The Astrological Houses
Most horoscopic traditions of astrology systems divide the horoscope into a number (usually twelve) of houses whose positions depend on time and location rather than on date. The houses of the horoscope represent different spheres of life, described in terms of physical surroundings as well as personal life experiences. In delineation the placement of a planet or zodiac sign in a house will determine to a large degree the area of life in which it acts, and the goals and activities on which its drive or impulse will be focused.
The houses are divisions of the ecliptic plane (the path of the sun across the sky) as seen from the earth at the time and place of the horoscope in question. They are numbered counter-clockwise from the position of the eastern horizon (the cusp of the first house) at the time of the subject being charted. Houses one through six, are below the horizon, while houses seven through twelve are above the horizon.
There are a range of approaches to calculating these divisions and different opinions among astrologers over which house system is most accurate. To calculate the houses, it is necessary to know the exact time, date, and location. In natal astrology, some astrologers will use a birth time set for noon or sunrise if the actual time of birth is unknown. An accurate interpretation of such a chart, however, cannot be expected.
| House | Sign Rulership | Meaning | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st (Asc) | Aries | Self | Ego. Physical appearance, traits and characteristics. First impressions. General outlook into the world. Beginnings and initiatives. |
| 2nd | Taurus | Value | Money. Material and immaterial things of certain value. Belongings, property, acquisitions. Cultivation and growth. Substance. Self-Worth. |
| 3rd | Gemini | Communications | Lower education and childhood environment. Mental facilities. Siblings. Neighborhood matters. Short, local travel and transportations. |
| 4th | Cancer | Home and Family | Ancestry, heritage, roots. Early foundation and environment. Mother or mothers as figure. The caretaker of the household. Cyclic end of matters. |
| 5th | Leo | Pleasure | Recreational and leisure activities. Things which makes for enjoyment and entertainment. Games and gambling. Children. Love affairs and sex. Creative self-expression. |
| 6th | Virgo | Health | Routine tasks and duties. Skills or training acquired. Jobs and Employments. Health and overall well-being. Service performed for others. Caretaking. Pets and small domestic animals. |
| 7th (Desc) | Libra | Partnerships | Close, confidante-like relationships. Marriage and business partners. Agreements and treaties. Matters dealing with diplomatic relations of all kinds. Attraction to qualities we admire from the other partner. |
| 8th | Scorpio | Reincarnation | Cycles of Deaths And Rebirth. Sexual relationships and deeply committed relationships of all kinds. Joint finances. Other person's resource. Occult, psychic and taboo matters. Regeneration. Self-transformation. |
| 9th | Sagittarius | Philosophy | Higher education. Knowledge. Foreign travel and foreign countries. Culture. Long distance travels and journeys. Religion. Law and ethics. Experience through expansion. |
| 10th | Capricorn | Social Status | Ambitions. Motivations. Career. Status in society. Government. Authority. Father or father figure. The breadwinner of the household. Ones public appearance/impression at large. |
| 11th | Aquarius | Friendships | Friends and acquaintances of like-minded attitudes. Groups, clubs and societies. Higher associations. Benefits and fortunes from career. Ones hopes and wishes. |
| 12th | Pisces | Self-Undoing or Prison | Mysticism. Places of seclusion. Things which are not apparent to self, yet clearly seen by others. Elusive, clandestine, secretive or unbeknownst matters. Retreat, reflection and self-sacrifice. Unconscious/subconscious. |
The Different House Systems
This is a recent system, invented in Argentina, that its creators claim has been determined empirically, i.e. by observing events in people's lives and assessing the geometry of a house system that would fit. The house cusps are always within a degree of those given in the Placidus system. The topocentric system can also be described as an approximation algorithm for the Placidus system.
A rather more complicated version of the Placidus system, built on equal increments of Right Ascension for each quadrant. The Koch system was developed by the German astrologer Walter Koch (1895-1970) and is defined only for latitudes between 66°N and 66°S. This system is popular among research astrologers in the U.S. and among German speakers, but in Central Europe lost some popularity to the Krusinski house system.
This is the most commonly used house system in modern Western astrology. The Placidus system is based on a division of time rather than space. The times taken for each degree of the ecliptic to rise from the nadir to the ascendant, and from the ascendant to the midheaven, are trisected to determine the cusps of houses 2, 3, 11, and 12. The cusps of houses 8, 9, 5 and 6 are opposite these. The Placidus system is sometimes not defined beyond polar circles (latitudes greater than 66°N or 66°S), because certain degrees are circumpolar (never touch the horizon), and planets falling in them cannot be assigned to houses without extending the system.
It is thought the Placidus system was first mentioned about 13th century in Arab literature, but the first confirmed publication was in 1602 by Giovanni Antonii Magini (1555-1617) in his book "Tabulae Primi Mobilis, quas Directionem Vulgo Dicunt". Later it was popularized by Catholic Church as an argument for Ptolemy's geocentric theory of the Solar System, in the campaign against the heliocentric theory. Placidus, a professor of mathematics, was named as its author to give it credibility to his contemporaries. Placidus remains the most popular system among English-speaking astrologers.
History and Debate
In Hellenistic, Vedic, Medieval and Renaissance astrology each house is ruled by the planet that rules the sign on its cusp. For example, if a person has the sign Aries on the cusp of their 7th house, then the planet Mars is said to "rule" their 7th house. This means that when a planet is allotted a house, its nature comes to have some bearing on that specific topic in the person's life, and that planet is said to be very important for events specifically pertaining to that topic. The placement of this planet in the chart will have at least as much influence on the chart as the planets within the house. In traditional Western & Hindu astrology, each sign is ruled by one of the 7 visible planets (note that in astrology, the Sun and Moon are considered planets, which literally means wanderers, i.e. wandering stars, as opposed to the fixed stars of the constellations).
In addition, some modern astrologers who follow the X = Y = Z or Planet = Sign = House doctrine, which was first taught by Alan Leo in the early part of the 20th century, believe that certain houses are also "ruled" by, or have an affinity with, the planet which rules the corresponding zodiacal sign. For instance, Mars is ruler of the 1st house because Aries is the first sign, Mercury rules or has an affinity with the 3rd house because Gemini is the 3rd sign, etc. This is sometimes referred to as "natural rulership", as opposed to the former which is sometimes called "accidental rulership".
The Babylonians were the first to set out the twelve houses used today by the majority of astrologers. The houses were numbered from the east downward under the horizon, and represented areas of life on the following pattern with their areas of influence. These are their traditional Latin names of the twelve houses, with their translations and other associated influences. This represents the basic outline of the houses as they are still understood today.
Babylonians started observing natural phenomena connected with ascending and culminating of the heavenly bodies. This evolved into 12 division system of houses before the discovery of the ecliptic. Later (around V c. bce) ecliptic was discovered. At the beginning this early zodiac it has no sign divisions, and only 18 bright stars were used as markers to measure planet positions. Later in Alexandria astrologers introduced the twelve signs to fit the number and probably meanings of the houses, and named constellations after them.
Nowadays, practising astrologers use a 12 house division. Most theoreticians attribute 8 fold division for misinterpretation of old texts only, but one theoretician (Patrice Guinard) has argued, contrary to that prevailing opinion, that there is a basis for an 8 house division. One prominent astrologer, Marc Penfield, uses 8 houses - dividing each quadrant using the same technique as in Koch & Placidus. Michel Gauquelin divided Placidus houses into 36 (instead of 12) "decans" and marked beginning of the 36th "decan" (the first before ascendant) as the starting point.
Many modern astrologers assume that the houses relate to their corresponding signs, i.e. that the first house has a natural affinity with the first sign, Aries, and so on. However, the discovery of a document called the Thema Mundi, or chart of the world, by Project Hindsight, suggests something different. In the chart of the world, the sign Cancer is on the ascendant, Leo is on the 2nd house, and so on. The Thema Mundi is the chart that is considered the key to the Helenistic system of astrology, from which much of modern astrology is derived, though at times inaccurately.
1st: House of Self
Sign: Aries
Translation: Life
According to some astrologers the first house shows how you appear to others, the persona, or mask you wear. Other astrologers feel that the first house is not this superficial and describes an essential part of who you are and how you project yourself in the world. Some astrologers believe that the first house describes issues that are very important to the person, issues that the person wants to resolve and master in this lifetime and they tend to become increasingly important as the person grows older.
2nd: House of Value
Sign: Taurus
Translation: Wealth
Many astrologers believe that the second house describes your possessions and is a key to understanding whether you will be wealthy and have many possessions. Other astrologers believe that the second house describes your values, whether you are a person with strong and rigid values, for example, or whether you tend to be liberal, accepting, and tolerant of different ethical standards, and also what kinds of things are important and of more value to you.
3rd: House of Communications
Sign: Gemini
Translation: Brothers
Communication and how one expresses oneself are key issues of the third house. Some astrologers believe that the third house describes how a person relates to the immediate environment, how observant and alert the person is, how the individual learns new material, and how the person processes information.
4th: House of Home and Family (Imum Coeli)
Sign: Cancer
Translation: Parents
Many astrologers believe that the 4th house describes your home, some believe it describes your mother, and some believe it describes your father. A more psychological interpretation of the 4th house is that it describes where you feel comfortable and what kinds of things and what kind of environment makes you feel relaxed, unstressed, peaceful, and comfortable.
5th: House of Pleasure
Sign: Leo
Translation: Children
The fifth house is associated with creativity, children, and play. Some astrologers also associate the 5th house with romance. A more psychological interpretation of the 5th house is that it describes how you express yourself in a personal and creative way.
6th: House of Health
Sign: Virgo
Translation: Health
The 6th house is associated with work and health. A psychological interpretation of the 6th house is that it describes your attitude towards improving things and taking care of things. It describes the extent to which you focus on fixing, repairing, improving, and maintaining things.
7th: House of Partnerships
Sign: Libra
Translation: Spouse
The 7th house is the house of partnerships and relationships. It describes how you relate to others, what you value in a relationship, and what you expect from others.
8th: House of Death and Sex
Sign: Scorpio
Translation: Death
The 8th house is associated with many different things, from inheritances to business transactions, death, and sex. A psychological interpretation of the 8th house is that it describes how you share and bond with others, whether you can make commitments to others and whether you will abide by the commitments you make. The 8th house encompasses all forms of bonding and sharing, especially strong or meaningful ones, and therefore has a big impact on marriage, sexuality, business contracts and attitude towards money.
9th: House of Philosophy
Sign: Sagittarius
Translation: Journeys
The 9th house is associated with travel, philosophy, religion, education, and publishing. A psychological interpretation of the 9th house is that it describes how a person grasps larger concepts and the degree to which the person focuses on distant or loftier issues and to what extent these are important to the person.
10th: House of Social Status (Medium Coeli)
Sign: Capricorn
Translation: Kingdom
The 10th house is associated with career, reputation, and public image. The 10th house describes how we project ourselves into the world, and the roles that we enjoy playing in our careers and jobs.
11th: House of Friendships
Sign: Aquarius
Translation: Friendships
The 11th house is associated with friendship and goals. Some astrologers feel that the essential meaning of the 11th house is how we relate to larger groups and the community in which we live. It describes the manner in which we participate in community activities, and how important the larger community, national, and global issues are to us.
12th: House of Self-Undoing
Sign: Pisces
Translation: Prison
The 12th house is associated with various things such as isolation, institutions, hospitals, prisons, etc. A psychological interpretation of the 12th house is that it describes the often subconscious and emotionally based feelings of responsibility that we have as people and citizens of the world. It describes the extent to which we feel responsible to serve the larger community, and the extent to which we take the problems of others seriously as concerns of ourselves, and the extent to which we feel guilty when we feel that we do not do what we know deep within ourselves we should do.
