Moving Through the Astrological Houses

Astrological houses were traditionally called “places” because that’s exactly what they are. Houses are places, environments, and scenes in life. This is where stories unfold, situations develop, and action occurs.

Houses and which bodies are inside them are constantly shifting. The wheel of the chart continues to rotate as each planetary body moves through the sky. This shows us that the houses are more than stationary; they are transitions.

Every planet will move through every house at some point every day, similar to how people move through the rooms in their house each day.

Even if your natal chart has a house without a planet in it, a so-called “empty house,” that house still has a planet ruling it, and that planet is the boss of that house.

There are three traditional sources of meaning for the houses, so let’s get technical for a moment.

The first is angularity or angular triads. The angular triads consisted of three houses surrounding each of the pivot points of the chart: the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth houses. Each triad has the angular planet at the center, with the house on one side rising up to the angle and with the house on the other side falling away from the angle. Thus, the triads contain a house that is pivoting and angular, a house that is succedent and rising up, and a house that is cadent and declining. The succedent houses are the second, fifth, eighth, and eleventh. The cadent houses are the third, sixth, ninth, and twelfth.

The second is configuration to the rising sign. The configuration of a house to the Ascendant determines whether the house is good or bad. Traditional astrology acknowledges that some situations in life are more encouraging or challenging and that it’s importance to recognize the merits within both of these. Good houses make Ptolemaic aspects to the Ascendant, while bad houses make no major aspect to the Ascendant. Good houses tend to include significations that are positive or beneficial to the native’s life, while bad houses in aversion to the Ascendant tend to include significations that are negative or detrimental to the native’s life. Houses that do not aspect and are averse to the Ascendant are the second, sixth, eighth, and twelfth.

The third is the planetary joys. The planetary joys scheme shows a house in the chart where a planet rejoices, where they have the most fun bases on their definition of fun because they have the best environment to do their usual business. Each of the seven traditional planets have a preferred house because this is where they are most able to do the things they are inclined to do. The place where a planet has its joy has similar significations to that planet which make it joyful for that planet to be there. 

For a look into each planet, check out this blog I wrote as a primer on the planetary people.

Here is my version of the astrological houses chart with the Hellenistic names and planetary joys, aptly titled “Moving Through the Astrological Houses” because of the transitionary and always shifting nature of these places.

First House: The Helm. When the Sun is this house, visually you will witness the sunrise. This is the eastern horizon where Earth meets the sky.

Every planet rises from this horizon, and the Sun emerges here each morning. This is where you will find your Rising sign or Ascendant, and the planet that rules this house is said to be the captain of your ship. The helm of your chart shows where your direction is pointing, the most unfiltered “you” part of the entire chart. This is where you became an incarnate being, where the first breath of life is taken. You find the purest sense of self here.

The Sun can be in any house, but the Ascendant and Rising will always be in the First House. Often in modern times, significations for the Ascendant are given to the Sun. Horoscopes used to be read for your Ascendant in ancient times because this is the most accurate and authentic representation of you, your body, and your life in the chart. Horoscopes shifted to Sun signs in modern times due to the Sun being easier to locate. It only requires the date of birth to know the Sun sign, where it requires the date, time, and location of birth to know the Ascendant.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like your body as it moves through the world, seeing yourself in the mirror, feeling a strong sense of identity, or observing photos of yourself.

When we move through this house, we are Identifying // you, self, life, body, appearance, physical vessel, vitality, personality, identity, inception, beginnings // the joy of Mercury who goes both ways as a body and a spirit

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Second House: Gate of Hades. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness dawn when the darkness is starting to become light before sunrise.

This house does not aspect the Ascendant, meaning there can be a struggle to connect with this part of your chart. Everything that falls in this place is immediately outside of yourself and the things that most closely surround you, such as the very literal and material things that you have. You find your possessions and things you find worthy of possessing here, along with the deeper level of seeing yourself as a possession that you find worthy or not. This is also where money is found, as the material way that we buy things that we require to survive.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like your closet, your bank account, the things you have to pack up when you move, or all of the boxes of things that never got unpacked from your last move.

When we move through this house, we are Valuing // possessions, livelihood, money, income, intake, assets, resources, “things,” security, self confidence, self worth // no planet rejoices here

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Third House: Goddess. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the darkness begin to shift slightly.

This house makes the sextile aspect to the Ascendant, meaning this environment provides support to you. When you interface with something or someone regularly enough that they are a part of your daily routine, that can be found here. This is what builds your perception of the immediate world around you. We see our thoughts and mental processes here as the background noise to our regular operating. This is the nature we exist within, and this can include family members who shaped our earliest formed habits or the environment where we live. These experiences are expected and reliable, and they make up your sense of spacial awareness.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like your car, your favorite radio station or podcast or newspaper, your neighborhood, or your most frequented places like the grocery, farmer’s market, post office, and prayer altar.

When we move through this house, we are Perceiving // relatives, siblings, neighborhood, commuting, local environment, comfort zone, habits, rituals, behaviors, regular thoughts, early education // the joy of the Moon who travels quickly and changes often

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Fourth House: Subterranean. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the sky at its darkest point.

This house makes the square aspect to the Ascendant, meaning you can find friction in this environment. As the visually darkest part of the chart, this is a part of ourselves that we keep from the world. This can be a painful place because ties to family can feel constricting, supportive, or some mix of the two depending on your upbringing. Much of this place is easier to keep hidden, but there is potential for deep healing here when light is brought to it. This is how we were nurtured and how we were raised. What happens at home often stays at home because people can let it all hang loose when they’re in private. This can be seen as the parents, but specifically the father because land was traditionally passed down through paternal lines.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like your literal home right now, the home where you grew up, cemeteries or burial grounds, photographs and memories from your childhood or from generations long before you.

When we move through this house, we are Hiding // home, property, privacy, family, ancestry, childhood, lineage, heritage, roots, foundations, parents (father) // no planet rejoices here

~

Fifth House: Good Fortune. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the stars brightly shining and popping against the dark sky.

This house makes the trine aspect to the Ascendant, meaning there is harmony for you in this place. This is where you go to feel good, just for the sake of feeling good. We find pleasure in creation, whether that’s creating a new work of art or a new human life. Here holds all of the ooey gooey deliciousness that we want to experience, and this can feel very indulgent. Here is the reminder that life deserves to be playful and full of laughter. Everyone may have their individual purpose, but the purpose of life is to enjoy it. The deep pleasure that comes from full-bodied happiness deserves to be luxuriously relished.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like your creation station for whatever you like to create, a date night, an art museum, a concert, or a scene of sexual excitement.

When we move through this house, we are Enjoying // children, birth, creation & creativity, romance, pleasure, interests, art, expression, enjoyment, entertainment, sex for fun // the joy of Venus who loves to indulge

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Sixth House: Bad Fortune. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the darkness settling in for the night.

This house does not aspect the Ascendant, meaning there can be a struggle to connect with this part of your chart. This is where you go to do all of the thing that are required to be human. We must eat to sustain a body, work to afford food and shelter, and sleep to rest enough to do it all over again every day. Maintenance is not the most glamorous thing, but it’s a necessary part of life. When these things are not being maintained, your body will feel it. Doing too much without proper care and rest can lead to burnout. The body cannot sustain being overworked and undernourished, and nourishment is more than food. Human is a noun, but human-ing as a verb is found here.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like your kitchen, your bed, your gym, or your workplace.

When we move through this house, we are Maintaining // service, injury, illness, fitness, labor, work, life chores, pets, coworkers, unions, physical health // the joy of Mars who gets shit done that has to be done

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Seventh House: Setting. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the sunset. This is the western horizon where Earth meets the sky.

This house makes the opposition aspect to the Ascendant, meaning there can be a push and pull energy when engaging with this place. At some point, we must relate with others. We learn more about ourselves when we step outside of the self and meet the other. As much as we can know about ourselves as an individual, we discover a new version of the self when we become a partner and enter a binding contract with another person. We find all types of intimate connections here, whether that’s personal, professional, or anywhere on the continuum. This is also where we find open enemies because that’s a version of a contractual and established relationship. Those push and pull feelings can go back and forth when trying to work through something with a person.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like a wedding ceremony, a meeting to sign a business deal, a bitter look from across the function, or a long conversation about where a relationship is heading.

When we move through this house, we are Connecting // spouse, marriage, commitments, companions, one on one interactions, close friendships, contractual relationships, clients, business partners, open enemies, sex for intimacy // no planet rejoices here

~

Eighth House: Inactive. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the golden hour light of the Sun approaching the horizon during dusk.

This house does not aspect the Ascendant, meaning there can be a struggle to connect with this part of your chart. While seemingly a mysterious place in the chart, it helps to understand that it opposes the place of our resources. This is where we must share things with others and where our things join with others’ things. There can be negative attachments to relying on others, but it would be unnatural to expect independence at all times. The things we share often exist longer than we will, a reckoning that must happen when someone is no longer in our lives but their things still are, whether those things can be held or can only be felt.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like therapy, a lawyer’s office working to split up belongings, writing a check for child support, or sitting next to a grave and missing someone dearly.

When we move through this house, we are Sharing // inheritance, debt, taxes, shame, trauma, grudges, grief, loss, shared resources, shared orgasm, sex for exchange // no planet rejoices here

~

Ninth House: God. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the Sun’s warmest rays.

This house makes the trine aspect to the Ascendant, meaning there is harmony for you in this place. This is where you recognize that you exist in a very diverse world where most of the people don’t look like you, think like you, or live like you. I often describe this house as the place where you realize how small you are. There is a whole world of people who exist according to a different set of moral rules than you, for better and for worse. These differences make everyone unique, and these philosophical divides provide us perspective and context.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like a university classroom, a spiritual pilgrimage, your passport full of stamps, a shelf overflowing with books you’ve collected, or the never ending book project you’ve been waiting to publish.

When we move through this house, we are Contextualizing // journeys, long distance travel, philosophy, ethics, law, religion, astrology, divination, publishing, teaching, higher education // the joy of the Sun who illuminates everything

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Tenth House: Midheaven. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the highest light shining overhead.

This house makes the square aspect to the Ascendant, meaning you can find friction in this environment. Being seen can be uncomfortable because it’s putting you in the spotlight. This is where we are seen and how we are known by the outside world. When someone meets you, this is how they remember you. When someone recognizes you, this is what they remember about you. This is visibility in its highest, brightest, and loudest form. Although it can feel exposing to put yourself out there, you can see yourself in a new light when your greatest potential is allowed to emerge. This can be seen as the parents, but specifically the mother because this is traditionally the parent who is most obviously a parent due to being visibly pregnant.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like how you’re introduced to someone new, a conference where you give a lecture, an award for your accomplishments, or an announcement about what you’re working on and towards.

When we move through this house, we are Showing // reputation, public image, professional status, occupation, social notoriety, advancement, ambition, authority, legacy, visibility, parents (mother) // no planet rejoices here

~

Eleventh House: Good Spirit. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the Sun’s light gaining strength in the sky.

This house makes the sextile aspect to the Ascendant, meaning this environment provides support to you. In resonant community, we are able to thrive. We see our values shared and amplified with offerings from others, and we come together for a greater cause. This is where the groups you belong to become their own beings. Each friend group has its own energy, just how each organization has its own agenda. The focus here is on the networks that tie everyone together and what we all bring to the collective table. As the metaphorical potluck in the chart, we experience more support because of what everyone contributes.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like a birthday party with all of the friends in attendance, a protest or march with more people than you can fathom, an organizational meeting about the next direction, or the group chat.

When we move through this house, we are Belonging // hopes, goals, alliances, audience, networks, community, gatherings, friend groups, organizations, social support, collective vision // the joy of Jupiter who abundantly brings people together

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Twelfth House: Bad Spirit. When the Sun is in this house, visually you will witness the hazy morning light of a freshly risen Sun.

This house does not aspect the Ascendant, meaning there can be a struggle to connect with this part of your chart. We all need a place to be alone, whether that’s an actual place or the quiet spot inside your mind. Despite having ominous overtones of being a dark or bad place, there is peace here. Often misunderstood, this is a place where you navigate the liminal spaces that exist in between. Between life and death, between awake and asleep, between reality and illusion. You must be delicate with yourself when traversing this space and intentional to not get stuck there for too long. There is a tender vulnerability found here that cannot be accessed elsewhere and requires diving into the depths to fully understand.

This house as physical locations/situations can look like hospitals, prisons, a quiet and meditative solace, or your dreamland place.

When we move through this house, we are Processing // suffering, solitude, subconscious, liminality, “the in between,” dreams, reflection, meditation, sabotage, hidden enemies & dangers, mental & emotional health // the joy of Saturn who prefers to be alone

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I hope this helps you orient towards the houses as places of transition that we constantly move through in life. Even if empty, we all have all twelve, and they all hold wisdom waiting for you.