Houses of The Horoscope

As popular as Astrology has become, it amazes me how many young people I talk to (or even older people for that matter) know the positions of and aspects all their planets make but have little to no understanding of what their natal horoscope actually represents. The circle is divided into twelve parts or "houses," each representing a topic in our lives. As you go through the house meanings you can see that nothing is left out. The houses are determined by the ascendant, which is the degree of the specific sign that was rising at the moment of birth. The rest of the houses follow along in zodiacal order and are to some extent determined by the house system being used (whole signs, Placidus, equal, etc.) but the meanings of the houses themselves do not change.

In the above image you see the division of the houses for a chart using the Placidus house system. The ascendant is at 15* of Leo, and the houses are numbered counter clockwise from that point. This is important because we don't want to just consider how planets in specific signs with behave, we want to understand where or in what aspect of our lives this behavior will manifest.

1st House: The Ascendant: Me, Myself, and I

This is the degree of the tropical sign that was rising at the moment of birth; of a person, nation,

or question. Represents the physical body, including physical traits, personality, character,

integral in intellect and likes/dislikes. In medical matters, the head, face, eyes, ears,

hair...everything above the neck.

2nd House: What I Own

Income, resources, material gains/profits. Financial security, movable goods like possessions.

Wages earned from a job/career (trine the 10th house) as opposed to the things we either inherit or get from a spouse (those would be the 8th house.) Not the house itself, but the furnishings in

it. Clothes, cars, jewels, groceries and just about everything needed to support the body belong

to this house.

3rd House: My Tribe

Who are the people in your neighborhood?They're the people that you meet each day! Short journeys, siblings, extended family like aunts and cousins. Neighbors, coworkers, classmates, people we associate with because of proximity. The guy at the gas station, the mailman. Also, letters, messages, early education, newspapers, rumors, information that comes to us.

4th House: My Roots

Ancestors, parents, old things. Things that are underground, like graves and mines. The house

you live in and the exact ground under you. Farming, hidden treasures, wells and foundations

of buildings.

5th House: My Favorite Things

Romance, love affairs, sex and procreation (so children belong to this house.) Parties,

gambling, gifts and all manner of indulgences. Art and creativity, dancing, bars, theaters, sports

events and arenas. Also ambassadors and negotiators

6th House: My Bad Luck

Illnesses, diseases, accidents and the causes of them. Also people who work for you like

employees, nannies, servants, roofers, gardeners. Tenants if you own property that you rent out. Pets and small animals.

7th House: My Relationships

Marriages and marriage partners. All intimate relationships like boyfriends and girlfriends.

Business partners and legal contracts/lawsuits. Known enemies or adversaries.

8th House: My Fears

Loss, decay, death. Anxiety, stress and fear. Also credit and money you owe to others. On a

positive note, it represents inheritances (things we get from death) and the finances of our

spouse or business partner.

9th House: My Wisdom

Religion, philosophy. Higher education. Long journeys like travel to a foreign country. Religious

leaders, teachers, professors. Dreams and visions. This house also rules astrology, tarot and

all forms of divination.

10th House: My Career

Everything pertaining to career, status, and reputation. Employers and jobs. Awards, honors

and trophies. How people view you in your community. Fame or lack thereof.

11th House: My Best Friends

Trust, friendship, hopes and wishes. Benefactors and people who help you. Comfort and the

places that provide refuge and recovery. Good luck, motivation, personal strength.

12th House: My Personal Hell

Mental illness and depression. Addictions and afflictions of the spirit. Prisons, jails, places you

are trapped. Things you do to sabotage yourself. Hidden secrets, unknown enemies, skeletons

in the closet. Also large animals like horses.

Going through this list, it becomes clear that houses 1-6 are by and large representative of things that happen to us, as in things we don't necessairily have a choice about, and are the Lunar houses. Houses 7-12 on the other hand represent areas and things in our lives that happen because of us, or things we actively seek out. These are the Solar houses. Traditionally, the Sun was identified with the "spirit" and the Moon with the "body." More recently (in the last 50 years or so) we have seen this reinterpreted in psychological astrology as the Sun being the ego and the Moon feelings. While not inaccurate on the face of it, understanding the Lunar and Solar qualities of the houses themselves brings much more interpretative depth to the reading of the chart. Additionally, when we are trying to understand what having Venus in opposition to Saturn in our natal chart means for us personally, it is important to understand what area of our life (house) this will affect. Understanding the houses and their meanings is the first step to understanding the chart as a whole.