Also called: Varun Parvat · The keystone of the base

Where on the hand: At the base of the palm directly above the rascette, in the centre — the valley that bridges the Mount of Luna and the Mount of Venus. Some sources describe it loosely as between the heart line and the base of the palm near the wrist, but the precise and usual placement is the central strip immediately above the wrist crease. Centre roughly x 0.50, y 0.08.

What it looks like: When developed, a firm pad that makes Luna, Neptune and Venus a continuous smooth arc across the base of the palm, with no dip between the two great lower mounts. Its colour and surface (pink and smooth versus pale or rough) are read as well as its height.

Neptune is the keystone joining the two great lower mounts, and the bridge between the conscious mind (Venus, radial side) and the subconscious (Luna, ulnar side). It reads spirituality, mysticism, intuition and the capacity to hold an audience. A late Western addition, made after Neptune's discovery in 1846, absorbed into modern Indian practice as Varun Parvat.

Western reading: A post-1846 Western addition — it appears in neither the classical Sanskrit texts nor in the original seven-mount scheme.

Read with care: Because Neptune was only added after 1846, it carries no classical authority in either tradition, and its identity with or distinction from Ketu is unresolved between sources.