Talking to the man in the mirror, Zane Cuxton
While many tend to dismiss face reading as magic, Zane Cuxton says it is a science.
Zane Cuxton’s most valuable asset is intangible. It is also so much in demand that he is often pursued by people willing to grant his every wish, provided he imparts his self-taught skill to them: the skill to read faces. Simply put, the man is a mirror, only, he talks. And the truth can sometimes be more than you can handle.
He recalls how after many years of reading the faces of strangers, one day, he decided to read his own face. What he saw left him feeling low for nearly two weeks. “Which is why I tell those I teach to not read their own faces. When I read mine, I couldn’t lie to myself. It was there for me to see — all that went wrong and right, and all that will go wrong and right.”
Not one to sit around moping, for he believes that each person has to live out whatever fate has in store, be it good or bad, Zane figured it was best to live each moment to its fullest and deal with life as it unfolded: “I thought I would cross that bridge when I came to it.”
One of the very few renowned face readers in the world, Zane mastered the art out of curiosity and the desire to do something different. After holding a position with a pharmaceutical company in the UK for many years, he changed jobs to join a soft skills training company, which brought him to India: “I never felt like going back,” he says.
Having continued to study body language and holding training sessions in the same, he soon moved to face reading. Zane says there are no texts on the subject and one learns through trial and error. And where did he practice? “Pubs and coffee shops where there are plenty of people around to apply your observations and confirm them,” says the Scotsman.
He believes every line and curve of one’s facial features, every mole, scar and wrinkle has a story to tell. “From the texture of a person’s hair to his skin, every detail gives away who he really is,” he says, “There are no coincidences. A mole appears for a reason, so does a scar. It marks a change in some aspect of that person’s life.”
Face reading is not new. Aristotle applied face reading while recruiting men to be part of the force led by Alexander the Great. Chinese physiognomy goes back ages. “I fear that it is a dying art. Not many people are aware of it. People tend to dismiss it as magic while all it requires is common sense. It is a science. When learnt, it becomes a skill and when mastered, an art,” notes Zane, who says teaching it to all and sundry can also lead to people being exploited. “One can pose as a godman, amass wealth by reading traits off people’s faces and charging them for it.”
In the field for over 20 years now, Zane has held training sessions for customs, police and other security personnel. His services have also been sought to unravel criminal cases. So where does face reading stand in a land like India where the shroud of mysticism lies thick and heavy? “Unfortunately, while people queue up, ready to dole out money to have their faces read, very few want to learn how. I don’t exactly understand why this is so,” he says.
Has he ever bored of reading faces? “Yes, at college fests, etc, where people line up and you are reading all day. It requires a lot of energy,” says the jovial man, adding that he prefers to simply be known as the trainer of his company ASK (Academy for Skill and Knowledge) and dreads being introduced as a face reader, especially at parties. The inevitable question soon follows: “Can you read my face?”
So know that the location of a mole can tell if your spouse is cheating on you, or how close you are to your sibling; while a scar can indicate where your relationship is headed. Your face is your life revealed.
He recalls how after many years of reading the faces of strangers, one day, he decided to read his own face. What he saw left him feeling low for nearly two weeks. “Which is why I tell those I teach to not read their own faces. When I read mine, I couldn’t lie to myself. It was there for me to see — all that went wrong and right, and all that will go wrong and right.”
Not one to sit around moping, for he believes that each person has to live out whatever fate has in store, be it good or bad, Zane figured it was best to live each moment to its fullest and deal with life as it unfolded: “I thought I would cross that bridge when I came to it.”
One of the very few renowned face readers in the world, Zane mastered the art out of curiosity and the desire to do something different. After holding a position with a pharmaceutical company in the UK for many years, he changed jobs to join a soft skills training company, which brought him to India: “I never felt like going back,” he says.
Having continued to study body language and holding training sessions in the same, he soon moved to face reading. Zane says there are no texts on the subject and one learns through trial and error. And where did he practice? “Pubs and coffee shops where there are plenty of people around to apply your observations and confirm them,” says the Scotsman.
He believes every line and curve of one’s facial features, every mole, scar and wrinkle has a story to tell. “From the texture of a person’s hair to his skin, every detail gives away who he really is,” he says, “There are no coincidences. A mole appears for a reason, so does a scar. It marks a change in some aspect of that person’s life.”
Face reading is not new. Aristotle applied face reading while recruiting men to be part of the force led by Alexander the Great. Chinese physiognomy goes back ages. “I fear that it is a dying art. Not many people are aware of it. People tend to dismiss it as magic while all it requires is common sense. It is a science. When learnt, it becomes a skill and when mastered, an art,” notes Zane, who says teaching it to all and sundry can also lead to people being exploited. “One can pose as a godman, amass wealth by reading traits off people’s faces and charging them for it.”
In the field for over 20 years now, Zane has held training sessions for customs, police and other security personnel. His services have also been sought to unravel criminal cases. So where does face reading stand in a land like India where the shroud of mysticism lies thick and heavy? “Unfortunately, while people queue up, ready to dole out money to have their faces read, very few want to learn how. I don’t exactly understand why this is so,” he says.
Has he ever bored of reading faces? “Yes, at college fests, etc, where people line up and you are reading all day. It requires a lot of energy,” says the jovial man, adding that he prefers to simply be known as the trainer of his company ASK (Academy for Skill and Knowledge) and dreads being introduced as a face reader, especially at parties. The inevitable question soon follows: “Can you read my face?”
So know that the location of a mole can tell if your spouse is cheating on you, or how close you are to your sibling; while a scar can indicate where your relationship is headed. Your face is your life revealed.