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You've likely heard about the Twelve Houses. For many of us, horoscopes are the gateway into greater astrological curiosity. As we begin following them, we become more familiar with — and interested in — the many moving pieces of our birth charts. You've likely heard about signs and planets.
Each planet, asteroid, or celestial point exists within a House, and that placement offers invaluable insight not just about your own personality, but also how you coexist with the world around you. Moreover, the Houses are a roadmap for understanding your past, present, and future. As the planets in the sky move across these domains, different events — both tangible and emotional — are triggered. Each house is associated with a different sign. For instance, the Seventth House of Partnership is associated with Libra energy: Libra is the sign of relationships and is all about balance, love, and fairness, so it makes sense that it corresponds with partnerships.
If this all sounds rather extraordinary, well, it is. The Houses are truly what makes astrology so spectacular. Each one signifies a component of life, but none of these subsections exist within a silo: The Twelve Houses also operate as a single unit, a collective that comprises the entire 360-degree wheel. Their geometric rhythm is a symbolic representation of an individual's complete cosmology.
The birth chart is like a snapshot of the sky from our vantage point on Earth, taken at the exact moment you were born. This chart is divided into 12 segments, also known as the houses. The houses are where the action in the "movie of your life" takes place.
Each house of your chart is ruled by a different sign, depending on your time, date, and location of birth. This rulership is determined by which zodiac sign the cusp, or beginning point of a house, is intersecting with on the wheel (that's a bit advanced, so don't worry about this one too much!). Just know this: The houses are essentially what grounds astrology in earthly matters, as each one is associated with certain areas of life, such as career, home, and relationships.
The zodiac wheel begins with the first house, which represents where the sun was rising over the eastern horizon at your moment of birth and governs the self, the identity, and your first impression. The houses then move counterclockwise around the zodiacal wheel and ripple out to broader themes of family/home life, society, and beyond.
As the planets make their journey around the sun (and through our zodiac), they appear to be moving through the houses. For instance, if Venus, the planet of love was moving through Aries at your time of birth and happens to be in your 1st house of individuality, topics of self-love and confidence may arise repeatedly in your lifetime. Astrologers make chart interpretations based on the planets, signs, and houses in your chart.
The first six houses are known as the "personal houses" because they govern themes of daily life, community, and family, while the last six houses are considered "interpersonal houses" since they rule experiences such as relationships, travel, career, and friendships.
The 1st house is all about beginnings. It determines the origin of the self and identity, your outward appearance, and new endeavors. The zodiac sign that rules the cusp of the 1st house is known as the rising sign, or ascendant, of your chart. As such, this 1st house becomes very important with regards to how you present yourself to the world, how others might see you, and what sort of "first" impressions you make.
The 2nd house relates to your sense of stability, how you make money in the world, and also your immediate environment. It's a very physical and material realm that governs the five senses. The 2nd house is also associated with values, self-esteem and self-worth, income, and how we begin to feel at home in our bodies and environments.
The 3rd house rules all aspects of communication: thinking, talking, and your online persona. This tech-savvy sector rules media, electronic devices, and the ways we give and receive messages. Building upon the first house of identity and second house of material resources and value, this zodiac zone is about community, neighborhoods, and local travel. Also ruled by the 3rd house: siblings, neighbors and neighborhoods, libraries, and primary school years. It's how we first learn to articulate our ideas in the world.
The 4th house, also known as the house of home and roots, is the foundation of the whole chart. Situated at the bottom of the wheel, its topics include home, security, mothers and lineage, children, care, and how we feel at home and safe. The way you nurture others and your approach to self-care is also dictated by this sector.
The 5th house is all about self-expression, creativity, and celebration. This is a very fertile house in the sense that it rules the creation of all things—how we express ourselves in artistic and dramatic ways, as well as the literal creation of children. This house governs attention, play, the joys of romance and love, and arts such as theater, music, and painting.
The 6th house is all about service and health. Other 6th house topics include organization, daily routines and upkeep, fitness, self-care, diet/exercise, natural living, and being of service to other people and the planet. You can begin to see how the topics build upon each other, moving from selfhood and identity to expression to service. After the 6th house, the themes turn outward, toward the betterment of society and the care of the body.
The 7th house, situated directly across from the first house of identity, is all about relationships and other people that we come in contact with. In this realm are all partnerships (business and personal), contracts, marriages, and business exchanges. It's where we team up with others and get to know ourselves through our interactions and creating mutual give-and-take. Creating a balance of two forces is the goal of this house.
The 8th house is one of the more mysterious areas of the chart. It has to do with transformation via the birth-death-rebirth cycle, sex, deep bonding, and other people's money and energy (passive income, investments, inheritances, et al.). The 8th house is all about looking into the depths, sorting through energy and resources, and getting to know the self and others on a deep level. It's the zone of merging, where two become one, and is associated with reproduction and regeneration.
The 9th house is connected to expansive thinking and growth of all kinds including global travel, higher-level learning, philosophy, religion, belief systems, publishing, university teaching, as well as what we believe in (morals, ethics) and how we take risks and venture to various parts of the world, our minds, and our beings. While the 3rd house, which lies across from the 9th on the zodiacal wheel, is all about knowledge and information, this one is about wisdom, intuition, and the big picture.
The 10th house, located at the very top of the chart, is the most visible and public area of the zodiac. Traditions and institutional structures are ruled by the 10th house, as well as tradition and whatever legacy we are meant to leave in this world. This is the world's stage and how we're seen—our status and leadership. It's also about honors, achievements, fame, public reputation, as well as authorities, fathers, and fatherhood. The ruling sign of the 10th house cusp is also called the midheaven, and it can give astrologers a sense about your career path.
The 11th house governs all things related to large groups of people. It's also associated with the future and our hopes and ideals. Friendships, networks, teams, and collectives are associated with this part of the sky. Additionally, all of the things we associate with "Aquarian" such as originality, eccentricity, unexpected happenings or insights, inventions, astronomy, sci-fi, rebellion, and all things future-oriented. The 11th house is all about envisioning future possibilities, often with a group of likeminded people and possibly including a revolution.
The 12th house is the final realm on the zodiacal wheel. As you've probably already guessed, it builds upon the previous 11 houses and is associated with endings, the last stages of projects, old age, and surrender. Linked to the subconscious and the imagination, it can also reveal information about the afterlife and dream spaces. As one of the more hidden arenas in the chart, the 12th house rules spaces that are hidden or separated from society such as institutions, hospitals, jails, and retreats. It's also associated with the creative arts such as film, dance, and poetry.
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