Sure, you’re familiar with your zodiac (sun) sign, which informs your personality. But are you aware that you also have 12 astrological houses representing specific life areas? Or that the placements of zodiac signs, and planets within your houses on your birth date have a profound effect on your life? Or that these celestial placements among your houses can have as much or more influence on you as your sun sign?
Fortunately, a personal birth (natal) chart will reveal these important zodiac and planetary placements. For a birth chart is a snapshot of the celestial bodies occupying each of your houses on the date, time, and place of your birth. But wait, deciphering your birth chart first requires a working understanding of each house. Thus, this post’s goal is demystifying each of astrology’s 12 houses.
What are the 12 Houses of Astrology?
Astrology’s 12 houses represent cosmic zones visible from Earth during its 360 degree axial rotation during each 24-hour period. And each house is associated with a zodiac sign and a planet or luminary (Sun and Moon).
Moreover, each house represents important areas of our lives that its associated zodiac sign and planet relate to. Of these 12 houses, the first 6 are personal houses, informing aspects of ourselves. And houses 7 through 12 are interpersonal houses informing how we relate to others.
How a Personal Birth Chart Maps our 12 Houses
To get a deeper and more accurate insight into our astrological profile, we need to look at our personal birth chart. By knowing which zodiac signs and planets were in each of our 12 houses at birth, we can learn more about our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges in various areas of our life.
Since, interpretation of birth charts is a complex topic, we reserve an in-depth look at them for a future blog post. Stay tuned!
Important Factors in Demystifying Astrology’s 12 Houses
Notably, the zodiac sign that shows up in each specific house on your birth date influences that house for you. And the planet that rules that sign also rules that house. But other planets showing up in the house also exert a smaller influence on you in that house’s life area.
Since, specific influences of the 12 zodiac signs are vast and widely known, we don’t include them here. And since planetary influences are another vast topic, we reserve them for a future post.
Zodiac Signs and Their Associated Planets
Importantly, the planet associated with the zodiac sign occupying each house at the time of birth, rules with a direct influence on that house. And any planet occupying that house at the time of birth also has a direct but smaller influence. See the below listing of zodiac signs with their associated planets:
- Aries – ruled by Mars
- Taurus – ruled by Venus
- Gemini – ruled by Mercury
- Cancer – ruled by the Moon
- Leo – ruled by the Sun
- Virgo – ruled by Mercury
- Libra – ruled by Venus
- Scorpio – ruled by Pluto
- Sagittarius – ruled by Jupiter
- Capricorn – ruled by Saturn
- Aquarius – ruled by Uranus
- Pisces – ruled by Neptune
Below, we give a brief overview of each of astrology’s 12 houses for demystifying what they mean for you.
Note: that each house’s name and life aspects vary a bit from source to source. But the various representations are still quite similar among sources.
The First House: The House of Self, Identity, and Physical Appearance
The first house, the most important house in your chart, represents your identity, physical appearance, style, image, and self-expression. It shows how you present yourself to the world and how you wish others will perceive you.
Ascendant Zodiac Sign
The zodiac sign on the cusp (starting edge) of this 1st house is called your ascendant sign. This is the sign that was rising on the eastern horizon at the time of your birth. Your ascendant sign influences how you look and behave in various situations.
Chart Ruling Planet
Notably, the planet or luminary that rules your ascendant sign, rules your first house and is also your overall chart ruler. As your chart ruler, this planet has an overall behind the scenes influence on what motivates and drives you in the life areas associated with all of your houses. For example, if your ascendant is zodiac sign Taurus, then your entire chart is influenced indirectly by Venus. This means that in all areas of your life, a beautiful aesthetic outweighs the merely functional.
The Second House: The House of Value, Money, and Possessions
The second house is the house of value, money, self-worth, possessions, and resources. It shows how you earn, spend, save, and manage your money and material assets. It also shows how you value yourself and what makes you feel financially secure and comfortable.
The planet that rules your second house influences how you approach money matters and what kind of financial opportunities or challenges you may face.
The Third House: The House of Communication, Siblings, Learning Opportunities, and Local Travel
The third house is the house of communication, learning, thinking, self-expression, and local travel. For It shows how you communicate with others verbally and in writing and how you process information. It also shows your relationship with your siblings, neighbors, and classmates.
The planet that rules your third house influences how you express yourself and which learning topics interest you.
The Fourth House: The House of Home, Family, and Ancestors
The fourth house is the house of home, family, ancestors, and emotions. It shows where you come from and where you belong. Besides your own family, this house shows your relationship with your parents (especially your mother), as well as other ancestors and heritage.
The planet that rules your fourth house influences how you feel about your home and family and what kind of emotional support or security you need.
The Fifth House: The House of Pleasure, Creativity, Hobbies, and Romance
The fifth house is the house of pleasure, creativity, and romance. It shows how you express your joy and passion and how you have fun. It also shows your relationship with your lovers and children, hobbies, and artistic projects.
The planet that rules your fifth house influences how you manifest your creativity and love and what kind of opportunities or challenges you may encounter in these areas.
The Sixth House: The House of Health, Work, and Routines
The sixth house is the house of work, service, health, and habits. It shows how you perform your daily tasks and duties and how you take care of your physical and mental well-being. It also shows your relationship with your co-workers, employees, and pets.
The planet that rules your sixth house influences how you approach work and health matters and what kind of health and work challenges or opportunities you may encounter.
The Seventh House: The House of Relationships and Partnerships
The seventh house is the house of partnerships, relationships, and contracts. It shows how you relate to others. For this house shows your relationship with your spouse, business partner, or any other significant person in your life.
Descendant Sign
Moreover, the zodiac sign on the terminal edge of this 7th house is your descendant sign. For this sign was descending on the western horizon at the time of your birth. And your descendant represents qualities you admire, as well as who you are attracted to and compatible with.
Specifically, the planet that rules your seventh house influences how you attract and interact with partners and what kinds of issues may challenge your relationships.
The Eighth House: The House of Debts, Joint Resources, Intimacy, and Transformation
The eighth house is the house debts, joint resources, intimacy (sex), death, and rebirth. It shows how you deal with change (transformation), crisis, and power in your life. It also shows your relationship with shared resources, taxes, debts, inheritances, and anything that belongs to someone else.
The planet that rules your eighth house influences how you handle transformation and intimacy and what kind of secrets or mysteries you may uncover.
The Ninth House: The House of Travel, Higher Learning, and Religion
The ninth house is the house of foreign travel, wisdom, and religious beliefs. It shows how you expand your horizons and seek higher knowledge and meaning in your life. It also shows your relationship with foreign cultures, higher education, and philosophies.
The planet that rules your ninth house influences how you explore and learn new things and what kind of opportunities or challenges you may encounter in doing so.
The Tenth House: The House of Status, Career, and Goals
The tenth house is the house of status and reputation in your career. It also shows how you pursue your goals and ambitions and how you achieve recognition and success in your life. It also shows your relationship with authority figures, such as your boss, your father, or the government.
The planet that rules your tenth house influences how you express your authority and professionalism and what kind of challenges or rewards you may face in your career.
The Eleventh House: The House of Friendships, Community, Hopes, and Dreams
The eleventh house is the house of friendships, hopes, and dreams. It shows how you connect with others who share your ideals and aspirations and how you contribute to society and humanity. It also shows your relationship with groups, organizations, clubs, and communities.
The planet that rules your eleventh house influences how you socialize and network with others and what kind of hopes and dreams you have for the future.
The Twelfth House: The House of Subconscious, Intuition, Spirituality, and Karma
The twelfth house is the house of subconscious, intuition, spirituality, and karma. It shows how you access your inner wisdom and intuition and how you deal with your hidden fears and weaknesses (shadow self). It also shows your relationship with the unseen realms and the divine through dreams, visions, and imagination.
The planet that rules your twelfth house influences how you express your spirituality and compassion and what kind of karmic debts or lessons you may have to face.
Final Words on Demystifying Astrology’s 12 Houses
The 12 houses of astrology are a powerful self-discovery tool. For looking at which zodiac sign and planets occupy each house in your birth chart, you can gain insights about what makes you tick, and how you relate to others.
And if you wish to go down the “rabbit hole,” you can also use the houses to see how monthly and annual planetary transits affect these 12 areas of your life.
Nonetheless, If you want to learn more about how the 12 houses of astrology apply to you personally, consider getting a birth chart analysis from a reputable professional astrologer.
When you give your birth details to an astrologer, they will cast a detailed birth chart for you. And just as important, they will interpret your birth chart and provide you with a detailed report. Although some websites will generate a free birth chart, you usually must decipher it yourself or pay for its interpretation.
Full Disclosure: I am not a professional astrologer, but I know one! Our local 2nd generation astrologer, Juliet Stephenson, offers in-depth interpreted birth charts for her private clients. You can send your inquiry for a professionally cast birth chart to Juliet at this email address AssaultUnicorn@proton.me.
Conclusion
We hope this blog post serves in demystifying what each of astrology’s 12 houses represent and what each house means for you. Thank you for reading!
FYI: For more on astrology’s 12 houses, check out our sister blog, Mystic Arts Tarot, for their post Yearly Overview with the 12 Houses of Astrology Tarot Spread.
Leave a Reply