Even though there is a 1st House in the chart, a circle really has no such thing as a beginning. So, in a way, the 12th House precedes the 1st. What can we say about something that precedes birth, advent? What existed before the flower burst (Aries, 1st house) through the earth (Taurus, 2nd house)?
The kernel in the soil. It's invisible, but it holds the potential for life.
That is why, since the 12th house rules the potentials that existed prior to our coming into existence, it is associated with karma.
Planets in the 12th House behave a lot like kernels in the soil or babies in the womb: they develop in the dark - hidden and invisible. They dare not come forth.
These planets are often reluctant to become integrated parts of our psyches because they feel they aren't ready to be born, to be seen, to emerge into the "real world".
All humans are born premature. It takes years for us to become independent and develop fully.
Planets in the 12th House feel the same way - overwhelmed by the chaos, tasks, and responsibilities of the world.
They retreat into solitude, invisibility, and the unconscious.
That is where the association of the 12th House with asylums comes from.
Actually, this is just the most common one, but this house is really connected to all places of seclusion, solitude, or exile - and all abandoned places.
All places where we can heal, retreat, or develop in the dark and unseen - like a kernel in the soil. Like a person in hospital, in an asylum, in prison, detention, foreign countries,....
Any planet in the 12th house is basically abandoned and neglected.
It's a kind of self-deception and self-undoing to think that not facing the principle associated with that planet consciously will somehow make it take care of itself.
Hi there, I've just discovered your blog and I love your approach to astrology a lot!
ReplyDeleteLately I've been thinking about the so-called "difficult" houses, so I'm really thankful for any kind of insight shared by people who know what they're talking about.
Likening planets in XII to seeds in the soil is very accurate IMO, because the 12th house is after all the place of life underneath a seemingly lifeless surface. At first glance it looks dead and deserted, but if you look closer you'll find all kinds of hidden activity.
I have a Sun/Venus conjunction in XII, and it does indeed feel a little empty and desolate sometimes (at least if you try to live your life in a conventional manner)...like being lost at sea, alone in a lifeboat, no currents, overcast sky so you can't even rely on the luminaries for orientation.
Either direction seems equally right or wrong, so you might easily become overwhelmed or discouraged. Sounds pretty hopeless, I know.
Well it is - as long as you are not aware that the solution lies right underneath you, because in order to find your way you'll have to dive deep below the surface - into a world of wonders and horrors and strangeness and beauty.
It's quite scary at first, but eventually you learn to deal with the dangers and become less and less intimidated by the weird surroundings. In order to remain sane, I highly recommend a Piscean approach whenever you find planets in XII: Trust your intuition. Look beyond the obvious. You know something's right when it "feels" right.
Honestly, you don't have much of a choice in the 12th house anyway - you can only advance when you look for orientation under the surface.
The good thing about this is that you'll experience things you've never dreamt possible.
(Sorry for the epic broadness of my comment...)
-A.
Thank you for the comment! I agree with the Pisces approach - as soon as you think you were able to define the 12th house, it slips out of your grasp again. It's really about intuition, because the very nature of the house makes it impossible to define it clearly.
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