Born in Kfar Malal, British Mandate Palestine, 1928
1965 - Served as Chief-of-Staff of Israel's armed forces (Zahal)
1981 - Appointed Defence Minister
2001 - Elected Prime Minister of Israel

One of the most controversial figures both in Israel's military and political establishments. As a general his exploits were noted for their marvelous daring. His history includes distinguished service in Israel's War of Independence, The 6 Day War, The Yom Kippur War, and operations against Arab terrorism.

A determined and uncompromising commitment to his objectives made him the object of much adoration in Israel. At the same time he was bitterly criticized by many for demonstrating an apparent disregard for the cost in lives which stemmed from these operations. The most prominent instance of this was his role as chief architect in the invasion of Lebanon in 1982. This was in retaliation to persistent incursions and katusha attacks across the border by paramilitary Arab forces in southern Lebanon. His express ambition was to create a buffer zone of 40 kilometers, but he moved the Israeli forces, at enormous cost, as far north as the Beirut-Damascus road.

Committed to right wing ideologies, he is regarded by many Western observers as an uncompromising extremist. To many Israelis he is admired for his history as a military hero and for his adamant attitudes whether toward Palestinian terrorism proper, or toward those in Israel who would compromise Israel's security by accommodating Palestinian demands. Among the latter he counted Ehud Barak whom he replaced as head of state in a landslide victory.

here are hands which we normally associate with politicians and statesmen. The politician's hands would normally be described by a square shape to the palm itself, with the fingers (which are not deficient in length) rising above it in even, straight, rows. A distinct fleshiness would describe both the palm and the fingers. The mounts below the fingers would be prominent and there would be the suggestion of an angular development where the thumb extends from the palm. We encountered a perfect example of such a hand in the instance of Hillary Clinton .

The square palm reflects an inclination toward order, organization, balance, an objective appreciation of possibilities and a practical approach to the realization of ambitions. There would be room for compromise, cooperation and well considered actions. The angular insertion of the thumb points to a cerebral, calculating and somewhat emotionally detached mode of thinking.

Ariel Sharon's hands certainly display that quality of fleshiness, which, as a rule, is associated with an identification with strength. His hands, however, are otherwise very unlike the model we would offer as typical of politicians and statesmen. Everything will have its emotional investments, and everything will be emotionally critical for him. What follows are the features of his hands which give the definition to his attitudes, his behavior, and which describe the singular temper of his executive functions - which is how he would tend to translate his will into effect.

Features of Ariel Sharon's hand which serve as important sources of information include:

1. The length of the palm (relative to its width):
2. The very heavy base phalange of the thumb:
3. The high and hard upper development of the thenar eminence (the Mount of Mars):
4. The high hypothenar eminence (the Mount of Moon):
5. The spatulate development of the fingers tip phalanges:
6. The very thick little finger:
7. The pronounced "mounts" below the fingers:
8. The non-angular extension of the thumb from the palm:

The very heavy base phalange of the thumb (Figure 2)
This feature is rather difficult to explain. The thickness of this phalange (in relation to the tip phalange, of course) is a construction we would normally associate with growing children. We would focus on that period in their development when they begin to realize that they have wills of their own, and that their wills have a certain degree of potency. Their most critical ambition at this time is to secure for it a degree of legitimacy. In their mid teens this will manifest as powerful drives for self-autonomy and independence. Thus, at the surface of their lives, we find them investing enormous effort and emotional content in getting their way. When, as invariably happens, their parents say "no", or otherwise frustrate the translation of their wills into effect, we then witness expressions of rage and resentment to a degree which seems entirely out of proportion to the actual circumstances.

These young people would be without the psychical temperament that would help them manage the blocking, or frustration, of their wills. So it is that we find a young person in these circumstances relentless in his, or her, nagging, wailing, complaining and otherwise pressuring the parents to reconsider. In the instance of Ariel Sharon we must appreciate that, despite his advanced years, we find manifest the same energies and emotional investments in effecting his will. Except that at his present level of functioning, and from his station, there are fewer people who can frustrate its execution.

The high and hard upper development of the thenar eminence (Figure 3)
This area of the hand (which is popularly referred to as the Mount of Mars) is the seat of those instinctual energies which have a person confront directly and aggressively whatever stands between this person and his objectives. An expression of Freud's life instinct, the more prominent the development in this area of the thenar eminence the more would the individual be inclined to realize his ambitions in this fashion. A lesser development here may have the individual more inclined to compromise the original objectives, circumvent these obstacles, or avoid confronting them at all. With Ariel Sharon the tendency would be very much the reverse. He would display little tolerance for anyone or anything which may prevent the realization of his goals. This area of his hand seems markedly full and with a suggestion of hardness which may heighten even more the willful management of his ambitions.

The high hypothenar eminence (Figure 4)
The Mount of Moon to many. As the seat of those energies which give rise to the most fundamental needs and drives, a prominent hypothenar eminence often points to a rich and vital inner world dimension. Largely a subconscious quarter in the psyche, where this area of the hand is as we find it here in the instance of Ariel Sharon, we must account for an alert and immediate responsiveness to these needs and drives. More important, perhaps, we must appreciate that these very singular inner world chemistries will largely determine the specific emotional significance any object or circumstance will have for him. Information, extending from whatever manner of consciously recorded experience, would be delivered to these subconscious chemistries for their immediate evaluation.

Where this area of the palm is relatively flat, the center of gravity, as it were, in the personality remains with the cognitive processes, the rational mind and a more or less cerebral discipline. We encountered a construction of this order in the hand of Bashir Al-Assad, the President of Syria, who was installed in this office by his father Hafez Al-Assad. The very contrary would be true of Ariel Sharon. Weight would shift to emotional evaluations, subjective considerations and abstract conceptualizations. Beyond this we should appreciate that these same chemistries contribute to a sense of Self supported by well defined references and values with regard to that with which he identifies and that which he rejects.

The spatulate development of the fingers tip phalanges (Figure 5)
This is not seen as clearly as it might in this photograph, but we may discern, nevertheless, a heavy and somewhat bulbous development of the tip phalanges of all the fingers. This speaks of a tendency to relate in somewhat obsessive fashion to whatever issues may concern the individual - issues which would have been invested with emotional significance. The obsessiveness would speak of a problem letting go of things. Issues which may have concerned the individual at some point in his, or her life, but which may be entirely anachronistic at the present time would continue to matter to this person. While the spatulate development is visible in the hands of Ariel Sharon it might have been more severe so that we would rate its severity at about 5:10

In any analysis of personality we must consider that every feature influences, and is in turn influenced by every other feature. When accounting for this facet of obsessiveness in personality it must be linked to all the aforementioned and have us visualize how it might entrench these features even more solidly than might have been. Their manifest expression would be even more pronounced now.

The very thick little finger (Figure 6)
The little finger gives representation to a person's sense of true worth. Any deficiency in the construction of this appendage would suggest difficulties with the way a person envisages himself behind his own eyes, as it were. This would not be the image of self a person would necessarily expose to others. A problematic construction of the little finger may point to severe limitations a person may feel about his potential and general worthiness, and effect restrictions, sometimes very severe restrictions, in this person's ambitions and goals. The distinct thickness and good length of this finger in the hand of Ariel Sharon underlines a profound certainty with all that relates to his viability. It bespeaks a marvelous self-confidence and the sense of an inherent immunity from disaster.

The pronounced "mounts" below the fingers (Figure 7)
Where the area of the palm immediately below the fingers exhibits a discernable swelling, or thickness, we would speak of motivational energies. We would have to account for a powerful identification with models visualized as ideal. We may expect Ariel Sharon to feel driven to actualize these models to a point where they would come to define his own reality.

The rule here is that the higher these "mounts" the more profound these motivational energies. Where this area of the palm is decidedly flat we would have to account for the person being virtually without models at all. This circumstance often manifests as serious questions regarding matters as fundamental as ones sexual identity.

The non-angular extension of the thumb from the palm (Figure 8)
The reader should refer once again to the hand of Hillary Clinton to see what a distinctly angular extension looks like. Here there is not a trace of such a construction. Where the angular construction is in evidence we would have to account for disciplined thought processes which have rational calculations and cerebral formulations as its foundation. In the instance of Ariel Sharon where this feature is lacking altogether we would expect him to respond first and foremost to emotional dictates and to a very personal and subjective measure of things.

About Ariel Sharon:
The image of Ariel Sharon is ingrained in the most critical chapters of Israel's history. He has his serious detractors both in the military and in the government. A number of his exploits, particularly in the Suez Crisis and the recent incursion into Lebanon, are seen as having cost an inordinate number of lives. Yet it was his dramatic offensive during the Yom Kippur War which paved the way for the Israeli army to reverse its initial setbacks and end the war only 100 kilometers from Cairo. No one will debate his inner strength, personal courage, and untempered tenacity in whatever he undertakes. His commitment to his values and ideals have been consistent throughout the years. He has always been his own man, as it were, always an independent thinker, hard to second-guess, always translating his will into concrete effect whatever his office, and never apologetic for his reverses or bemoaning them. If he is feared by many it is for his genuine strength and unwavering willfulness. He is probably incorruptible. Very handsome and flamboyant in his earlier days he was deeply devoted to his wife and to their life together. His name has never been marred by scandal or impropriety, and he is respected, even loved, by millions.

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