The twelve houses
What each house covers, and what an empty house actually means.
The first house covers your visible manner — how you arrive, how you look, and the first impression other people work from.
How do you come across before you have said anything?
Anything in the first house is traditionally read as part of how one comes across, whether or not that is intended.
If the house is empty: An empty first house is unremarkable: ten bodies cannot fill twelve houses, so most houses in most charts are empty. The sign on the cusp and the placement of that sign's ruler carry the reading instead.
The second house covers what you own and what you can rely on: income, possessions, the skills you can charge for, and your sense of your own worth.
What do you rely on, and what do you count as yours?
A body in the second house is traditionally associated with earning, keeping and valuing.
If the house is empty: An empty second house says nothing about how much money there is. Read the sign on the cusp and where its ruler sits — that is where the resources are handled.
The third house covers everyday communication and the near environment: siblings, neighbours, short journeys, early schooling, and the way information reaches you.
How do you take information in, and how do you pass it on?
A body in the third house is traditionally associated with talking, writing, learning and the daily traffic of contact.
If the house is empty: An empty third house does not mean a quiet mind. The sign on the cusp and its ruler describe how the everyday exchange runs.
The fourth house covers home, family of origin, the private base you return to, and what you inherited before you were in a position to choose it.
Where do you come from, and where do you go to be unobserved?
A body in the fourth house is traditionally associated with the home and private life, where fewer people see it.
If the house is empty: An empty fourth house is not an absence of family history. The cusp sign and its ruler describe the base; the house being empty only means no planet is standing in it.
The fifth house covers play, making things, romance, children, and anything you do because it is yours rather than because it is required.
What do you make when nothing is being required of you?
A body in the fifth house is traditionally associated with making, performing and pleasure.
If the house is empty: An empty fifth house does not describe a life without play or children. The sign on the cusp and its ruler carry that part of the chart.
The sixth house covers daily work, health, habit and service — the maintenance that keeps everything else in the chart running.
What does an ordinary day of yours actually consist of?
A body in the sixth house is traditionally associated with routine, craft and repair, in small daily amounts rather than one visible act.
If the house is empty: An empty sixth house does not mean an easy body or a life without work. The cusp sign and its ruler describe how the daily maintenance is organised.
The seventh house covers one-to-one relationship by agreement: partners, close collaborators, and declared opponents.
What happens to you in the presence of one other person?
A body in the seventh house is traditionally associated with partnership, and is often read as reaching a person through the other person before they recognise it as their own.
If the house is empty: An empty seventh house says nothing about whether there is a partner. The sign on the cusp and its ruler describe how you meet other people one to one.
The eighth house covers what is held jointly and cannot be settled alone: other people's money, debt, inheritance, sex, and the crises that force a change of terms.
What are you bound to that you cannot resolve by yourself?
A body in the eighth house is traditionally associated with things other people also control.
If the house is empty: An empty eighth house is not a promise that nothing difficult happens. It means no planet stands in the area; the cusp sign and its ruler describe how joint matters are handled.
The ninth house covers the far context: long journeys, foreign places, higher study, law, belief, and the framework you judge things by.
What framework do you use to make sense of things?
A body in the ninth house is traditionally associated with travel, study and the search for an explanation large enough to work with.
If the house is empty: An empty ninth house does not describe a person without convictions. The cusp sign and its ruler show where the framework is built.
The tenth house covers your public role: career, reputation, authority, and what you are known for outside your own house.
What are you recognised for, and by whom?
A body in the tenth house is traditionally counted as visible: it is said to shape the work one is known for and what strangers assume.
If the house is empty: An empty tenth house is not a career problem. The sign on the cusp and the house its ruler sits in describe where the public role is actually built.
The eleventh house covers friendship, networks, alliances and the aims you hold in common with people who are not family.
Who are you counted among, and working toward what?
A body in the eleventh house is traditionally associated with peers and with projects larger than one person.
If the house is empty: An empty eleventh house does not mean few friends. The cusp sign and its ruler describe how you attach to a group.
The twelfth house covers what happens away from the record: solitude, sleep, hospitals and institutions, and the parts of yourself you only meet indirectly.
What operates in you that you cannot watch directly?
A body in the twelfth house is traditionally associated with working out of sight, and is often said to be described more accurately by the people around than by the person.
If the house is empty: An empty twelfth house is not an absence of an inner life. The cusp sign and its ruler describe what happens off the record.