The 12 Houses
Discover how the houses map different areas of your life experience
The House Wheel
Click on any house number to explore its meaning and significance in your birth chart.
Explore Each House
The first house represents your outer personality, physical appearance, and how you present yourself to the world. It's the mask you wear and your immediate reactions to life.
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Key Questions:
- How do I define myself?
- How do others see me?
- How do I approach new situations?
The second house governs your relationship with money, possessions, and what you value. It shows how you attract resources and what makes you feel secure.
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Key Questions:
- What do I truly value?
- How do I relate to money and possessions?
- What makes me feel secure?
The third house rules communication, learning, and your immediate environment. It includes relationships with siblings and neighbors, and how you process information.
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Key Questions:
- How do I communicate with others?
- How do I think and process information?
- What is my learning style?
The fourth house represents your home, family, and emotional security. It shows your roots, your relationship with parents, and what makes you feel safe and nurtured.
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Key Questions:
- What are my deepest roots?
- What does home mean to me?
- What is my emotional foundation?
The fifth house governs creativity, romance, and pleasure. It shows how you express yourself creatively, your relationship with children, and what brings you joy.
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Key Questions:
- What brings me genuine joy?
- How do I express my creativity?
- How do I like to have fun?
The sixth house rules daily routines, health, and service to others. It shows how you maintain your wellbeing and contribute through your work.
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Key Questions:
- How do I maintain my health?
- What are my daily routines?
- How do I serve others?
The seventh house represents partnerships and close relationships. It shows what you seek in a partner and how you relate to others on an equal footing.
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Key Questions:
- What do I seek in a partner?
- How do I relate to others?
- What do I project onto others?
The eighth house governs transformation, shared resources, and deep psychological processes. It shows how you experience profound change and merge with others.
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Key Questions:
- How do I transform and grow?
- What needs to die and be reborn?
- How do I merge with others?
The ninth house rules philosophy, higher learning, and long-distance travel. It shows your beliefs, what gives your life meaning, and how you expand your horizons.
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Key Questions:
- What do I believe in?
- How do I expand my horizons?
- What gives my life meaning?
The tenth house represents your career, public image, and life direction. It shows your ambitions, achievements, and how you're seen by the world.
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Key Questions:
- What is my life calling?
- How do I want to be remembered?
- What is my role in society?
The eleventh house governs friendships, groups, and your hopes for the future. It shows your role in communities and your vision for a better world.
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Key Questions:
- What are my dreams for the future?
- How do I contribute to my community?
- Who are my people?
The twelfth house rules the subconscious, spirituality, and what's hidden. It shows your connection to the divine, your need for solitude, and patterns you must release.
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Key Questions:
- What is hidden in my subconscious?
- How do I connect with spirit?
- What do I need to release?
House Systems
Different house systems are methods for dividing the birth chart into 12 houses. Each system has its own mathematical approach, and astrologers often have preferences based on tradition, location, or personal experience.
Advantages:
- +Standard in modern astrology
- +Widely available in software
- +Large body of interpretive material
Considerations:
- -Can be problematic near the poles
- -Unequal house sizes
- -Mathematical complexity
Advantages:
- +Simple and elegant
- +Works at all latitudes
- +Traditional approach
- +Clear boundaries
Considerations:
- -Ascendant may not be house 1 cusp
- -Different from modern conventions
- -Less precise timing
Advantages:
- +Works at all latitudes
- +Equal-sized houses
- +Simple to understand
- +Good for beginners
Considerations:
- -MC may not be on 10th house cusp
- -Less traditional
- -Different planetary emphasis
Advantages:
- +Emphasizes individuality
- +Works well for mid-latitudes
- +Strong Ascendant focus
Considerations:
- -Problems near poles
- -Less interpretive material
- -Smaller user base
For most people, Placidus is a good starting point as it has the most interpretive material available and is standard in Western astrology.
If you're interested in traditional astrology or live in extreme latitudes, Whole Sign houses offer simplicity and universal applicability.
The best approach is to generate your chart using different systems and see which resonates most with your life experience. Many astrologers use multiple systems for different purposes.
Your rising sign and how you appear to others. Marks the beginning of the 1st house.
Opposite the Ascendant, represents relationships and what you seek in others. Marks the 7th house cusp.
Your highest point, career, and public image. Typically marks the 10th house cusp.
Opposite the MC, represents your roots, home, and private life. Marks the 4th house cusp.
See Your Houses
Calculate your birth chart to see which planets fall in each of your houses