Houses, Interpreted – Part 3 – 144 Templates
The houses manage to convey information about nearly any topic in life by working up from the most basic of structures. The arrangement itself informs about what life actually consists of, so let’s look into that more closely. The first thing to understand is that the chart is divided into quadrants and that the houses which are opposite each other share an axis. The 1st House is “You” and the opposite side of that axis is the 7th House of the “Other.” As you go through the houses the opposite side of the axis mirrors the significations of your side, because they are derived from the 7th House of “Other.” For example, the 3rd House refers to “what is near” and the 9th House refers to “what is out there.” Put another way it is “what is near” to the “other.” Similarly, look at the 5th House of “what you give.” The 11th House is where Others give, which for you means receiving. This creates a distinction where everything below the horizontal line on the chart is a personal or “private” house whereas everything above the horizontal line is public or “visible.”
Further, the houses on the left side of the vertical line will have to do with you whereas the ones on the right side of the vertical line will refer to others. Each “quadrant” is a unique combination of these two factors and the three houses within that quadrant are all under that same banner, just refined. The 1st House is You, the 2nd House is what You can do, and the 3rd House is what is near You. These are personal and private things. The houses on the left side are about You and the houses on the right side are about Others. When things happen to You they are on the bottom half of the chart whereas when they’re what happens with Others they are on the top half. This will become easier to understand if we expand upon the House significations from the last section:
The Houses and the quadrants are building upon each other, telling a story. You start out life as just “you” and then you figure what abilities you alone have. You then look around to see what is nearby that you can make use of. Those are the personal, private matters and together they build the 4th House – your Foundation. You are still in a personal space but it is now external and begins to deal with the other, because it is in the next quadrant. From there you can give according to your own direction, but you also have responsibilities to others. By doing these you directly contact the Other, that being another individual or the entire outer world – all that is not you. You must then contend with what they can do, and what is around them. Who they are, what they can do, and what is near them forms what they can build – the opposite axis of what you have built (your foundation). What they have built stems from who they are, what they have, and what is nearby and available for them. Once that is done they can give to you and meet your needs. This leads back to You.
It is worth spending a few moments to consider what is being shown here. According to the system these are the base categories of life and everything that happens can be derived from them. In short: there is only who you are and what you do, as well as other people and what they do. What you can do is determined by what you have and what is within your grasp, and the same is true for them. Finally, how we impact the external world is about what we can do and what we have to do. How the world impacts you is determined by what is given and how it meets your needs.
To understand this it helps to explore the Houses individually to get an idea of what sort of thing shows up in which category, and why. The base signification is the common theme that should always be remembered and considered. The specific significations are always derived fromthe base signification. This is important because “topics” can be broad and have many facets and particulars. Which House they appear in tells you which of those facets and particulars is in play. Understanding this deeply is the key to deriving meaning from the interpretation of a chart. For now, let’s look at some of those specific significations:
1st House: You
This house is the one that refers to you, specifically. It will talk about your physical body, your persona, your approach, etc. The 1st House shows the “rising sign” which is the core essence of an individual.
2nd House: What you have
This house talks about things that are yours in the sense that they are fully at your disposal. This can be thought of as your resources and skills. Money is a common topic of this house and it shows up here because it is a resource that is at your disposal, without the involvement of others. Money is here because it can make it possible for you to do things. The base signification is the key – money is itself not a topic but it is something that is consistent with theme of the House. Your skills and abilities are the things to look for in this area of the chart.
Consider that if you have physical talent such as being a fast runner it can be seen to match either of these houses – that is the nature of a quadrant. All of these houses have something to do with each other, but they specifically refer to different things. If the physical talent of being fast is shown in the 2nd House it is about how and when that ability is being utilized.
3rd House: What is near
This house is about what is available to you, but not yours. Imagine you are dropped out of the sky into this world – you would first notice that YOU are there. Then you notice your arms and legs and that you can stand and pick things up or whatever. Then you might look around you and see what is immediately within your reach. That is the Third House – it is about what is close and always there, but isn’t you or something you do. Third House topics are things that you can use. Common topics in this house include communication – speaking, writing, the ways in which you interact with what is near. Transportation such as cars and your local neighborhood will also be here. A classic topic is siblings, as they are people who are close by and always around. Very close friends whose house you are at regularly would also come up here. This is the place where we see the things that make up your immediate environment.
4th House: Your Foundation
The topics of the first three houses lead to the 4th House of where you come from. This is the lowest place in the chart, the most personal, and naturally it will talk about your physical house. It also talks about your early upbringing and the family you come from. Your roots are here – the traits and tendencies of your people. A foundation is something upon which other things are built and this House shows things that match that theme. Like the 1st House it is an “angular house” and has more power and importance.
5th House: What you give
Once the foundation and your own traits and abilities are established the next House shows what you do with all of that. This House is on the side of the chart where we are interacting with the Other, from a private, self-directed space. Topics that follow a theme of what we contribute to the world will show up here. That will often be creative and constructive activities, our children, and things we do with others for fun.
6th House: Your responsibilities
The 6th House is where what we do meets the other. This is where we find the things that we are responsible for, in service to the outer world. Things which are ours, but which we do not control completely, show up here. Common topics shown here include matters of your health, your day-to-day job, your employees, pets, and anything else that matches this theme.
7th House: The Other
The 7th House is the opposing axis of the 1st House, and topics here are no longer about you. This is where you meet the world and it is fully something else, for example another person. Common topics of the 7th House are business partnerships, serious relationship partners such as spouses, and conflicts. This is the House where you are in full and direct negotiation with the exterior world and topics here are those where you depend upon the other. Like the 1st and the 4th this is a more potent, angular house.
8th House: What others have
This house is like the 2nd House, but for the Other. It is the abilities, skills, and resources of others. Common topics shown here include inheritance, intimate matters of partnerships (financial or otherwise), and taxes. This is where what other people can do affects you.
9th House: What is out there
The opposite axis of what is near to you is what is far, what is ‘out there.’ Common topics of of this House are higher education, religion, foreign travel, and exploration. These things are what is “near” the other, specifically anything that is not near you. It can also be seen as how the world communicates to you, or what you learn from the world/other.
10th House: Where others are
The 10th House is at the top of the chart, in the most visible and public place. It is the “foundation” of the outside world, what it has built. This is where you meet the world as it is and shows how you are seen in it. The common topics of this House are reputation, career, and accomplishment. What you become known for will be shown here, as will that which you strive for. Matters relating to your government or leaders will be shown here. This is the final “angular” house.
11th House: What others give
This is the opposite of the 5th House of what we give and shows what we receive. This is what the “other” is giving out and where it comes to us. Common topics of this house include rewards, community groups, and friendships. It is the place of receiving and that which we choose to take from the world.
12th House: The responsibilities of others
The 12th House is known as our “blind spot” in that it is a place where we are subject to the whims of the world. The things we need from others are shown in this House. In the same way that we have responsibilities in the 6th House the world and the other have responsibilities to us in the 12th. Common topics shown here include parental figures, exile, enemies, or isolation. This is the House of things which are entirely out of our control and where we must trust the other to provide.
Using these 12 core divisions we can derive all matters and events which occur. If we want to know how that will go we need to look a little further. In the next section we’ll explore what it means when an active element – a planet – presents itself in the territorial element for a particular House, and why that matters.
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