A person’s life is strongly affected by the natal planetary positions and their house designations are vital to the way our lives unfold. The externalization of one’s karma on Earth is clearly indicated by the interrelationships of these house orientations. Let’s examine each of these main classifications and note the importance of these placements accordingly.

The Hemispheres

The Northern Hemisphere (Houses 1-6)

These are the houses below the horizon of the horoscope as defined by the Ascendant/Descendant axis. They are designated as northern because when we see the sun above us in the heavens we are facing south, thus we can call the northern hemisphere of the horoscope the “night sky”. Astrologers view these six sections of the chart as the “personal” areas of life. It is here that we find those life situations that affect our psychological development and create in us a separate, individual identity. It is the area of the “I am” of the personality. Another name for this region is the subjective hemisphere of the natal map. The Second House of the chart, for example, tells the astrologer about an individual’s personal resources and talents, there sense of self-worth, and the nature of one’s sense of material supply.

An abundance of planet’s in the northern half of the horoscope indicates a very subjective reality. A person with such a placement relates to the world from a perspective that has been shaped by early life circumstances. He or she tends to be less concerned with the outer, social and political world and far more involved with his or her inner, psychological conditioning. In effect, one says: “I relate everything outside of myself to all that I perceive myself to be from inside of myself.” As a result, the orientation to life is quite subjective in nature.

The Southern Hemisphere (Houses 7-12)

These are the houses above the horizon line as defined by the Ascendant/Descendant axis. These are therefore the houses of the “day time sky” and are known as the “social” or “collective houses of the chart. They deal with those aspects of our life that involve the world outside of our inner, personal life. Those activities that take place in these astrological domiciles create opportunities for us to interact with the larger world around us. We can therefore call this the “objective” hemisphere of the natal chart. The Eleventh House for example, indicates the groups, associations, and impersonal relationships that widen out personal outreach so that we learn about others who are not part of our biological family or immediate circle of intimate friends. It is here that we create those aspirations that bring us much more into the “I AM” of the Soul. An abundance of planets in the northern hemisphere of the natal chart indicates a person who is outward oriented. This is an individual who tends to be shaped and form through his or her interplay with external events and collective, social issues. As a result, this is a person who tends to be much more objective to life than one with the majority of the planets below the horizon.

In effect we can say, that an individual with too few (or no) planets below the horizon can easily loose her contact with her psychological roots and foundations, losing herself in outer circumstances as a result. On the other hand, a person with too few (or no) planets above the horizon can be so preoccupied with her personal life, that she tends to avoid seeing the larger world picture.

The Eastern Hemisphere (Houses 10-3)

This is the hemisphere on the left hand side of the horoscope as defined from the Midheaven/Nadir axis. Here we find the projective side of the horoscope. Planets placed in these six houses tend to assert their energy out into life. People with the majority of their planets in this hemisphere are more likely to open their own doors, or open doors for others, then have other people open doors for them. This is especially the case if there are a lot of planets found in the First and Tenth Houses of the chart. An individual with Mars in the First House for example may not be the easiest with whom to get along. This is a man or women who has to dominate his or her immediate environment. Anyone else who is present in a given social situation can easily be looked at as an adversary or very likely, not seen at all! This makes cooperation very difficult and creates a lot of egocentric challenges.

The Western Hemisphere (Houses 4-9)

This is the hemisphere found on the right hand side of the natal chart as defined by the Midheaven/Nadir axis. This is the responsive side of the horoscope. When the majority of the planets are found in these six houses, they tend to point to people who respond to life situations more than to initiate them. The Moon (our contact to the feeling nature) in the Seventh House (relationship dynamics), for example, is a good indication of a person who is naturally there for others. It and can designate a person who might make a counselor, teacher, or therapist. On the other hand, the Moon in the First House (self) is not such a good indication of this line of work. Here an individual tends to personalize and project his or her feelings on to the screen of life events, and may not feel the emotional expression of others too clearly.

The Eastern and Western Hemispheres can be related to the two kinds of menus most likely found in fine restaurants: the à la carte and the fixed. With the former (the Eastern Hemisphere), a person can choose anything that he or she wants from the menu (la carte). The result is a dinner selected by oneself, put the bill at the end of the meal is likely to be expensive. With the latter (the Western Hemisphere), a person receives every course for dinner from soup to dessert but the menu is “fixed”, meaning that the price is lower but so are your choices of what you would like to eat.

Thus a person with a predominant Eastern Hemisphere has a karma which allows him to make many more personal choices about the direction of his personal path. Fewer doors are opened by others and life is conditioned more by the direction of personal choice. The price is clear however—you have to make these choices and follow through on them in order to be successful. A person with a predominant Western Hemisphere, finds that his or her choices in life are far more caught up with relationship dynamics and are conditioned by the need to respond to other people’s thoughts, plans, and wishes. Many more opportunities are presented to you but you have to have the discrimination to know what to accept and what to refuse.

The Quadrants

When we combine the influences and indications of the hemispheres, we have the nature of the four quadrants.

Northeast (Houses 1-3)

This is the Quadrant of Personal Identity. The Northeast is the most personal of the four as it indicates the nature of one’s appearance and temperament (First House); our values, material resources and attitude to our possessions (Second House); and our personal ideas, ability to communicate, and our brothers and sisters and closest friends.

Northwest (Houses 4-6)

This is the Quadrant of Personal Expression. The sense of personal identity is established through the First Quadrant. Here in the Second, the individual may move forward to express herself a bit further. This is accomplished through the shaping of a more individualized identity. The basis of this process is founded in one’s parental and early domestic environment (Fourth House). It is extended through one’s creative self-expression (Fifth House), and is made more practical through one’s job and life skills (Sixth House).

Southwest (Houses 7-9)

This is the Quadrant of Social Identity. The Third Quadrant represents the social area of our life. It is the one through which we create our most intimate relationships—our marriage and life partners—as well as with those people with whom we form the closest bonds (Seventh House) outside of our immediate family ties. It is also the area of life that deals with one of humanity’s most complex issues—sexuality (Eighth House). It is through the Eighth that we enter the door of death, both literally and figuratively. The former case speaks for itself, but the figurative meaning for death is “transformation”. It is here that the individual is transformed from a person whose life goals are centered solely in one’s personal desires, to an individual who may truly conceive of the values and needs of others. The Southwest Quadrant also expands our social horizons through the Ninth House as it is here that we receive our higher education and find our opportunities for foreign travel and philosophical interests.

Southeast (Houses 10-12)

This is the Quadrant of Social Expression or the Universal Quadrant, as it is also called. The final three houses of the chart bring us out into the wider world. It is here that one learns in no uncertain terms, that the world is composed of larger circumstances than just the concerns of our individual ego. It is through the Tenth House that we come into a wider sphere of influence. This can be the government and political situation in which we all function as members of a community, nation, and planet. It is also the place in the horoscope that reveals our particular position and influence within that larger whole. The Eleventh House brings us the opportunity to interact with those social groups that help us learn about the nature of service to humanity. The Twelfth House is the most mysterious as it speaks about collective karma—our own and that of the larger social world to which we belong. It tells us about our inner talents as well as those facets of our nature—from this and previous lives—that work against us. It shows us the subtle (and not so subtle!) ways that we can bring harm into our lives. Yet, it also reveals our connection to the Higher Life and our path to the redemption of the personality and our link to the Soul.

Angular, Succedent, and Cadent Houses:

The Angular Houses

These are the houses of the horoscope that correspond to the four main angles of the chart: the First House (Ascendant), the Fourth House (Nadir or IC), the Seventh House (the Descendant), and the Tenth House (the Midheaven or MC). The Angular Houses are said by many astrologers to be the most important in the chart. But all the houses are important, it is just that the Angular ones are the most apparent in their effects. Their concerns and activities tend to dominate the direction that we take in life. The entire structure of the horoscope is based on the nature of the four major angles which comprise the cusps of these houses.

In most cases, the other eight houses of the chart will support and supplement the information revealed through a careful study of the Angular Houses. What is interesting for us to note is that no matter which houses system we use to divide the “natal pie” (Placidus, Equal, Koch, etc.), the cusps of the four Angular Houses always remain the same. Planets in these areas of the chart are most obvious in their effects on others and ourselves. The keywords and phrases for these four domiciles are: me and my relationship to myself (First House); you and my relationship to you (Seventh House); my roots and my relationship to my psychological foundation (Fourth House); my position in life and my relationship to the larger society in which I live (Tenth House).

The Succedent Houses

These houses work to focus and strengthen the indications about ourselves contained in the found in the Angular Houses. They develop the essential nature of these angular positions, adding definition and “body” to our sense of self. The Succedent Houses are the storehouses of the horoscope. They hold our treasures, keep our values, and act as containers of our most valuable possessions, such as our children (Fifth House).

Planets in these houses either augment or deny, support or sabotage whatever we value in ourselves and in life in general. The keywords and phrases for these houses are: my self-worth and personal abilities and talents (Second House); the expression of my self-worth and (pro)creative abilities (Fifth House); what I value in others and what I seek to transform in myself (Eighth House); my social values that I share with others and the value I aspire to hold in the future (Eleventh House).

The Cadent Houses

The Cadent Houses indicate those experiences and opportunities in life that allow us to communicate, share, and disseminate our sense of self and our creative abilities. They differentiate and expand, circulate and integrate who we are and what we have in common with the world around ourselves. They also bring to us those experiences from outside of our immediate social and psychological environment so that we may develop and grow into more individualized beings. Planets in these houses tend to be the least obvious in their effects upon us. They correspond more to collective rather than individual acts of self-expression as found in the Angular placements.

Thus, a chart with a First House (Angular) Jupiter is likely to reveal a person who expands his ego and sense of self through each moment to moment contact with the environment. A chart with a Ninth House (Cadent) Jupiter is likely to reveal a person who expands himself through higher knowledge—information collected and stored over the centuries. The keywords and phrases for these houses are: my personal opinions, ideas, and immediate social connections (Third House); my skills, jobs, techniques and methods of self improvement (Sixth House); my path to higher knowledge, wisdom, and the Spiritual Way (Ninth House); my connections to the collective karma of humanity and the circumstances which eventuate from these contacts (Twelfth Houses).

For more information about the houses, please see Alan’s book, “Houses of the Horoscope,” (IBIS Press).