The 12 Houses in Vedic Astrology: Portals to Your Life's Journey
In the realm of Jyotish (Vedic astrology), the birth chart, or the Janam Kundali, is a celestial blueprint that unveils the mysteries of one's life journey. At the core of this chart lie the 12 houses, each with its own unique attributes, governing various facets of our existence.
Here’s a little about each house to get you started.
1. The First House - The House of Self
Known as the Ascendant or Lagna, the First House is the starting point of the zodiac. It is formed by the zodiac sign rising on the Eastern horizon at the time of your birth, thus symbolising your entrance into the world. It represents your physical appearance, overall health, strength. Since the body part it is associated with is the head, the Lagna also represents our intelligence and how it is applied. The natural sign signifying this house is Aries.
2. The Second House - The House of Wealth & Sustenance
As the repository of material possessions and financial well-being, the Second House signifies your values, resources, and financial stability. It delves into your earning potential and your relationship with money. Since this is the house of sustenance, it also represents close family and food and, to a greater extent, nourishment. Associated with the throat, this house also represents speech and how we express ourselves. The natural sign signifying this house is Taurus.
3. The Third House - The House of Effort & Siblings
The Third House governs your willpower, courage, effort, siblings and neighbors. It is also the house of dance halls, parties, performance and copulation. The body part associated with the third house are the arms and shoulders, and this house can give talents in handicrafts and working with your hands. The natural sign signifying this house is Gemini.
4. The Fourth House - The House of Home, Mother & Heart
The fourth house is all about home, property and vehicles on the one hand, and your mother and the state of your heart (in a figurative sense) on the other. Surprise, surprise, this house is associated with the chest and breasts. The natural sign signifying the 4th house is Cancer.
5. The Fifth House - The House of Decision Making, Children & Students
This house is the realm of children, students and your decision-making ability. It is also another house than indicates intelligence as well as (future) speculation and mantras. Associated with the natural sign Leo, the 5th house signifies the solar plexus.
6. The Sixth House - The House of Disease, Enemies & Pets
An odd mix, the sixth house can indicate illness, enemies and legal battles, pets and “servants” (e.g., employees or those who work under you). This house is associated with the lower abdomen and its natural sign is Virgo.
7. The Seventh House - The House of Partnerships
In the Seventh House, we explore partnerships, both personal and professional. It signifies your spouse (or serious, committed relationships), business relationships, and how you connect with others on a one-to-one basis. This house is associated with pelvic region and the natural sign of Libra.
8. The Eighth House - The House of Death & Taxes
Ok, so it’s also about debts (e.g., loans), other people’s money (e.g., inheritance) fear and vulnerability – in other words, all the fun stuff. This mysterious house also represents vulnerability and secret knowledge, such as occult studies. Associated with the anus, the natural sign for the 8th house is Scorpio.
9. The Ninth House - The House of Higher Learning & Spirituality
The Ninth House is a beacon of wisdom and spirituality. It represents higher education, philosophy, and long journeys. It's the house of your quest for meaning. In terms of people, this house represents your father and “guru” (i.e., spiritual or philosophical teacher). The ninth house is associated with the thighs. The natural sign is Sagittarius.
10. The Tenth House - The House of Karma & Career
Your career and public life are governed by the Tenth House. It signifies your ambitions, reputation, and place in the world. In a greater since, it stands for your karma, in the sense of what function you will hold in the world. In terms of people, this house can represent your boss and, in some astrology schools, your father. It is associated with the knees and the natural sign of Capricorn.
11. The Eleventh House - The House of Monetary Gains & Networks
The Eleventh House relates to your income, friends and social circles. While the 2nd house is about the money and assets you possess, this house is about earning potential and the money flowing in. The eleventh house is associated with the calves and its natural sign is Aquarius.
12. The Twelfth House - The House of Loss, Foreign Lands & Away Time
The mysterious 12th house is all about loss, distant lands and “away time,” which can mean everything from hospital and prisons to spiritual retreats and ashrams. Also the house of meditation, the twelfth house is associated with the feet and has Pisces as its natural sign.
What do these houses means in my chart?
Each of the realms described by the 12 houses speak to an area in life, but that doesn’t mean that they will all have the same meaning or importance for us.
As a general rule of thumb, any house in your chart with a planet in it is going to be an area of your life that has more focus – the more planets, the greater the focus.
Whether this focus is a blessing that brings good aspects of this house into our life, or struggles and sorrows, depends greatly on the planets involved, as well as their state.
For example, I have three planets in the 7th house, which speaks to a focus on my relationship. The planets there are the Sun, Jupiter and Mercury and each of them is in a more or less decent state in terms of sign and aspects. Since these are more “benefic” planets, this speaks to a “blessing” in my relationship life. Although I’ve (definitely) had my share of troubles, relationships have been something that have generally gone well for me. I’ve been married twice and had another long term relationship in between, and each of these partners were well-read, with a love a learning and spiritual/philosophical pursuits, as is indicated by the combination of these three planets.
However, if the three planets I had there were Saturn, Rahu and Venus in a difficult sign, I would still have a heavy focus on relationships, but be far more prone to struggles and problems in this area of life due to the nature and state of these planets.
Although the 8th house is admittedly among the more difficult houses in your chart, if you have, say, a strong Jupiter in Cancer there, this could indicate significant gains from an inheritance or ease in getting massive grants or loans.
A strong moon in the 4th house can indicate a loving relationship with your mother and open heart, while Mars there could show friction, fighting and competition with your mother. Saturn could show coldness and a difficulty opening up emotionally on the one hand, as well as a tendency to prefer a minimalist-style home or one filled with antiques and old things on the other. Difficulties here could also manifest as weaknesses to the chest or breast area.
Is the house system in Jyotish the same as in Western astrology?
For the most part, yes – particularly in the more traditional schools. Each house has the same natural ruler and associated body parts and (mostly) the same general significations.
The exceptions include the 5th house, which signifies romance, sexuality and performance, which are given to the 3rd house in Vedic astrology (which is more strongly the house of communication in Western astrology). In Jyotish, we see enemies in the 6th, whereas traditional Western astrology puts open enemies in the 7th and hidden enemies in the 12th. Friends and networks are also in the 11th, but monetary gain are in the 2nd as well as in this system.
An important point to remember: since Jyotish uses a different zodiac than Western astrology, the houses in your chart may have different signs than they do if you only know your chart in the (Western) tropical zodiac. A good (and free) software to use is deva.guru.
Be forewarned: the zodiac is not the pie-shaped circle you might know from your Western chart. I’ll write another post soon about reading the (three different) styles of Vedic charts, so stay tuned!