The 12 Houses
A deep dive into the 12 houses of your chart.
Hi everyone!
We are returning to the astrology basics in this newsletter by going over the 12 houses of your chart. I mainly wanted to do this topic, because I want you to have a firm understanding of the 12 houses before we can move on to more complex topics I have planned for the future.
I personally find the houses to be way more interesting and easier to understand than the signs. The zodiac signs can sometimes be too abstract, like these personality traits that people may or may not have, while the houses describe very concrete areas of your life, like your home, your job, or your bank account. The houses just make sense to me! I know a lot of people don’t feel this way though, and oftentimes the houses can add a layer of confusion when interpreting your own chart. Therefore, I’m going to first go over what the houses even are, before I break down what all 12 of them mean. If you are looking for more information on astrology basics, I go over what the houses, signs, planets, and aspects mean in my book.
First though, here are my monthly recommendations.
Book: How We Live is How We Die by Pema Chodron
Death is a topic that needs to be talked about more often, and I find that reading books about it really helps me to feel more at peace. That’s why I was immediately drawn to this book by the Buddhist teacher, Pema Chodron. She writes about how you experience little deaths throughout every single day, and how everything in life is transitory. No one feeling or situation lasts forever, so in understanding that, you are preparing yourself for the process of death and being born again.
Mindfulness Activity: The Five Minute Journal
I got gifted this journal for my birthday, and I love how it’s quick and easy. This journal literally takes 30 seconds out of your day, and gets you to check in and practice gratitude for the little moments in your life, which you usually wouldn’t appreciate.
TV show: The Traitors
For anyone who loves shows like Survivor or The Mole, you would love this. This show brings past reality stars together in a castle in Scotland, and three people out of the cast are randomly selected to be the “traitors.” It’s up to the rest of them to use their detective skills to guess correctly who the traitors are. Available to watch on Peacock.
Okay, on to our main topic.
To kick things off, what are the houses? When you’re looking at your birth chart, you will see a circle that is divided into 12 individual pie slices. Each of these slices is called a “house.” Each house rules a specific domain of your life. Sometimes a house can cover more than one topic though. For example, the 8th house of your chart is associated with inner healing and self improvement, but it also has to do with money and shared finances.
To best look at the houses, you need to pull up your birth chart in a circular format. I recommend using the websites astro-seek.com or astro.com or the app “Chani.” I also recommend switching the chart to whole sign houses (see image below). It’s so much easier to associate one sign with one house, especially when you get into applying transits to your chart.
Above pic - the easiest way of seeing the houses is by looking at your chart in the circular format.
Above - not a helpful way of looking at your chart. You can’t easily see the houses here. I would avoid using Cafe Astrology or Co-Star to look at your chart.
Above - how to set your chart to whole sign houses.
To rewind a little, if we’re thinking about a planet being in a specific sign, like having Venus in Aquarius, the sign is showing how you express the qualities of that particular planet. So Venus being in the sign of Aquarius means that you may not be so comfortable (Aquarius not affectionate themes) expressing physical affection or sentimental words to people (Venus themes), and instead you may show you care (Venus theme) by coming up with helpful solutions to people’s problems and helping them to strategize for their future (Aquarius themes).
To contrast, the house in which a planet is located shows where you can best develop the qualities of that planet. The house represents the specific area of your life where that particular planet can reach its full potential.
Sign = how
House = where
Houses are essentially where the action in your life unfolds. Going back to the example of Venus in Aquarius, let’s look at how those Venusian qualities will manifest different depending on what house it falls into. Having Venus in Aquarius in the 9th house could mean taking an interest in alternative spiritual beliefs, like astrology, or needing independence when it comes to your learning process. Maybe the structured school environment isn’t the easiest for this placement. Meanwhile, having Venus in Aquarius in the 5th house means that you may be attracted to kind of quirky people when dating, or maybe the type of creative work you produce is unlike anything that has been done before - very unique and innovative.
It’s also important to note that there is no such thing as an empty house. Even if you don’t have planets in a house, every house is ruled by a sign. Refer to the diagram below to see what I’m talking about. The sign ruling a house will also show your approach to that area of your life, and where you express the qualities of that sign. For example, having Virgo rule your 4th house means that you might be very meticulous about your living space. You like to have everything a certain way, and you may be good about keeping your home tidy.
Above, you can see that even though there are no planets in the 12th house of this chart, Aquarius is the sign ruling this house. It’s certainly not “empty.”
Now that we’re clear on the basics, let’s go through key themes that are associated with each house. When you have planets clustered in a certain house of your chart, the themes of that house become a bit more prominent in your life and maybe you even want to make a career out of that house’s topics. It may also be that important life lessons or challenges keep popping up in your life that involve the topics of that house.
Everyone will experience the energy and themes of all the 12 houses throughout their life, due to transits and progressions moving through the houses. So it’s important to familiarize yourself with the meanings of all 12, because every single one will be relevant to you at some point. Whether that’s the moon moving through one of these houses for a 2 day period every single month, or Saturn spending 3 years in a house, you will repeatedly feel the themes of a particular house pop up.
Also, when looking at a solar return chart, you will see how certain houses are emphasized for a specific year, due to having either one planet or several planets falling in that house. If you know what annual profection year you’re in (more info on this coming soon), the themes of that house will stand out for a 12 month period. For example, I just turned 31. The age 31 for everyone is an 8th house profection year, so if you’re 31, you could read the 8th house description below and understand that those 8th house themes will be more prominent than usual for the next year of your life, until you turn 32. The below information is important to use not only when interpreting your birth chart, but also when doing predictive work.
1st house: You can think of the 1st house as embodying your literal self. The ascendant (aka your rising sign) is always found in the 1st house. The 1st represents your appearance, your physical body, and how you come across to the world. The sign ruling the 1st and any planets falling into this house describe what is immediately obvious about you to other people. In addition, the 1st house embodies your personal style, or your brand image if you’re someone who has a public or online persona. It speaks to your identity, and is thought to be the lens through which you approach everything else in your life. So someone with a Leo ruled 1st house (aka Leo rising) will inject their personal creativity into all areas, or they will want to find ways to relate every experience back to themselves. Meanwhile a Virgo rising needs to feel things out first and have a set game plan before jumping into anything new. I also associate the 1st house with self discovery, so spending time alone, really getting to know yourself and what your unique personal goals and interests are. It’s about asserting yourself too, so learning to be more confident in what you have to say and offer the world. Finally, the 1st house also concerns your body and health - it’s your vitality.
2nd house: the 2nd house has a lot to do with the hard earned money you make from your job, as well as self starting business ventures. It is very much a career oriented part of the chart, and it’s about having greater control over your own projects and tasks at work. It’s about recognizing the value and skills you bring to your job, and can describe how much you think you’re worth and deserve to be paid. So in a way, this house also has to do with building greater self confidence, but specifically in a work setting. In addition, the 2nd house speaks to freelance work, starting your own company, or making money off of a side hobby. Again, this ties back to the theme of having greater control at your job by striking out on your own and having more of a say over your earning potential. Outside of your career, the 2nd house has to do with the material items that you value. It can be about shopping and feeling connected to what you own. The 2nd can also describe your spending habits and your overall attitude towards money.
3rd house: The 3rd house is about everyday communication, such as meetings at work, phone calls, text messages, etc. It basically describes how you get your ideas across to other people. Easily digestible writing or speaking work falls into the realm of the 3rd house too, so think like podcasts, newsletters, social media content, quick presentations. The 3rd house is about taking your knowledge and finding ways to share it in an everyday setting. It can also be about picking up new information on a number of different topics, but not going too in depth on one single thing (that’s more of a 9th house theme). This house also speaks to your neighborhood, and can describe the interactions you have with your neighbors or other people who are in your immediate vicinity and who you see on a regular basis. Think like the relationship you have with your dry cleaners, the people who live next door to you, the barista at your favorite coffee shop, or friends who live in your city. Short term travel falls into the realm of the 3rd house too, so quick day trips or taking a weekend or even a few days to go somewhere not too far away. It’s also about just getting out of the house in general to take care of errands, attend events in your city, or explore nature. Finally, the 3rd house is about sibling relationships too and can describe how you may feel about your siblings.
4th house: The 4th house speaks to home, family relationships, and your ancestry. First, it can describe your physical living space and what you need to feel comfortable and safe. It can embody things like your attitude towards having roommates, or in what type of environment you feel the most at home. The 4th house also speaks to your home life growing up as a child, as well as how you establish a home and lay down roots for yourself as an adult. In addition, the 4th is about family relationships, and more specifically the relationship you have with your mother or maternal like caretaker. It can definitely be your overall attitude towards your family life too, describing why you may either feel super close or more distant from your family. The 4th house also points to your inner world, and like I said above, what makes you feel the most safe and secure. The 4th can show your family ancestry as well, and can signify both trauma and gifts that may have been passed down through generations. I frequently notice that people with natural psychic abilities that they have inherited from family members often have several planets in their 4th house.
5th house: The 5th house has several different connotations. First and foremost, I think of it in terms of personal creativity and self esteem. It describes how much you believe in yourself, and how comfortable you are opening up and sharing your unique personality and talents with the world. The 5th house is also associated with the fun hobbies and interests you do on your own, outside of what everyone else might be doing. Creative talents and passion projects fall into the realm of the 5th house. It is work that showcases your true self, and where you’re injecting a little bit of your personality into it. The 5th is also about learning to find your voice and develop confidence in it. On another note, this house also has to do with dating, romance, and sexuality. It’s about how you express your feelings to people you like, or how tuned in your are to your sexual desires. The 5th can very much describe how comfortable you are with dating and being your full self around other people. Finally, the 5th has to do with pregnancy and children. It can show your attitude towards having kids, like if you want them or not, and it can play a role in describing your fertility. The 5th house can also describe the qualities your children possess themselves, as well as the type of relationship you have with them.
6th house: the 6th house concerns all of the mundane, necessary aspects of everyday life. The 6th is about all of the little habits you do on a daily basis that eventually add up to you having greater success in the long term. It is the part of the chart that is concerned with work, routine, and physical health. When it comes to the work aspect of this house, you can think of the 6th as work that you do for other people - literally work that serves others. Think client facing work, hospitality jobs, or healing professions. The 6th also encompasses coworkers and employees and the relationship you have with these people. While the 6th does relate to your job, I want to note that it’s not a house that is about huge career advancement. It’s more concerned with finding deeper meaning in the work that you do, and making adjustments to your work schedule to boost your productivity. The 6th house is very much about routine, and can speak to how easy or challenging it is for you to stick to a structured schedule. Another big topic of the 6th house is your physical health and how you take care of your body. This house of your chart is concerned with exercise, nutrition, and the little self care routines you do on a regular basis to feel good. Wellness and holistic health practices would also fall into the realm of the 6th too, as well as doctor’s appointments and addressing any bodily concerns. Finally, the 6th is associated with small animals, like a dog, cat, etc.
7th house: I consider the 7th house to be the number one house for relationships. Whereas the 5th house speaks to dating and sex specifically, the 7th house is more about committed, one-on-one partnerships. This part of your chart speaks to how you relate to others in close relationships, whether that be platonic or romantic. Big relationship milestones also fall into the realm of the 7th, like marriage or moving in together for example. Business partnerships and collaborations are associated with this house too, as well as close friendships and other types of one-on-one interactions. The 7th house describes how you interact with people in this more intimate setting, as well as your overall attitude towards commitment and partnership. The 7th also describes what type of people you repeatedly attract into your life. These close relationships will usually mirror a quality that you need to embrace within yourself - traits that might be lying dormant within you are reflected back to you through other people. Finally, I think of the 7th house as how much you rely on other people and look to others for direction. People with a lot of planets in the 7th often are able to better understand themselves through comparing their lives to others or getting advice from people. Receiving feedback about themselves through relationships is actually so necessary, it’s like other people show you who you can fully become.
8th house: The 8th house takes the topic of relationships and goes one step further with it. It’s about sharing the messier sides of your life with someone, like opening up about your emotions and being vulnerable, as well as learning to split finances. The 8th also has to do with self improvement, and it is often through intimate relationships that the most inner healing and transformation occurs. For instance, relationship conflict is brought up so that you can reflect on your own behaviors and reactions. In addition, the 8th embodies topics that society may deem to be off limits or taboo - subjects that just aren’t openly discussed, like money, sex, mental health, etc. With planets in the 8th, there is a desire to understand why people are the way they are, and there might be a fascination with the darker side of human nature and the psychology behind things. The 8th house is also about staying strong in the face of crisis, and having the tools and wisdom you’ve learned through your own emotional hardships to help with other people’s problems. Therapists often have 8th house placements. Going back to the topic of money, the 8th house speaks to financial favors from other people, and money you’re not working so hard to earn, like streams of passive income, investments, or an inheritance. It also concerns bigger purchases or needing to take out a loan. Buying a home, for example, is very much an 8th house activity.
9th house: The 9th house is all about broadening your horizons, learning new information, and being open to considering beliefs and opinions that differ from your own. Foreign travel and other cultures are associated with the 9th. The type of travel signified by this house in your chart isn’t touristy, quick travel though, and it has more to do with immersing yourself in another culture, learning a new language, or even feeling at home in a different country. The 9th is also associated with spirituality, and I don’t just mean religion. Astrology, manifestation, and any other type of spiritual practice fall into this house - the 9th is about figuring out what your unique belief system is. In addition, this part of your chart is concerned with higher education, like going to university or getting a specialized degree, or even just completing necessary training for your job. This house can describe your approach to educating yourself too, and can speak to whether you thrive in a formal education environment, or if you’re better off being self taught. The 9th has to do with writing, publishing, teaching and public speaking too, as well as any other medium that helps you to share more complex knowledge with people. The writing and speaking associated with the 9th is more about bigger picture topics, rather than the everyday style of communication we associate with the 3rd house. You can think of the 9th as going all in on one subject matter and becoming an expert in that field.
10th house: the 10th house encompasses your career and life calling. Whereas the 2nd is about money and self starting work and the 6th is about the work you do for other people, the 10th house is about receiving recognition at work and finding your unique career niche. It speaks to making these more major decisions regarding your job, as well as what you want to be working towards in the long term. It is the bigger picture at work, rather than the small, everyday tasks you have to handle. The 10th isn’t solely about career though, and as I mentioned above it can be about a life calling that you don’t do to make money. I had a reading with a woman who has the moon in the 10th, and she prides herself on being an amazing mother (moon theme). That’s the role in the world she identifies with the most. You can also think of the 10th house as the mark you leave on the world - the 10th very much describes your public image and how you handle leadership positions. If you were wondering about how a celebrity is perceived by their audience for example, you would look to their 10th house and Midheaven (if it’s in another house/sign). Finally, I also associate the 10th house with your father or father figure, like what characteristics define him, as well as your overall perception of him.
11th house: the 11th house is mainly about your social network. This part of your chart speaks to friends, group gatherings, and having a greater sense of community for yourself. The 11th also describes what type of friend you are, as well as what type of friends you may attract. The 11th can be thought of as your overall attitude towards friendship too. While the 11th has a lot to do with friends, it is also about who you know in general. It’s often associated with pushing yourself out of your comfort to form new connections, or being acquaintances with a lot of people, even if you aren’t super close to them. Connecting people together that you know and taking initiative in organizing group gatherings would fall into the realm of the 11th too. In addition, the 11th can be your audience or cultivating a community around your work. I definitely associate fans with the 11th. Also, specific causes or communities you’re involved in would be associated with this house, so wanting to get involved in community service or being passionate about donating to a specific group. Finally, the 11th house embodies those lucky break opportunities you receive, and people supporting you in reaching your goals. It’s very much concerned with your bigger hopes and dreams for the future.
12th house: the 12th house is the house of solitude and taking moments to be by yourself to reflect and recharge. The 12th can be about having much needed time alone in order to focus on your own hobbies, but it can also mean feeling isolated from others. Mental health is a big 12th house theme, and is often about the emotions you keep hidden from both yourself and other people. The 12th is also associated with self undoing, so think self sabotaging mindsets or patterns you keep engaging in even if you’re aware that they’re not the best for you. On a more positive note, the 12th house embodies spiritual practices, like quiet meditation or journaling to help you feel more centered and at peace internally. Intuition, dreams, psychic abilities, and strong gut feelings also fall under the realm of the 12th. This part of your chart is a lot about feeling connected to a bigger picture in life, and is another house associated with being of service to people (the 6th being the other one), but more so in an emotional way - like giving advice or being compassionate to others. Politicians often have 12th house placements, because they’re dealing with problems of the bigger collective. On another note, the 12th is concerned with enemies, so encountering people who you thought you could trust but then later finding out they didn’t have your best interests at heart. However, through these types of relationships you’re realizing how something you did or didn’t say may have caused that sort of dynamic. It goes back to the ways in which you might self sabotage without even knowing it. The 12th can be about loss, grief, learning to let go, and encountering setbacks too, so it’s definitely not the easiest part of the chart. In addition, longer hospital stays or extended illnesses are areas I associate with the 12th house. Finally, large animals fall into the domain of the 12th, like a horse for example. It’s interesting how you can tie some of these 12th themes together, like how a good activity for coping with depression (12th house mental health theme) can be by taking care of a horse (12th house large animal theme).
That’s all on the houses for today, but definitely keep this newsletter as a resource to refer back to for future newsletters!
Excellent! Thank you!
THIS IS AMAZING -- thank you for your service Alice 🥺👏👏 You broke it down so beautifully. Will definitely be sending this to my clients as a resource!!