6th house is opposite from the 12th house

12th house rules prisoners, poor and the downtrodden.

In the outer world, 12th house represents beings that have fallen into society’s blind spots – those that suffer daily without a voice. (In our internal world, 12th house represents our personal blind spots.)

6th house, being the opposite of the 12th, represents people with awareness of the silent suffering that goes on behind the scenes.

6th house activities may involve doing something about those suffering quietly

Protecting small animals, speaking up for the rights of the abused.  Serving the needy.

When Mars is involved with 6th house, there may be an urge to right a social wrong, to fight for those that cannot protect themselves.  When Moon is connected to the 6th house, the urge  might be to protect the weak and feed the hungry.

The activation of 6th house in your horoscope could give you profound cause for wanting to contribute in easing the suffering of others.  If you have natal planets in the 6th house, you may feel the impulse to help others on a frequent basis.

6th House Example: Bob Barker (Long time animal rights activist)

In Bob Barker’s natal chart Mars ruling his 6th house is exactly on his Ascendant (fighting for animal rights).  Chiron the healer is also in the 6th.  Barker is well known for his animal rights activism.

His Moon in Aquarius (usually a strong indicator of humanitarianism) is strongly positioned on the MC-IC axis in opposition with Neptune, which signifies both his TV career and the awareness of suffering.  Improving lives for animals is central to this man’s motivation, and his horoscope clearly reflects that fact.

6th House Example: Angelina Jolie (Human rights activist)

In Angelina Jolie’s horoscope, Jupiter ruling her 6th house is exactly on her Midheaven (philanthropy).  According to this Time article she first started to become aware of the suffering of refugees in war-torn countries while she was shooting Lara Croft: The Tomb Raider in Cambodia in 2001.

Her Moon and Mars in Aries are both conjunct this Jupiter from the international 9th house (international humanitarianism).  Here again we see Mars’ “fighting spirit” that seems essential in going from awareness to taking action.

Do You Have Planets in 6th House?  How Do You Experience It?

You may identify with this theme of social activism if you have natal planets in the 6th house, or a 6th house ruler prominently placed in your horoscope like the above examples.  What kind of awareness does it create?  Do you feel the need to take action to help other people or animals?  Feel free to share your thoughts and experience in the comment section.

photo: flickr

11^th House in Astrology: Love Received from Others

Noel Tyl defines the 5^th House as “the love we give to others,” and the opposing 11^th house as the love we receive from others.

11^th House Tension and “Not Feeling Lovable”

When the ruler of 11^th house is under strong developmental tension (i.e. forming a hard aspect with Mars, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune or Pluto), quite often there is a feeling of “not being lovable,” based on accumulated feelings of criticism, rejection or abandonment.

As 10^th house is the derivative 12^th house of 11^th, a problematic relationship with the father often contributes to the feeling of not being lovable. A retrograde Saturn is usually involved, and reinforces the possibility of a remote/problematic father that didn’t show affection or leadership.

Strong Need for Love

The presence of Saturn or outer planets (Uranus, Neptune or Pluto) within 11^th house intensifies the need for receiving love.   You might feel frustrated, upset, sad or even enraged when your partner doesn’t meet your expectations.

Often such difficulties are signals that point out your need to be more self-reliant, expressive, spiritually fulfilled or emotionally restored.

Developing Our Ability to Receive Love

Even though it’s easy to think of “receiving love” as being entirely up to someone else’s will, in truth we play quite an active part in how much love we experience from our children, friends or partners. Sometimes being receptive to love is as much a learned skill as giving love is.

Experts say that we all differ in the way we prefer to give and receive love. The way we prefer to give love (e.g. through verbal expressions, affectionate behaviors, or tangible gifts, etc) is often the way we’d like to receive it. It’s possible that your partner is showing you many signs of his or her love for you, but you don’t recognize them because they don’t come in the form you expect.

How many signs can you find that others love you? How do you receive other people’s compliments, helpful ideas or concerns (e.g. with indifference or with appreciation)? You may realize that you’re receiving a lot more love and care from your family, friends and partner than you believed.

Photo: MizzChievouz

10th House And Your Vocation

10^th house sits at the apex of your horoscope, representing a culminating point of your personal development.  10th house urges you to find answers to questions such as “What is my calling?  How can I contribute in a way that is meaningful?”

Many people struggle to identify their vocation, often burying their true wants under layers of justifications: “I need to pay my bills, support my family…Take what jobs I can.” However, they still feel frustrated, sensing unexpressed potentials within.

When the time is right, you might feel a strong urge to find and pursue your vocation.

The first step is to identify your unique needs and strengths.

10^th House and 1^st House: Getting in Touch with What You Want to Do

1^st house (especially Ascendant) is the focal point of your individual needs, strengths and weaknesses.  You can activate this zone by spending quality time with yourself, like journaling or taking a long walk.  A healthy 1^st house helps you get in touch with your unique wants and needs, including what you want to do for work.

1^st house squares (i.e. forms a 90 degree angle to) the 10^th.  This tension (square) suggests the challenge inherent in blending your personal needs and your career.

In the beginning, your strengths and character are not developed enough to be effective in your true vocation – hence the need for training and personal growth implied in the rest of your horoscope.

Journeying through 1^st house to the 6^th house, you develop self-knowledge, confidence, communication skills, emotional intelligence, honest self-expression and a little humility.

Afterwards you’re ready, having gone through considerable personal growth, to see others and their needs with clearer eyes.

10^th House and 7^th House: Being Conscious of the Public’s Needs

7^th house represents the Other (and the public, which is a collection of other people).  Descendant is the focal point of other people’s needs and desires.

7^th house squares the 10^th.  This tension suggests two things:

1. What you offer professionally (10^th house) has to match what other people really need or want (7^th house).  If this is not true, you’re likely to end up with a hobby rather than a vocation.
2. Maintaining professional integrity against what the public (e.g. clients, fans) expects can be a real challenge.  To pursue your vocation, you may even have to endure some degree of public criticism (7^th house).

10^th House: Where Your Talents and the World’s Needs Intersect

Your development continues on to the 8^th house, where you’ll encounter other people’s deaths or your own crisis, and recognize your own mortality.

In the 9^th house, you seek a larger worldview and develop a philosophy of life that encompasses the question of death and the purpose of life.

10th house is where your journey culminates.  It asks you a question:

Having these unique sets of needs, strengths and lessons learned, how do you choose to contribute to the world? 

You answer every day through the work you choose to do, and how you do it.

photo:Jim Dollar

9th House and Your Worldview

9th house is the frontier of your mind.  A smoothly functioning 9th house usually brings about a sense of optimism and ever expanding possibility for you to learn, grow and accomplish new goals.  A poorly functioning 9th house could lead to a sense of confusion, boredom, meaninglessness and even despair in extreme cases.

Law, philosophy, religion, higher education, foreign travels and more – these diverse range of 9th house keywords all have to do with knowledge or experience that can expand our worldview.

A highly developed 9th house (a sophisticated worldview, if you will) tends to prepare one for success in the 10th house realm of career – conversely, a limited worldview (lack of higher education, for example) could limit one’s vision of success and life development.

Issues Associated with Tension in the 9th House

9th house is the derivative 12th house of the 10th.   We could say your parent’s (10th) unconscious limitations (12th house) deeply affected your worldview (9th).  For example, if a father unconsciously believes that “women should stay home and raise children,” his daughter might opt to marry when she is 18, instead of going to college – or she might choose to go to a community college instead of getting a 4 year degree.

If a ruler of your 9th house is under high developmental tension (i.e. receives a hard aspect from Mars, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune or Pluto), there is a possibility that your education might have been interrupted at some point.  If this is the case, going back to college at a later point could be an important act of completion, especially if there is a sense of regret at not having done so.

Aside from an interrupted education, there might be issues in the worldview you might’ve absorbed from your family based on ethnicity, religion, household income and so on.  Following your parents’ example, you may be placing limitation on yourself with regard to how much you’re able to succeed in life, work and relationships.

Tension in the 9th house might suggest a need for you to work hard (mentally) at breaking free of these invisible barriers that have been placed within your mind.

How to Navigate the 9th House Successfully

As stated before, 9th house is the frontier of your mind.  If you feel stymied in your life or career, the obstacle you face may be located within your mind rather than anything external.  To expand your worldview, try any of the following:

• Travel to a foreign country.  Take the 9th house symbolism literally – it’s amazing how much you discover about your own culturally-based beliefs and assumptions while living in a foreign culture.
• Seek wisdom from ancient & modern spiritual teachings. If you feel worn out from living in a materially-obsessed culture, this might give you an alternative perspective.
• Learn about something that interests you.  Take a course, even go for a certification if you want to do something new professionally.
• Question your beliefs about important things.  Money, relationship, work, health – what do you believe is possible in your life?  How is that similar or different from the beliefs exemplified by your parents?
• Use affirmations to change core beliefs.  A phrase representing your new belief, repeated many times each day, can replace existing limiting beliefs over time.  If money is an issue, try Louise Hay’s wealth affirmations: “My income is constantly increasing” and “I prosper wherever I turn.”  For more helpful affirmations, you can read this post.

Life is full of changes, and our worldview will have to continue to evolve if we are to maintain a positive attitude amidst all the new challenges we face.  A successful navigation of 9th house can help you feel at peace regarding your place and purpose in the universe, and that in turn can help you accomplish your life’s work (10th house.)

Photo: Nicolas Raymond

The Meaning of Fifth House in Astrology

Noel Tyl phrased the 5th-11th house axis as “love given & received from others”.  In this article we’ll look at just the 5th house, which represents how easily you express love to your children, partner, family and friends.

Planets in or Ruling the 5th House: Your Natural Style of Giving Love

Planets in the 5th house (or ruling the sign on the cusp of the fifth house) can reveal your natural style of giving love to others.  Keep Reading >>