Looking at the house structure, it is like looking at anything else where there is a gradual growing up or development.

The First House speaks of who we are; it is the “I AM” house. This house is ruled by Aries or Mars. It relates to the aggression and assertion of Aries as well as the selfish quality. When we are discussing things placed in the first house, there is an essence of selfishness with it. There is a tendency to look at everything through the self. I am, so I am! This house and the cusp of the house can help to define what we look like physically. The first house is an angular house.

The Second House relates to our worth. Venus rules this house, it is the Taurus house, and the keywords are “I OWN.” This relates not only to what we acquire in terms of material wealth, but also what we are worth to ourselves in terms of ethics and morals. Actually, it is about what we are worth overall -- how much we make financially or are worth in the outside world and to other people, and also how good of a person we are in terms of our ethics. So after we are, we then are worth and ultimately own! The second house is a succedent house.

The Third House is ruled by Mercury; it is the Gemini house, or as it is referred to in plain terms, the house of “I THINK.” It is the house of communications; it relates to our ability to communicate. It is said to also be the house of siblings and neighbors, and short-distance commuting is also determined here. Once we develop ideas, which we do after we develop our self-worth, we then have opinions and ideas to share, and this come under the third house. The third house is a cadent house.

The Fourth House is ruled by the Moon; it is the place of Mother in all charts. From this placement we can determine what a person’s family life was and is like. The fourth house represents the mother and the family; it is our roots or foundation. It is a place of security on an emotional level. We can also tell a great deal about a person’s home or what kind of home they prefer by looking at the fourth house. The fourth house is an angular house.

The Fifth House is the house of children and all forms of creative projects. This house is ruled by the Sun, the natural placement of Leo, and it relates to self-expression. It is said to also be the house of love affairs. It is the house of those things that make life worth living to us. To the artist, it would be his or her art. To the parent it would be his or her child. The fifth house is a succedent house.

The Sixth House is ruled by Virgo; it is another Mercury house. But in this case, it relates and deals with matters of health and diet. It also relates to those chores we do and take care of on a daily basis. This is the house of work, not so much the career, but the work itself, the day-to-day drudgery. It is a house that represents service and being of service, and this is the part that relates to Mercury -- the idea of details, the details of doing those day-to-day chores are also considered part of Virgo or the Sixth House domain. The sixth house is a cadent house.

The Seventh House is considered the house of partnerships and open enemies. It is the one-on-one encounters and how we utilize them. It can be said that through the seventh house we get a mirror view of ourselves. From this house we can determine what kind of partners or enemies we attract to ourselves. Whether or not we are aggressive in our dealings with others can be seen in this house. The seventh house is an angular house.

The Eighth House is ruled by Pluto, which has a natural placement here in the sign of Scorpio. The eighth house deals with shared resources. It relates also to things such as insurance and death. Therefore, inheritances can be seen here. It also relates to other people’s resources. With Pluto as the ruler of this house, it is no surprise that death is seen here. People who do counseling work for others often have strong eighth houses, as this is the house of other people’s “stuff,” or psychological well-being. The eighth house is a succedent house.

The Ninth House is ruled by Jupiter, thus this is the house of the sign of Sagittarius. It is the house of our beliefs and philosophies. It represents things like higher education, and can be a strong house for those who teach. It represents things like foreigner cultures and the concept of travel. So it is also strong in the charts of those who travel, particularly to foreign countries. The ninth house is a cadent house.

The Tenth House is said to be the house of our destiny. It is ruled by Saturn, thus Capricorn is the natural sign that we would find in the tenth house. It relates to the father and all those authority figures that follow, such as bosses or employers. It is the house of our career or social status. It is considered the high point in a chart. The tenth house deals with structures, and so if religion is found in the ninth house, then the structure of the religion would be in the tenth house. The tenth is the last of the angular houses.

The Eleventh House, sometimes called the house of rewards, is ruled by Uranus and the natural sign would be Aquarius. This is the house that relates to our associates and the people we associate with, in some cases, because of the job or where we fall on the social ladder. As the reward house, it also relates to long-term goals. The eleventh house is a succedent house.

The Twelfth House is ruled by Neptune, and the natural sign would be Pisces. It is said to be the house of our dreams and fears. It is a very spiritual house. My own theory is that this is the house of spirit; it is where the spiritual part of us resides. People with strong twelfth houses, generally prefer their alone time, actually they need their alone time. This is also the house where things are kept hidden. When a planet falls here, either in the natal chart or through transition, there is a great deal of kept in the background. The twelfth house is a cadent house.