Houses 1 to 4: self and foundations
- 1st (Lagna/Tanu) — self, body, appearance, overall temperament.
- 2nd (Dhana) — wealth, speech, food, immediate family, values.
- 3rd (Sahaja) — courage, effort, siblings, communication, short journeys.
- 4th (Sukha) — home, mother, inner peace, property, roots.
Houses 5 to 8: creativity and change
- 5th (Putra) — creativity, intelligence, children, romance, past merit.
- 6th (Ari) — health, daily work, service, debts, obstacles overcome.
- 7th (Yuvati) — partnership, marriage, business relationships, the “other.”
- 8th (Randhra) — transformation, shared resources, research, the hidden.
Houses 9 to 12: meaning and release
- 9th (Dharma) — fortune, higher learning, teachers, ethics, long journeys.
- 10th (Karma) — career, reputation, public role, action in the world.
- 11th (Labha) — gains, income, networks, hopes and aspirations.
- 12th (Vyaya) — rest, expenditure, foreign lands, retreat, liberation.
Angles and trines: which houses are strongest
Two groups of houses are especially prominent. The angles (Kendras: 1, 4, 7, 10) are houses of action and strength. The trines (Trikonas: 1, 5, 9) are houses of fortune and dharma. Planets in these houses tend to express strongly. The 6th, 8th, and 12th are the more challenging “dusthana” houses that ask for growth through difficulty.
How to read a planet in a house
When a planet sits in a house, it brings its significations to that area of life. Also consider the house’s ruler (the planet that rules the sign on the house) and where that ruler sits — this links houses together and is where deeper reading begins.