty outward, and over time you will become more beautiful to observers. You can look to those who have the physical traits you desire, and examine the ways that those traits come out. What can you do differently with yourself to have that trait? How can you shape your own soul so that your body and face become different? Answer these questions, and you will have control over your own physiognomy.