Houses in Vedic Astrology

Since this is basic Vedic astrology, we will only be talking about the houses of the ascendant (D1) chart. There are sectional charts as well, but you can just let me know if you need an analysis regarding them. Why break your head when I already have broken mine?

There are 12 houses in Vedic astrology, counted from the 1^st house, also referred to as the ascendant house, all the way to the 12^th house in a counter clockwise fashion. Now, note that there are a myriad of names given to each house such as the 4^th house is known as Sukh Bhava, Matri Bhava, etc. But do you need to know all those names? No, you don’t. So, I have skipped that part.

• 1^st house (or the Ascendant House) – represents the person, their personality, overall appearance, mindset, image in front of the world, body shape, way of thinking, immunity system, health in general, conditions of birth, etc.
• 2^nd house – represents income, self-earned wealth, relations and communication with family, speech and way of talking, voice, bank balance, financial assets, etc.
• 3^rd house – represents courage, writing, contracts, adventures, short-term journeys, health and relationship with siblings, gender and lifespan of siblings, education up to school level, etc. Here, siblings mean younger siblings and not older ones.
• 4^th house – represents domestic comforts, fixed assets, buildings, real estate, land properties, agricultural land, mother’s health and lifespan, relations with the mother, domestic happiness, condition of living accommodation, emotional stability, etc.
• 5^th house – represents love, relationships, romance, deity for worship, creativity, gains through speculative investments, interactions with the opposite gender outside friendship, sex or physical pleasures, intelligence, children, number and gender of children, success of children in the future, etc.
• 6^th house – represents debts, enemies, health issues, mental anxiety, obstacles in life, service or workplace issues, relations of person with servants or subordinates, etc.
• 7^th house – represents marriage, marital happiness, appearance of spouse, sexual relations with the spouse, longevity of marriage overall, post-marital growth and progress, relations with the foreign business partners, partnerships, etc.
• 8^th house – represents sudden events in life, transformation, death, longevity of the person, gain from inheritance or accumulated wealth, gain from in-laws, accidents, illicit sexual relations, occult arts, astrology, spiritual professions, witchcraft, etc.
• 9^th house – represents destiny, luck, fortune, auspiciousness, higher education, long-distance journeys, relations with one’s preceptor or guide or mentor, pilgrimages, spiritual learning, compassion, health and lifespan of the father, etc.
• 10^th house – represents career, authority, relations with the government, growth in career and business, wealth and position of the father, social image, connections with the public, etc.
• 11^th house – represents profits, gains, wealth accumulation, wealth status of the family of the person, relations with friends, social events, social circle, networking, friendships, club activities, gatherings, etc.
• 12^th house – represents losses, expenditures, loss of wealth, hidden sexual relations, hospitalizations, imprisonment, spirituality, detachment, salvation, foreign lands and income from foreign countries, etc.

Note that the above list is only meant to give you an idea; writing an exhaustive account for each house is something that no author has been able to do satisfactorily till date. It is something that you will learn as you go. However, the list above covers at least 80% of the characteristics of each house.