The following delineations present general hints about how positive influences in each house may be described.
1ST - Planetary activity promises an enthusiastic and energetic period for. You feel good about yourself and make a good impression on others. Feel free to ask for favors, initiate new ventures, or pursue a romantic conquest.
2ND - This appears to be a promising period for you financially. You may reap a windfall of sorts or gain substantially from an existing venture. This is also an opportune time to make changes to your asset portfolio, or to initiate a new financial venture. If you were thinking of a major purchase, this is the time.
3RD - This cycle highlights your relationships to relatives, neighbors, co-workers, and brothers and sisters. Use this wonderful opportunity to send them a card or a message, and to chat with your neighbors and people in your place of employment. These little gestures will be appreciated by everyone. Meanwhile, look forward to all sorts of pleasant experiences in the days ahead. They will reinforce your optimism. An important call or message, or job interview, you were waiting for will come through.
4TH - Planetary activity favors home, property, and domestic matters. It is an excellent time to plan something nice with your entire family. This will reinforce family ties and unity. It is also an opportune period to pursue real estate affairs or to make additions to your home. You may even use the energy from the planets to follow through with a resolution about some aspect of your life.
5TH - This may be the cycle you were waiting for. It is an ideal time to strengthen existing romantic ties, or to pursue a new love. If you were procrastinating about a speculative deal or a creative personal project, do it now, while luck is on your side. Meanwhile, plan something nice with your children.
6TH - Your health should be sound and your energy level high during this period. It is an ideal time to attend to all those household chores and personal projects you had pushed aside. If you were thinking about a pet for the children, you may go ahead and add a new member to your family.
7TH - This period highlights your marriage and existing business partnerships. It is also a promising period for you socially. Use this opportunity to strengthen your marital bonds and business associations. If you were thinking of having some friends over for a party, you should arrange one during this cycle. It is guaranteed to be a success.
8TH - This period favors joint finances and resources. If you are already involved in business dealings with others, you are likely to accrue tangible benefits from it now. Or, if you were considering a joint financial venture with others, this is time to go ahead with it. Meanwhile, your magnetism is on the rise. You can strengthen an existing bond or attract someone new. And if you were contemplating an important change in some aspect of your life, initiate it yourself during this cycle - or it may be forced on you later.
9TH - This cycle favors publications, advertising, legal matters, and affairs involving foreigners or distant lands. It is an ideal time to take a vacation or to participate in an expedition. Meanwhile, planetary energies during this period are illuminating and inspirational. You may feel an urge to initiate an imaginative project, to write poetry, or to participate in an experience that will enrich you spiritually.
10TH- This cycle highlights your career, profession, reputation, and direction in life. Some of your major goals and ambitions may materialize during the days ahead. Your superiors are inclined to show appreciation for your past efforts. If you were hoping for a promotion or a salary increase, these may come through. Planetary activity also favors positions with the government, a corporation, or in an activity that involves the public. If you were thinking of a career change, you should pursue your opportunities during this cycle when the planets are on your side.
11TH- Many of your hopes and wishes will come true in the days ahead. The cycle highlights your circle of friends, and benefits and opportunities through associations, groups, and organizations. If you are not a member yet, but were thinking of joining a professional or social organization, or even a health club, this is a good time to proceed with these plans. You should also find the time to renew and strengthen your ties with friends and co-members during this period.
12TH- This is an opportune time to make plans for a new beginning in some aspect of your life. Planetary activity supports such a change, and will work behind the scenes in your favor. If you were experiencing confining or restricting circumstances lately, breathe easier, for you will be released. A “lost” friend, a former love, or someone important from your past may decide to surprise you.
Short description
Short symbolical meanings of the houses
First House
Dawn. Self. Physical body. A change from thinking to being. The division between mind (houses above the horizon) and body (houses below the horizon). The experience of life. The result of what we have managed to convey from the world of ideas, plans, and commitments. What remains when new ideas and impulses encounter reality. What overflows the status quo. A direct indication of how much we are able to accept.
What others see in us. The way we come across. Persona. Head. Identity. The mask and facade we wear. The fresh exchange between self and others. News.
The 1st house marks the division between the upper and lower houses, between the mind and the body. If the upper houses show what is going on in our minds, the lower houses refer to our bodies - the experience of life. The first house shows the result of what we managed to bring across from the world of ideas, plans, and commitments. It’s what remains when our new idea and impulse meet our reality. It is what overflows the status quo. It is a direct indication of how much we are able to accept.
Second House
Material resources. Substance. Self-possession. Self-esteem. Values. Money and movable goods. The new body or what is drawn forth in response to new ideas. Reaction to novelty and new experiences. Tangible change in life due to new direction. How we adapt. How we own, possess, or embody things. Owning up to new ideas.
The 2nd house is the reaction of our life and environment to whatever was new in the 1st. It has to do with how our life changes because of, or in response to, this new energy. It has to do with how we adapt to, possess, or have something.
Third House
Communication. Thinking. The full development of new situations. Manner of manifestation. Movement. Working out details. Ramifications. Exploration of what is forming. Searches, investigations, inquiries. Gossip. Counterpoint. Brothers, sisters, and neighbors. Teachers. Meetings. Channels. Short trips.
The 3rd house continues the drama set forth in the 1st and 2nd. The 1st is the new start, the 2nd is the new body or what is drawn forth in response to the 1st, and the 3rd is how the situation develops to its fullness. It has to do with the working out and exploring of all the details and ramifications of what is forming.
Fourth House
Home. The extent of development; its physical peak. The fullness of experience; how we feel or move within the experience. Sensate body. Center of gravity. Base of operations. Home and office. The prime of life. Where you’ve stored things up. Body and incarnation. Finding. The end of the matter. A stress point in the cycle of the self. Fresh starts and new beginnings. Real estate and property. Parents. Weather.
In most house systems, the 4th house cusp is the imum coeli, or lower midheaven, opposite the midheaven. The 4th house marks the extent to which this body develops its limits. It is also one of the angular houses and starts a new series of three. The 4th house has to do with fullness of experience - the body or meat of it. Development has reached its physical peak and can go no further. Instead, we can feel or move within the experience.
Fifth House
The end of simple experience. The beginning consciousness of what we have experienced. Self-consciousness, self-discovery, awareness, and pride. A pouring forth. Conveying and teaching. The extension of self. Stepping out. The search for recognition. The show. Emotions and emote. All kinds of offspring. Creativity. Creations and recreation. Fun, games, hobbies, and sports. Holidays and vacation.
Romance. Risk and venture. Celebration. The 5th house signals the end of the simple feeling of the experience and the beginning of consciousness of what it is that we have experienced. We are pouring forth or leaving the body. Emote, emotions. Offspring, self-consciousness, pride, and the like.
Sixth House
Represents personal conflict, self-analysis, and the perfection of oneself through constant work.
Apprenticeship; the perfecting of one’s life skills through dealing on a daily basis with the results and consequences of one’s efforts, and by learning through serving those who are “masters”.
Employment, daily work or routine, the “daily grind,” service, coworkers, health, accidents. Self-judgment and self-analysis; conflicts result- ing from one’s self-expression.
In the business chart:: Labor unions; health of employees (sick days, accidents on the job, etc.); personnel problems.
Service and industry. Harvest and repair. Care and cure. Concern. Maintenance. Salvage. Conserve. Conditions of vocation. Climate. Terms of application. Health. The end of vitality and the beginning of our attempts to prolong, preserve, and take care of the experience of the body. The party is over. Fastening. Battening down. Criticism. Meticulousness. Craft. Purifying. Application of experience. Practice. Organizing the variables. Those whom we pay.
The 6th house signals the end of the vitality of the body and marks attempts to prolong, conserve, and take care of the experience or body. The experience or “party” is over. The other. The personal experience is finished; it falls away from us and we see it as a complete phase or facet of development. We leave the body and enter the mind. A turning away from attempts for personal salvation, a concentration of concern for others. Marriage and partnership. Yoga. Unity and harmony. Spirit of cooperation. Obstacles. Counselor. Judiciousness. Where we go with what we have. Commitment and indecision. Signing documents. Saying vows. Formalization. In most house systems, the 7th house cusp is opposite the ascendant.
Seventh House
Represents partners, the “other,” and those aspects of ourselves that we project onto others.
Human relatedness and interchange; the transition of consciousness from the awareness of self to the awareness of the other; the meeting of subjective and objective in human relationship; awareness of others and of the social sphere.
Partnerships (marriage or business), contracts, competition, known opponents, one-to-one relationships, therapeutic and counselling relation- ships, those we attract who mirror back to us our own shadow material. In the business chart: Contracts, agreements, competition, public relations.
The other. The personal experience is finished; it falls away from us and we see it as a complete phase or facet of development. We leave the body and enter the mind. A turning away from attempts for personal salvation, a concentration of concern for others. Marriage and partnership. Yoga. Unity and harmony. Spirit of cooperation. Obstacles. Counselor. Judiciousness. Where we go with what we have. Commitment and indecision. Signing documents. Saying vows. Formalization. In most house systems, the 7th house cusp is opposite the ascendant. The 7th house, another angular house, marks the beginning of a new series of three houses. Here we cross over from the personal houses to the impersonal houses. The personal experience of the first 6 houses is finished. It falls away from us and we see it as a complete stage in our development or whole. We leave the body and start into the mind. A turning away from the attempt for personal salvation toward a concern for others. Marriage.
Eighth House
Probing. The result or reward of fully grasping the nature of a complete cycle of personal experience. Right vs. what went wrong. Wheat from the chaff. Clearing the way. Purgatory. Dross. Fire and furnace. Raze. Raising hell. Through the roof. Culling through. Jettison. Purge. The end of obsolescence. The resources of partnership. Marriage and business values. Armageddon, apocalypse, and “death.” The uncovering. The revealed. Revelations.
The 8th house results from our fully grasping the nature of the completed personal experience in the first six houses - what was right about it and what was wrong. Here we strip away and can do without what was wrong. The extra baggage is unloaded.
Ninth House
What remains when everything extra has been stripped away. What endures through the entire episode. Lasting or lengthy thought. Philosophy. Long journeys. Finding what is foreign. Wading through the possibilities. The seed essence. The law. Enthusiasm. Relics and religion. Bare facts.
The 9th house has to do with what remains when all extra is stripped away. It is what remains or is enduring from the entire episode. The seed essence. It becomes the light for a new idea in the 10th, where the whole cycle repeats itself.
Tenth House
Represents the way in which one fulfills oneself and the contribution this makes to society; one’s integration into society.
Position, honor, recognition, career, reputation, profession, social status, life-direction, employer, parent (father). The ideal. Where we have our head above water and can see what to do. Career and vocation. Practical talents. Where ideas take their start. Authority, parents, up there and out there. Management and supervisory skills. Government and foundations. Public face. What others associate with you. What you do. Judges. Police power. Law enforcement.
The 10th house at the peak of the chart, represents the most ideal or out-of-the-body part of the wheel. It is directly overhead, “up-there,” and to the south. It is the house of clear, practical vision (clairvoyance). Ideas can take their start here as planets pass through the 10th house. The tenth house holds a clear idea about something - what is often called an out-of-the-body vision or experience, a time when we really get an insight in its totality.
Eleventh House
The 11th house is a movement away from the 10th and down towards the lower hemisphere of the chart. The 11th house takes the clear idea seen in the 10th and resolves to put it to work, to keep it in mind or make it “matter.” We make a commitment to carry the idea into our daily life; that is, carry it across the ascendant (1st house cusp) and into the lower part of the chart, our personal life. The 11th house has to do with plans for action, group goals, cooperation.
The resolve to put vision to work. Resources of the idea. Ability to keep the idea in mind. Making it “matter.” Carrying the idea into daily life. Plans for action. Cooperation. Groups. Larger goals. Hopes and wishes. Impersonal drives to realize personal ideals.
Friends. Planning. Improving the community. Humanity and humanitarianism.
Twelfth House
Represents the end of a cycle; the dissolution of what has been - and the returning to the source for renewal.
Self-undoing; events that feel fated; karmic debts and unfinished business; subconscious content in the mind; the unconscious, both individual and collective; help from behind the scenes; secrets; secret enemies; large animals.
The difference between ideas and reality. Ideas and resolve come up against the static of the status quo. The beginning of day-to-day reality. Limits and confinement. Hidden faults. Dues and karma. Attitude, psychology, acceptance, sacrifice, and forbearance. Overcoming old ideas. Finding ways to get the new idea across. Letting go of ideas or buckling down to the way things are: facing a choice in how to cross into the realm of experience from the realm of ideas. The 12th house is even closer to the ascendant and the sphere of action. The bright idea that we had in the 10th, and the resolve to do something about it that we made in the 11th, is coming up against the status quo of the ascendant in the 12th our day-to-day reality. In the 12th house we are faced with a choice. We are about to cross over from the more impersonal realm of ideas and planning into our actual day-to-day circumstances. In the 12th, we begin to face the difference between our idea and our reality. We can either forget the whole thing and let the idea go, or we can care enough about making the idea matter in our life to buckle down and accept the way things are (status quo) and try to overcome them... to bring our new idea through and get it across the ascendant.
The significance of each House, basically and as related to the other Houses, without considering the modifications that result from the positions and aspects of radical, progressed or transiting planets, is as follows:
The First House
In a Nativity: The cusp of the Ascendant, the first and most important of the four Angles of any Figure, marks the Eastern end of the Line of Particular Being; the Irrational Axis, or culminating point of the eastern hemisphere - a Line of Awareness of Self and of Others. Hence, it becomes the Point of Dualism of Consciousness, and the Angle of Fulfillment.
Representing Selfhood, its primary significance is Action: Destiny in the making. It defines and particularizes the native, his personal appearance, disposition and manner, moral and subjective viewpoint and motivating impulses - Personality as distinguished from Indi- viduality; and is an index to his birth, environment in early childhood, outlook upon life, and will to manifest; personal power over himself and others; carriage, mein, walk, and manner of approach; complexion, skin, head, face, brain, and the shape and size of his body; opinion of himself and of others, their opinion of him, and the impression he makes upon them; habits, desires and personal interests; capacity for self-development; vitality, health in consequence of personal habits, the inherent strength of his physical constitution; mental and emotional qualities and attitudes; worldly outlook, and the quality, bent and direction of his cravings and their gratification; attitude toward his possessions, and other things that affect the ego; circumstances and situations that result from his acts; consciousness of the future.
The First House has to do with a man’s grandmother, or a woman’s grandfather. (see also Fourth House.) The Ruler of the Rising Sign indicates the influences that were at work previous to birth.
When the Lord of the First also rules the sign on the cusp of the Twelfth, it becomes an index to his Destiny or Fate.
As the Ascendant provides a key to the native’s mentality and the quality of his will power, the Sixth House, its Ruler and occupants, portrays what use he makes of them.
In a Mundane Figure: The body politic. The country and its inhabitants as a whole: the people, the masses; their prosperity and health, or the reverse; their national traits and habits; the country’s interior affairs; the public consciousness and collective expression; the psychology of the masses, their reactions and conditions.
In a Political Campaign: the majority. In a Contest: the public favorite; the holder of the title; the one who is challenged; the decision or decisions of the referee. In a Lawsuit: the defendant; also the decision or sentence of the Court. In an Organization: its personnel - including the stockholders and all who work for the company in any capacity; the company’s morale and its attitude toward its competitors.
The Second House
In a Nativity: Repository of the native’s strongest desires, it determines the quality of the life-substance used by the Ego - that which the Life is dedicated to redeem; the heredity and social background with which the native is equipped for the pursuit of his destiny, and the bodily chemistry of metabolism; secret thoughts and desires; financial standing, money, moveable property and possessions, the gain or loss and the income derived therefrom; earning and spending capacities, personal debts; the manner in which he meets his obligations.
In a Mundane Figure: The nation’s wealth; taxation revenue, stocks, bonds, shares, and all places and activities connected in any way with money, such as banks, stock exchanges, trade and commerce; the national exports; taxing power, as distinct from the manner in which the taxes affect the people; the purchasing power of the nation, its national expenditures and receipts, currency and its circulation and liquid assets; hence the wealth and prosperity of the people as measured by their collective earning and buying power; investors and their investments, and those who buy stocks and bonds for investment rather than for speculation.
In a National Figure: the Treasury. In an Organization: its liquid assets and voluntary expenditures; the ability of the Company to earn profits; its disposition toward investments.
The Third House
In a Nativity: The synthetizing powers of the mind and its ability to form sense impressions and mold destiny within one’s social environment; dexterity, cleverness, duality, restlessness; the rational mind and its adaptability to education; short journeys; brothers, sisters and near blood relationships, and their attitude toward the native; acquaintances and neighbors, their character and reputation; writings and communications, news and rumors; changes and removals; daily comings and goings; accidents; memory, perception, speech; personal advertising and publicity.
In a Mundane Figure: Inland transit, traffic and communications by land, air or water; the nature of the public demands upon and the degree of public patronage accorded to the nation’s transportation and communication facilities; the postal, telegraph and telephone systems, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines and ephemeral publications; the people’s inclination to travel, move about, make changes and communicate with one another within the nation; the nation’s intellectual activities and its relations with neighboring nations; the reading public, and its tendency to patronize the newspapers and other periodicals; indications relative to rumors, public opinion, the mental and psychological attitude of the masses; emigration as distinct from immigration; and the effects of storms, temperature changes and atmospheric conditions within the country.
In a Court of Law: the Court reporter. In an Organization: first-hand contacts of the Organization with the general public, the traffic, transit, transportation and communication departments; interoffice communications; specific information disseminated within the organization, and departments having to do with the dissemination of such information; public statements of a relatively private nature.
The Fourth House
In a Nativity: Its cusp, the Northern end of the meridian that passes through the birthplace, is the degree of Integration. Although it is the weakest of the four Angles, it nevertheless exercises a decisive influence throughout the entire Figure. It is the drain through which everything that is to be sloughed off, merges and passes away. Through it the Ego becomes concrete, as the operational base of the physical entity, the seat of the desire-nature - the emotions and the passions. It is an index to the home and all domestic affairs; the imaginative faculty; receptivity of mood; treasured recollections. It counsels him whether to remain in or to leave his birthplace, and the advantages consequent thereon. Thus it defines the nature of one’s residence, while the Ascendant indicates in what direction it should lie. It has been called the “grave” because it is so often concerned with hidden things: private affairs, old age, the ultimate end and aim of terrestrial existence.
Considered in connection with the Ascendant, it affords an insight into the nature of the native’s early life, his childhood upbringing, the character of his home environment; his domestic concerns throughout life, and their conspicuousness or obscurity; the nature of the termination of every earthly concern: the last illness and demise, the ultimate disposition of the body, the nature of the burial, and the general location of the grave.
It summarizes matters relating to lands, houses, estates, cities, mines, concealed treasures, intimate concerns, curious personal secrets, things accumulated and stored up, leases, rentals, real estate transactions, and similar matters.
In the Figure of a woman it generally characterizes the first child, and a heavily tenanted Fourth House is often an indication that he will pursue a scientific career.
The Fourth House produces changes of environment within the disposition of the native, wherein he can alter or upset his home conditions and those of such as are intimately related to him. Only through this House can he build his reputation and lay the foundation of a successful career, to find expression later through the Tenth House. While one cannot directly control his fortunes insofar as they depend upon the good will of others, by laying a proper Fourth House foundation in obscure beginnings, he can build toward a secure end.
To it is commonly assigned the native’s father, his life, disposition and fortunes; and from it are derived inferences relative to cousins on the mother’s side. Which parent to assign to the Tenth, its Ruler, and the planets therein, is, however, a moot question: and divergent opinions variously assign (1) the mother to the Tenth in a day-birth, the Fourth in a night-birth-the father represented by the opposite ends of the meridian; (2) to the Tenth the parent of the same sex as the native, and to the Fourth the parent of the opposite sex; (3) to the Tenth the father in a female, and the mother in a male Nativity; (4) on the basis that Cancer represents the womb the Hindus assign to the Fourth the mother, and to the Tenth the father since Capricorn indicates conservatism, repression and firmness; while yet other authorities contend (5) that the determination of the House selected as the parent’s significator is dependent upon which parent has most authority over the native. Thus there is need for extended documentation on the subject.
In a Mundane Figure: Circumstances and events affecting real estate values, mines and their products, buildings, crops, produce and all agricultural interests, including those of the owners of and work- ers on the land; miners, builders, the housing and living conditions of the people, and their patriotic inclinations; the land as a locality wherein people are subject to natural forces - terrestrial as distinguished from atmospheric - hence property damages resulting from floods, earthquakes, and mining disasters; the interests of the people as distinguished from those of the government and of the governing class; and democratic as against autocratic tendencies in government, and between governments.
In a National Figure: the Opposition Party, and those individuals who cooperate with or oppose the Chief Executive; the characteristics of any governmental opposition, and the time such opposition may be expected to culminate.
In Ingress, Lunation and Full Moon Figures a planet close to the cusp of this House will affect the weather according to its nature and aspects; and if it be a malefic and powerfully aspected, it will profoundly affect the government.
In a Court of Law: the Jury. In a Contest: the arena of action; the judges as distinguished from the referee; the end of the contest. In an Organization: its real estate investments and holdings; its base of operations or field of activity; the location and condition of factory or office buildings it owns or occupies.
The Fifth House
In a Nativity: The conception of offspring; hence the exteriorization of Self through all manner of creative and procreative urges and activities; recreational, and other pleasurable impulses of mind and heart; mental offspring, such as creative, artistic or literary output; gambling and financial speculations; the operations of the laws of chance - in so far as its effects are under the native’s control. As the abode of the heart, it has to do with all impulses arising therefrom, hence all emotional and romantic tendencies. Those who have a strong Fifth House, containing one or more planets giving or receiving strong vibrations, have overpowering impulses with which to contend throughout life, which find emotional expression through dramatic attitudes, pride, the affections, and which contribute to popularity, notoriety or fame, according as the aspects thereto are favorable or adverse. It has been postulated that in a male Nativity this House prefigures the first child. Planets in the Fifth and Eleventh Houses are an index to emotional desires, not infrequently expressed in the more sublimated form of platonic friendships and affiliations.
In a Mundane Figure: Children, their attitudes and conditions; circumstances affecting minors; the public school system and children in attendance at primary schools; amusements and amusement places, theatres, concerts, sporting events; public speculations and investments; the inclination of the people to play or express emotion; public happiness and sorrow; circumstances attending those seeking pleasure and amusement; high society and the upper classes; ambassadors, senators and government representatives; formal social functions and all ceremonies of a more or less official character. Public happiness or sorrow; circumstances and dangers affecting those on pleasure bent; and similar activities not engaged in for the specific purpose of making money.
Since it is the realm of the country’s creative and procreative activities, it indicates probable changes in the birth rate during the period immediately following that for which the Figure is cast.
In a National Figure: the upper legislative house-in contrast to the Eleventh House which rules the lower house; although the Eleventh represents the legislative branches as a unit, as distinct from the administrative branch of the government. In an Organization: the executive personnel, its officers and Board of Directors as distinguished from the President or Chairman of the Board; the governing body in a collective sense; any attitude or action of the stockholders or Board of Directors in opposition to the President.
The Sixth House
In a Nativity: Food, clothing, comforts and domestic pets; mental or physical conflicts resulting from the externalization of the Ego. As such it depicts any enmity between the Ego and the physical body, out of which mental, nervous or organic disease may develop. It is an obscure arc, since the nature of service rendered or received is more or less personal, unobtrusive and routine. It has been termed the House of Service in that it portrays one’s capacity to serve, as also the character and qualities of those who serve him - his employees and dependents, and his relations with them. As the Sixth House is the Third from the Fourth, it pertains to uncles and aunts on the father’s side (Fourth House).
Sixth House action is generally under the Native’s control; while Twelfth House derivatives by way of inhibitions, repressions and frustrations, spring from causes over which the Native has no control.
In a Mundane Figure: The public health; the armed forces, civil service workers and police, as the servants of the country; and in general, the laboring class and the workers in all trades; and all involuntary services rendered by the people. In a National Figure: the Labor Party. In a Court of Law: the deliberations of the jury, and the Court records as the field of activity of the Court reporter. In an Organization: the workers or employees; their attitude, efficiency and general condition; the health condition of the personnel as affecting the organization. Strikes and labor troubles which have their inception here, will take form in the Twelfth House.
The Seventh House
In a Nativity: The Seventh cusp, the Angle of Relationship, at the western end of the line of Particular Being, depicts the subjective side of the Nature, the Individuality, as opposed to the Personality that is revealed objectively in the. First House; the correlation of exterior agencies and forces. of the four Angles, it ranks third in importance. Here human relations are on a give-and-take basis, by the interchange of ideas. It has to do with the outcome of all contentions, oppositions, strife, enmities, pleas, and fines. Since it defines the native’s reaction to law, it becomes the House of the Public, showing the relation of the native to others; particularly his open adversaries; lawsuits and contracts; one’s personal agents and representatives; men’s grandfathers or women’s grandmothers; nephews and nieces; and every manner of cooperative arrangement or partnership, legal or otherwise - including marriage and the effects thereof upon the native. In an astrological sense marriage is any state of cohabitation prompted by love and attended by a condition of sympathetic understanding, whether or not recognized by civil or ecclesiastical law. Furthermore, when any state of cohabitation, however legalized it may be, ceases to produce a blending of two horoscopes through a condition of mutual regard and understanding harmoniousness, marriage ceases to exist and becomes merely a legalized form of prostitution; as evidenced by laws governing “common law” marriage, divorce, and the support of offspring after divorce. The more profoundly the constructive influence of cohabita- tion affects the lives of the participants, the more it can properly be termed a marriage.
In a Mundane Figure: The public as an organized social unit, the social consciousness of the people, the relative status of the nation among the nations of the world, and conditions, circumstances and events affecting its social evolution; those who cooperate with or oppose the people in a national sense, such as anti-social organizations or activities, crime, organized crime and criminals, particularly those who assume the status of a public enemy; anything that contributes to or interferes with public harmony, or tends to build or disintegrate social identities; public support of the nation’s foreign policy, friendly or hostile, political or commercial, and the reactions of foreign nations thereto. It is therefore the domain of international disputes, of war and peace; public relations, public gatherings, and meetings between and dealings with strangers. It also indicates the status of women in the nation, particularly the public attitude toward marriage and divorce, and the fluctuations of the marriage and divorce rate as determined by the planet posited there, and its rela- tion to the Fifth House.
In a Contest: the challenger; the decision of the judges. In a Court of Law: the plaintiff and the lawyers; the point of arbitration where evidence and the rights of opposing factions are weighed; also the verdict of the jury. In an Organization: its relation to other organizations through contracts, trade agreements, mergers, cartels, or reciprocal arrangements; its lawsuits and legal affairs. Here originate all forces that oppose the growth and free action of the organization as an individual entity, such as competitors and their activities.
The Eighth House
In a Nativity: Release from personal limitations through human interchange; the Realm of Birth and Rebirth; of evolution through the suffering incident to all human experience; regeneration through enlargement of viewpoint, both spiritual and mental; and the subjugation of the personal Self - a difficult process since so few realize the horror of its impact upon the mind and consciousness. It has to do with effects of an involuntary nature, such as the healing crisis preceding either recovery or dissolution in death; the manner of death; fateful losses which lead to regeneration through certain enforced changes; the transmutation of emotional stress into spiritual power; wills, legacies, trust funds, insurance; the estate of the marital or business partner; money belonging to other people, especially the deceased, in so far as it applies to the native; hence in general the financial relationship of the world to him, and his responsibilities in connection therewith. However, its consideration of these things is largely as liabilities rather than as assets. It has been called the Occult House, the house of hidden things, because in most Eighth House operations the Law of Cause and Effect is difficult to identify, and there is the common human temptation to blame everything upon an inscrutable Providence. It is also known as the House of Death, because it represents the refiner’s fire wherein through suffering the selfish desires of the Ego are burned away, setting free the pure gold of spiritually-enlightened Selflessness. That death so often comes instead, is a vivid indication of the tenacity with which we mortals cling to our foibles, utterly deaf to the accumulated exhortations of the philosophers throughout the centuries. In the wake of an Eighth House storm there is always a rainbow - if we but lift our eyes to perceive it. The Creative Ruler so devised this planetary system as to administer an automatic and recurrent spur to spiritual growth and emotional self-control. Successive jabs become increasingly severe, and finally to those who refuse to listen and heed, a premature death is inevitable; while to the others, the spiritually adult, every Eighth House operation is a celestial messenger in disguise, and a challenge to penetrate this disguise and become the recipient of the blessing he bears.
As the Second from the Seventh, it represents accumulated non-material riches - that which neither moth nor rust doth corrupt - not the result of the labor of your hand and brain, but of the manner in which you play the game with those to whom you are closely allied.
In a Mundane Figure: The public income; the income from exports; earning power of the nation, chiefly from the standpoint of the man who pays; frozen assets in properties, stocks and bonds as distinct from currency; the monetary standard, the National debt, and interest rates; public sales; financial organizations, such as trust and insurance companies. The birth and mortality rate in different class groups, as determined by the planet involved, and its relation to the Fifth House; medical discovery, insofar as it tends to promote longevity.
In a National Figure: The national treasurer as a government official, distinct from the treasury itself; financial relations with and the financial condition and obligations of other countries with respect to the nation for the capital of which the Figure is cast. In an Organization: Losses and gains through or on account of death, or in connection with the estates of deceased persons; financial conditions involved in partnerships, mergers or lawsuits; financial relations with competitors, and their financial condition; revenue from investments, or through liquidation of frozen assets; loans and income from sources not under immediate control of the Organization; the company treasurer, as distinguished from the Treasury.
The Ninth House
In a Nativity: The realm of the abstract mind, of intuition and inspiration, of dreams and visions, hence an index to one’s reactions to philosophy, success and religion; and to his sense of responsibility toward relatives, by blood or in law. From this arc inferences arc drawn concerning grandchildren, especially those of his brother and his sister-in-law; the probability of distant travel, timing, nature and results; the fate and nature of imports and exports; the ultimate result of long-range advertising; world wide contacts and mental adjustment to racial ideas, ideals and collective needs. With an author, his works from the standpoint of publication.
In a Mundane Figure: Long-distance passenger and freight transportation and communications, by or over sea, air and land; religion and the clergy; judges and courts of law; the educated classes: universities and institutions of higher learning, and their administrative and teaching personnel; philosophic and scientific societies and institutions and their publications; all facilities designed to meet the public demand in education, religion, transportation and communications; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; immigration as distinguished from emigration; weather conditions along the coast, particularly incoming storms in process of formation as distinguished from their effects; and the origins of all disturbances, either of an intellectual or atmospheric nature. Observe a distinction drawn between the public’s attitude toward the press, as indicated by the Third House, and the attitude of the press toward the public as indicated by the Ninth House.
In a National Figure: The Secretary of State as a government official, as distinguished from the State Department; the educated classes-those who control or govern the reading, writing or travelling habits of the public. In an Organization: the advertising department; long distance communications; results of mail-order campaigns; relations with educational institutions and publications; professional consultants, publicity and public relations; officials, as distinguished from their departments.
The Tenth House
In a Nativity: From this arc one traces the native’s business or professional life and affairs, his honor, preferment, fame, credit, reputation, career, and position in society; hence his standing before the world. As the operational base for social intercourse, it offers a summation of the native’s human relationships. From this arc inferences may be drawn concerning his relations with those who are more or less in authority over him - his employers and clients; his cousins on his father’s side, and ordinarily his mother (v. Fourth House) in that here racial consciousness, and what may be termed the “national soul,” becomes an entity. of the four angles it is second in importance, the southern end of the meridian running through the birthplace: the Midheaven, the Rational Axis, the Line of Universal Being, the Point of Solar Sustainment, the Line of Concrete Experience and its sublimation. As the apex of the Nativity, it assembles, vitalizes, universalizes and largely summarizes the indi- vidual’s relationship to society as expressed through his occupational activities.
In a Mundane Figure: The Chief Executive, as occupying the control-tower of the nation; the political party in power; eminent and famous persons, and those upon whom rest the nation’s honor, reputation and standing among the nations of the world; the national power, trade, culture, ideals and achievements. The most favoring planets in this House in a Mundane Figure, are the Sun and Jupiter.
In a Court of Law: the judge. In a Contest: the referee. In an Organization: The supreme or governing authority; the President, or Chairman of the Board.
The Eleventh House
In a Nativity: One finds here the externalization of the native’s social position; the nature and characteristics of his circle of acquaintances and friends; his ideals with respect to human and therefore social relationships; his hopes, wishes, projects and ambitions; the reformer’s dreams and his efforts to realize them; flatterers and their machinations; to a certain extent the imagination; his sons and his daughters-in-law. Its Lord and the planets tenanting it are an index to his idea of happiness and the probabilities of his ultimate attain- ment thereof. When considered in relation to the First, Fifth and Eighth Houses, it becomes an important arc, for with an afflicted Eleventh House little real satisfaction can be extracted from life-riches, a beautiful home, a fond and dutiful wife and children, and all the tangible things for which a heart could wish, yet never the serene contentment wherewith to enjoy them.
The Fifth and Eleventh Houses are an index to the personal-emotional desires and their sublimated form as found in platonic friendship. The Ninth and Eleventh Houses indicate higher levels of con- sciousness as to both mind and emotion. If the Lord of the Eleventh is stronger than the Lord of the Seventh the native’s friends and assistants are more numerous and powerful than his adversaries.
In a Mundane Figure: The legislative branches of the government, particularly the lower house, with the Fifth more directly concerned with the upper house; town and county councils, and state legislatures; the friends of the nation; the Stock Exchange, as an organization apart from its activities; ceremonies and celebrations; the exchange of amenities with foreign governments; hence the nation’s aims, desires, purposes, projects, and alliances.
In a National Figure: The treasury, as distinguished from the Secretary of the Treasury. In an Organization: Other friendly organizations, in panies closely allied to or associated with its activities; also organizations or facilities which provide social activities, as fraternal groups and clubs; the treasury as distinguished from the treasurer.
The Twelfth House
In a Nativity: This is the arena wherein transpires the combat against the inertia inherent in all forms of society - the limiting power of the level of race consciousness. Here are expressed the innermost and secret emotions; the source and nature of hidden and undci- handed opposition; imprisonment, hospitalization; the uncles and aunts on the mother’s side (v. Fourth House); the secret effects ot sins of omission and commission-defects of character that make necessary a spiritual rebirth. Since we can rid ourselves of the presence of these ghosts of the past only by liquidating our indebtedness to them, the Twelfth may be termed the House of the Hangover; of crime, punishment and grief; the pawnshop of the Ego; the Gethsemane of the soul; the Hell wherein one atones for his errors through compassionate self-sacrifice, whereby ultimately to achieve freedom from conditions that limit and restrict. Thus it is also the House of Charity given and received.
Termed the House of Bondage, and of Self-Undoing, it is also the House of Initiation and ultimate understanding. While it is frequently tenanted by the significators of scandal, self-approbation and hardness of heart, its qualities can be advantageously employed for work done in seclusion, for confidential behind-the-scene activities, and for meditation and inner development.
The Terminal Houses, the Fourth, Eighth and Twelfth, corresponding to the Emotional Triplicity of Signs, are concerned with the three most mysterious phases of life; the Fourth, the end of physical man; the Eighth, the liberation of his soul; the Twelfth, his secret aspirations and his disposition in the after-world.
From this, proponents of the doctrine of Reincarnation deduce that the Nativity we have on this plane of expression we earned in a past incarnation, while the one we will acquire in our next incar- nation will depend upon the life we lived in this-and are living now. Thus again is involved the Law of Cause and Effect from which is no escape.
In a Mundane Figure: Labor disturbances, plagues and epidemics, conditions that militate against the public welfare; correctional institutions, jails, prisons, workhouses, houses of detention, hospitals and charitable institutions; organizations devoted to forcible control or condemnation of people; involuntary services ordered by law; the nation’s secret enemies in war and peace; spies and confidential agents - of foreign countries; crimes and criminals; the personal jour- neyings and writings of those in power in the government; the nation’s secret societies, both political and religious.
In an Organization: forces inclining to dissolution of the organization as an entity, hence enemy and secret organizations; the secret intelligence department; investigative agencies in connection with hospitals and prisons; labor unions, insofar as they represent Sixth House personnel; organized and social units, as distinguished from the parent organization; strikes and labor troubles-which have their inception in the Sixth House, but come to fruition in the Twelfth.
The point of any house system is to divide the ecliptic into twelve sections (often unequal) that have reference to the horizon or some other conspicuous feature defined by a point on the surface of the earth. This division is brought about by means of twelve house “cusps,” which are either introduced directly or created by some kind of projection of circles onto the ecliptic. Each system has advantages and disadvantages.
A method of dividing the heavens into (usually) 12 lunes or sections (like the sections of an orange). Normally house systems are named after their inventor (Campanus, Koch, Placidus, Regiomontanus). Astrologers call the various sections “houses” and number them from the eastern horizon under the Earth to the western horizon, and across the sky overhead back to the eastern horizon.
The chart wheel, or mandala, of 12 houses can be seen as a circle, or cycle, with each house leading to the next house, and so on, in a counterclockwise direction. Each house is a position in an astrological chart signifying particular areas of life and recognized by its distance from the horizon or dawn point. There are twelve houses, numbered counterclockwise from the ascendant, but moving clockwise, from east to west, with the rising and setting Sun. Houses 1, 4, 7, and 10 are called angular; houses 2, 5, 8, and 11 are called succedent; house 3, 6, 9, and 12 are called cadent
An astrological Figure is divided into 12 arcs, equal either in terms of space or time. If in terms of space the arcs are of 30° each, one twelfth of the circle of 360°.
If these begin at 0° Aries they are known as the Signs of the Zodiac, from Aries to Pisces, and represent subdivisions of the orbit of the Earth round the Sun. As such they are Signs, not Houses. They bear no relation to the constellations after which they were anciently named, but are measured from the Spring equinoctial point.
If the subdivision begins at a given moment, and each represents the celestial arc that passes over the horizon in 2 hours - one twelfth of the time required for one complete rotation - the divisions are known as Houses.
In considering the divisions of the Figure as consisting of Signs, the Figure is deemed to stand still while one contemplates the actual motions of the planets in their orbits round the Sun, in a counter-clockwise direction. In considering the divisions as Houses, the observer deems the planets to stand still while the Figure (represent- ing the Earth) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction, thus causing the planets to appear to move in a clockwise direction at a uniform rate, one after another passing from below the horizon to above it, and on through the Midheaven to the Descendant, just as the Sun rises and sets.
There are also Solar Houses-subdivisions of a Figure which, because the moment of inception, otherwise “birth-moment,” is unknown-cast with the Sun’s degree at Greenwich noon as the Rising Degree, or Ascendant. In the House-divisions so determined are placed the planets in the positions they tenanted at Greenwich noon on that particular date. Such a Figure is termed by some: a Heliarc Figure.
In any event one should at all times bear in mind that the Signs are divisions of an annual cycle, beginning with the Spring Equinox; while the Houses arc divisions of a daily cycle of apparent motions resulting from the Earth’s own daily rotation on its axis. Some modern authorities employ the term Heliarc in lieu of Sign as a subdivision of the Earth’s annual orbit, and Geoarc in lieu of House as the subdivision of the orbit of a given point on the Earth’s periphery round the axis - hence a subdivision of the Earth’s daily rotation.
Thus the influence of the Sign-positions, and the pattern of con- figurations resulting from the places the planets occupy therein, are a common experience of everyone born anywhere on the Earth’s surface upon that day; but the point at which a personality enters into this cycle is an individual factor which determines the “angle of incidence” at which these cosmic impulses impinge upon his own consciousness.
Due to the inclination of the polar axis in its relationship to the Sun, the number of degrees which pass over the horizon in 2 hours varies with the time of year and the latitude of the place where the birth occurs. While the Midheaven-point moves reasonably steady from day to day throughout the year, the rising and setting-points vary, lengthening into the “long winter evenings” and shortening into the so-called “Daylight Saving” period of long days and short summer nights.
Before considering all the factors entering into the problem of House definition and terminology, remember that a House is a two- hour segment of a twenty-four-hour cycle, repeated each day with minor variants. The beginning of the First House is the degree that from a given point on the Earth’s surface was rising above the eastern horizon at a given moment of time. This point is the Ascendant, just as the opposite point is the Descendant. Between them is the Mid- heaven, and the opposite point below the Earth, the so-called Immum Coeli, viz.: the Lowest Heaven. These are the Angles of the Figure. The Houses which fall away from these Angles are termed the Angular Houses. Note that as your horizon falls down, the planets -which are thus uncovered-rise up. The next Houses are termed the Succedent Houses, and these are midway between the Angles. The remaining four Houses, which precede the Angles, are termed the Cadent Houses. Numerically these are summed up as follows:
Angular 1, 4, 7, 10 - the strongest positions in any Figure.
Succedent Those which follow the angular houses: 2, 5, 8, 11 - possibly of no less strength than the Angles, though they attract less public notice.
Cadent 3, 6, 9, 12 - the weakest positions.
In a Birth Figure many planets in Cadent Houses may confer versatility. In Horary Astrology planets in these Houses are considered to produce delays. James Wilson says that a cadent planet seldom brings to pass any event of which it is the Significator, or if at all then it will be when all hope has vanished; also that when obtained it is either useless or detrimental to the querent’s interests.
Other groupings are:
Individual or Life Houses 1, 5, 9 - representing respectively the body, soul, and spirit or mind: the Trinity of Life.
Temporal or Possessive Houses representing the temporal status of the native 2 - Possessions and property 6 - Comforts, such as food, clothing, health and servants 10 - Honor and credit, business or professional standing, position in society: the Trinity of Wealth.
Relative or Association Houses having to do with human relationtionships. 3 - Ties of Consanguinity - brothers, sisters, close relatives 7 - Ties of conjugality and legality, such as marriage and partnership 11 - Ties of friendship; close associates and advisers: the Trinity of Association.
Terminal or Psychic Houses corresponding to the Signs of the Watery Triplicity. So called because they govern the terminations of three occult or mysterious phases of life: the 4th, the end of the physical man; the 8th, the liberation of the soul; and the 12th, of the hopes to which the native secretly aspires.
referring to eventualities, particularly to the termination of conditions in the native’s life, and the psychological reaction to their contemplation. 4 - The environment in each epoch of life, with particular reference to old age 8 - The influence of others upon his environment, particularly with respect to the effect upon him of their death, by way of inheritance and inherited responsibilities 12 - Confinement and other hindering influences which retard the fruition of the soul’s yearnings: the Trinity of Psychism.
These esoteric realms have been compared to three degrees of death: 4th, of the mind; 8th, of the body; 12th, of the soul. Or, as taken from the Kabala, according to this table: Personal: 1 The body. 5. The soul. 9. The spirit. Possessive: 2. Wealth. 6. The Household. 10. Honor. Relative: 3. Consanguine. 7. Conjugal. 11. Congenial. Terminal: 4. The grave. 8. Paradise. 12. Heaven.
Another grouping, of modern origin and based largely on statistical research, is:
Self 12th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd.
Companions 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th.
Public 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th.
Eastern Houses Those in the Eastern half of the Figure, containing planets rising toward the Midheaven; viz.: the 3rd, 2nd, 1st, 12th, 11th, 10th. Of these, the three above the horizon containing planets which, moving clockwise against the order of the Signs, are passing away from the horizon toward their culmination at the Midheaven - are considered to confer upon these planets added strength “by position.”
Western Houses Those in the Western half of the Figure: 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th. Posited in these Houses, malefic planets are said to be strengthened and benefic planets weakened- particularly as regards their influence upon the native’s health. An advisable distinction would be to classify the Twelve Houses as Eastern and Western and confine the Oriental Houses to the 12th, 11th and 10th, and the Occidental to the 4th, 5th, and 6th - those which culminate at either the oriental or occidental side of the meridian for which the Figure is cast.
Oriental Houses Those which extend clockwise from the horizon to the meridian: The 12th, 11th, 10th, 6th, 5th and 4th.
Occidental Houses Those which extend clockwise from the meridian to the horizon: The 9th, 8th, 7th, 3rd, 2nd and 1st.
Zodiacal House is a misnomer, for that would mean a Sign, a subdivision of an orbital revolution rather than of an axial rotation. The term Mundane House, once used to distinguish between two types of so-called Houses, is thus unnecessary, since properly termed all Houses arc mundane Houses.
It should be observed that the six Houses below the horizon are departments of demand or of inclination to act; while the six above the horizon afford the facilities for action; the lower six, personal, the upper six, social; the lower six, unorganized, the upper six, organized. Yet each separate House acts in a reciprocal or complimentary manner to its opposing House, as is shown in the following comparisons or polarizations:
First and Seventh Whereas the First House is productive of effects caused by the native’s ego, the Seventh is productive of effects and situations produced by the ego of the marriage partner or any cooperating personality or event. The commonly observed psycho- logical phenomenon wherein one desires or attempts to reproduce his ego in another, is the direct result of this reciprocal action. Second and Eighth. Whereas the Second House is productive of effects upon the native’s individual earning capacity as a direct result of his own acts or inertia, Eighth House effects, as concerning his material position, take cognizance of the fact that his ultimate return depends in large measure upon the extent to which others trade or cooperate with him, or are friendly disposed toward him. Thus, although his earning capacity may be exercised through the Second House by means of work and related activities under his own control which leave him free to choose whether he will work or not and to what extent, the ultimate net amount of his income and the extent of his fortunes do not rest wholly within his own control but arc distinctly due to outside forces. In the sense in which the Second House registers assets, the Eighth House is more directly concerned with liabilities.
Third and Ninth The Third House is productive of effects which rest on changes under the direct control of the native and which result from his own acts. These may be various, such as changes of location (travel), or changes of domicile (removal). In contrast, Ninth House operations are not under his control, but involve the wider changes wrought by an evolution that is largely the result of outside forces. Similar facilities are indicated by both Houses, but in the Third their application is confined to the dissemination of information, while in the Ninth they are utilized to educate and mold public opinion.
Fourth and Tenth The Fourth House produces effects involving the environment, which are subject to the control of the native, in that he can alter his environment or upset his home conditions and that of all those who are intimately related to him, to his heart’s content. Only through this House can he build his reputation and the foundations cf his professional career. In contrast, forces operative through his Tenth House to affect his fortunes in his profession or career, he cannot directly control; since his ultimate fate is largely dependent upon the attitude of others toward him.
Fifth and Eleventh The Fifth House involves the ability of the native to take advantage of the Laws of Chance at such times as they become operative in his favor. Its effects are under his control in that he alone decides the nature of the investments, whether or not he will make them, and when. Romance and emotional matters in general partake of the essence of Chance, for the native’s acts produce emotional disturbances or yield emotional satisfactions according as the Laws of Chance favor him. This strongly contrasts with the effects resulting from the Eleventh House influences, for these deter- mine whether his hopes, wishes and desires are to be gratified or denied. That for which he wishes and the treasure or resources upon which he can draw wherewith to obtain them, is shown by the Fifth House; but whether his wish will or will not be granted through the influence or intervention of other persons, is in the domain of the Eleventh House.
Sixth and Twelfth Sixth House affairs, comprising the native’s occuptional activities, his service and devotion to others, are under the native’s control. His bodily health is largely dependent upon his own acts. But Twelfth House matters are beyond his control, in that they comprise inhibitive influences, repressions, frustrations, even the complete loss of personal liberty dependent upon the way others react toward him-and are the class of things which since they cannot be cured must be endured.
In a National Figure, while the Sixth House pertains to the servants of the people, apart from organizations which represent them, the Twelfth represents them in organized form - in unions, brotherhoods, lodges and unions that have to do with strikes and the use of strike-breakers. Solar Houses: These are Houses, in that they are subdivisions of the twenty-four hour axial rotation of the Earth; but based upon the Sun-position as the Ascendant they divide the terrestrial circle into equal arcs of 30° each.
Tables showing the degrees of the Signs which occupy the cusps of the several Houses in different latitudes for every degree of Right Ascension, or for every 4 minutes of Sidereal Time. Generally available are those by Dalton (1913), Raphael (1920) and Hugh Rice (1935).
There is much argument anent the various systems of calculating the cusps of the intermediate Houses, until one wonders sometimes why not use a stop watch to locate the degree on the horizon every two hours. Of course it would have to be done over again in all latitudes, and besides it would not be very scientific. Nevertheless the general opinion is that none of the existing methods are correct for all latitudes, even though they may be near enough for practical purposes. The four best known systems are as follows:
Campanus Probably named after Johannes Campanus (? - 1297c). In the Campanus system, the houses are formed by great circles that pass through the north and south points of the horizon and a set of points spaced at 30° steps along the prime vertical, beginning at the zenith and proceeding eastward through the east point on the horizon. The cusps are located at the intersections of these house circles with the ecliptic. This system is ill-defined at extreme latitudes.
The vertical circle from the zenith to the cast and west points of the horizon is trisected. Through these points are drawn great circles, the House circles, from the north and south points of the horizon. Thus the intersections will be at altitudes of 30° and 60° above the horizon, on both cast and west branches of the prime vertical. This divides the sky into six great sectors. Similarly divide the hemisphere below the horizon. The house cusps are the points at which the ecliptic at that moment intersects the horizon.
Campanus Mundoscope Coordinates In the Campanus Mundoscope coordinate system, natal planets are represented in longitude and amplitude as measured from the zenith westward along the plane of the prime vertical. Longitude is the longitude measurement, amplitude is the latitude.
Regiomontanus The celestial circle is trisected, instead of the prime vertical, and great circles extend from north and south points of the horizon to the points of trisection. The house cusps are at the points at which the ecliptic intersects the horizon. At the Equator the two systems give the same cusps, the disparity increasing as one approaches the Earth’s poles.
Horizontal Starting with great circles at the meridian and ante-meridian, the horizon and the prime vertical, add other great circles from Zenith to Nadir which trisect each quadrant of the horizon. The cusps will then be the points at which on a given moment the ecliptic intersects the vertical circles.
Placidus Instead of using great circles, the diurnal motion of the Earth causes a celestial object to intersect the cusp of the 12th House, after a sidereal-time interval equal to one-third of its semi-diurnal arc; to intersect the cusp of the 11th House after a sidereal-time interval equal to two-thirds of its semi-diurnal arc; and to culminate at the meridian after an interval of sidereal time that corresponds to the semi-diurnal arc. The semi-arc from the meridian that intersects the Eastern horizon gives the Ascendant; and the 2nd and 3rd house cusps are similarly extended below the horizon. The Placidian cusps are in almost universal use at the present time. Maurice Wemyss takes exception to the Placidus cusps on the grounds that the Ascendant is located according to one system and the intermediate cusps by another. He prefers what he terms the “Rational Method” of Riegiomontanus.
A set of Tables of Houses for Lat. 40° N., which is approximately the latitude of New York, in which can be seen a comparison of these four systems, is to be found in the American Astrology Ephemeris for the year 1941. The Tenth House is common to an four systems, and this is theoretically correct. The discrepancies show in the intermediate cusps between the IC and MC. The Ascendant is also the same for three of the four systems, but the Horizontal system has its own Ascendants. Different Latitudes require different sets of tables. Published volumes containing Tables of Houses for all Latitudes are available, most of them, however, confined to the Placidus system, which is the one most generally used. The one by Hugh Rice is the most recent and the most elaborate, with the cusps computed to several decimals. Unless you have a birth moment that is correct to the minute, and beyond doubt, detailed methods are futile and misleading, and one might well confine himself to whole degrees and ignore the decimals.
Also popular house system is:
Koch Houses The Koch house system is also called the Birthplace house system. Tables for this system first appeared in 1971 in an English translation of the work of Walter Koch. This sytem divides arcs and projects them onto the ecliptic as follows:
For cusps above the horizon, the semidiurnal arc (along a small circle) of the rising degree (ascendant) is trisected; then, altitude circles (small circles parallel to the horizon) are constructed through the points of trisection; finally, the cusps are determined by the intersections of these altitude circles with the ecliptic.
For cusps below the horizon, the semi-nocturnal arc is used. The MC and ascendant are the same, respectively, as the cusps of the 10th and 1st houses. This system is ill-defined at extreme latitudes.
Equal Houses The Equal house system is thought to have arisen about the time of Petosiris (1st century, BC). This system defines the house cusps by starting at the Ascendant and moving around the ecliptic in equal 30° segments. In the Equal system, the MC is not the 10th cusp, but the ascendant is the 1st cusp. Because of its simplicity, this system is popular.
By means of these tables of houses computed for different latitudes, one is able to ascertain what degrees of the zodiac appeared upon the Ascendant and the various House cusps on any hour of any day, as calculated from the siderial time at noon of that day as indicated in the ephemeris. Actually the tables may be said to divide distance by time, showing how many degrees of the equator will pass the ASC or MC, as if the planet were there. It is to be understood, of course, that this is a rule-of-thumb short-cut for average use when one is not too certain of the reliability of his birth data, and is not to be used when seeking exactness.
(see also Rulership&Associations)
Properly speaking, only a Sign has a Ruler. A planet in a House is generally its Ruler; or lacking a planet, the House is said to be ruled by the Ruler of the Sign appearing on its cusp. Some earlier authority attempted to clarify this by introducing the term Lord, whereby one could make the distinction: Lord of a House, and Ruler of a Sign. The intention was excellent, but the result has been an indiscriminate use of Lord and Ruler as inter-changeable terms. For a concise terminology it would appear desirable to determine the planet of strongest influence in a House, either because posited there or because it is the Ruler of the Sign on its cusp, and then refer to the selected planet as the Lord of that House. Any term would serve - except Ruler, which term has to do with a planet’s strength in a Sign. In fact, the degrees of lordship are largely dependent upon the strength of the planet in, or by virtue, of its Sign-position: whether in its own Sign, exalted or debilitated.
One in which a Sign is contained wholly within the House, which sign does not appear upon either cusp of the House. It is more logical to consider the House as intercepted by the Sign - than the reverse although it is frequently referred to as an intercepted sign, instead of an intercepting sign. An intercepted House is generally either preceded or followed by one that has the same sign on both the cusps. The affairs of an intercepted House are generally complicated, and the planets therein are of more than average importance.
