Strongly linked to the "I", the First Astrological House shows how we present ourselves to the world. It is also linked to childhood, the development of personal identity, and everything that has to do with new beginnings. The Ascendant Sign tends to dominate this House, although there is also a natural connection to Aries and the planet Mars. Any planet that broadcasts through this House will likely trigger a new direction in the person's life.
Index
First Astrological House
- Sphere - Individuality
- Planet - Mars
- Sign - Aries
- Element - Fire
- Quality - Cardinal
- Polarity - Male
- Position - Angular
- Physiology - Head, face
- Places - Birthplace, home
- Color - White
- Keywords - The "I", incarnation, self-image, individuality, characteristics and physical appearance
The Ascendant and the 1 House
At the very moment we are born, we are violently confronted with a totally unknown reality. Until then, our existence was limited to comfort, paced by gentle uterine movements. Immersed in a warm, dark, and humid environment, we are designed for an inhospitable, cold, and luminous world.
This is our first experience. From this moment on, the umbilical connection with the mother ends abruptly. We assume a unique identity. We are a separate individual, a separate entity. At this primordial moment, our journey through the Houses begins.
The First Astrological House is naturally associated with the sign Cardinal and Fire Aries, and with the planet Mars. Marking the cusp of House 1, the Ascendant shows the exact degree of the Zodiac Sign that was rising on the eastern horizon (side of the rising sun) at the time of birth. The Ascendant, and the planets that are close to it, appear when we are born and their qualities are reflected in who we are and in what we know about life. It is the beginning of our journey through the Zodiac.
The Ascendant is the lens through which we interpret the world and form the core of our personality. In this way, the Ascendant that is formed at birth gives us a vision about ourselves and what surrounds us, which leads us to act, behave and relate according to that same vision.
It is from this vision that we organize our life experiences and shape our astrological personalities. If our outlook is optimistic, we tend to view life and others positively. If, on the contrary, we opt for a pessimistic interpretation, everything seems more difficult to achieve. It's the difference between the "glass half full and the glass half empty".
For example, if Capricorn is the Ascendant Sign, we will see the world through a smaller lens of fear, doubt and hesitation. The same expansion opportunities that stimulate the Ascendant Sagittarius for action can provoke a state of fear and apprehension in the Ascendant Capricorn. Ascendant Sagittarius reacts with enthusiasm to challenges, while Ascendant Capricorn plunges into doubt and insecurity.
Whoever has the sign Aries as Ascendant, sees the world as a place where decision and action are prerequisites and begins to act with vigor. Gemini as Ascendant creates a worldview where knowledge and understanding are the answer and then strives to understand life.
Thus, the characteristics traditionally associated with each sign end up transposing to our Ascendant Sign and shaping the way we see ourselves and the world and relate to it.
In the same way, the planet(s) that governs the Ascendant Sign, contribute to the way we position ourselves and face life. A sign ruled by Mars is propelled to the urgency of action. A sign ruled by Pluto faces everything with a life and death struggle.
The Ascendant, therefore, suggests how and how we are going to face each fact of life. House 1 rules the beginning. When we enter a new phase of our life, when we face a change, it is the qualities of the First Astrological House that are invoked.
Capricorn or Saturn Ascendants, for example, hesitate and delay as much as possible a new beginning, a change, the transition to a new phase. Already an Ascendant Cancer knows it needs to make a change, and initiates it but can go back in the middle of the process because it's safer to stick to what they know.
Ascendant Taurus reflects very well before taking a decision, but once the decision is made and the process of change begins, it goes ahead in a determined way, without looking back. Ascendant Leo waits for the right moment to make its dramatic entrance, showing off proudly.
First Astrological House, Ascendant Sign and Sun Sign
If the Ascendant Sign is the way we enter life, the way our personality develops and we grow into life is managed by the sun sign. The Sun represents the reason we are here; the Ascendant is how we got there.
The signs and planets in House 1 indicate “where” we must act to carry out our mission and establish our identity. The tasks we need to perform in order to reveal our true identity. The development of these qualities will allow us to reach our full potential as a person. Only then will we be complete.
Together with the 3rd, 4th, and 10th Houses, the 1st House reveals part of the environment we experience in childhood, at the beginning of life. Likewise, the First House can also describe the impact our birth has had on others.
With Uranus or Aquarius in House 1, it may suggest that our birth meant change. With Pluto or Scorpio, our birth could coincide with a great crisis of reorientation of those around us.
Since the Ascendant Sign influences us to a great extent, the qualities of this sign can also be reflected in our physical appearance and in bodily expressions. However, for some astrologers, the planet that governs the Ascendant sign may have a more impactful role here.
It is through the development of the qualities transmitted by the Ascendant sign and by the planet(s) of First Astrological House that we begin our astrological journey. The characteristics we receive in the First House, we accompany throughout all the Houses and make us more aware of who we are and our role in the greater whole of which we are apart of.
The 12 Houses in Astrology
- First House - Our Cosmic First Impression (House of "Self")
- Second House - Material Goods, Money, Personal Resources
- Third House - Mind, Communication, Brothers
- Fourth House - Home, Roots, Family Life
- Fifth House - Creativity, Joy, Pleasure, Children
- Sixth House - Work, Health, Exercise
- Seventh House - Love, Romance, Marriage, Social Activities
- Eighth House - Birth, Death, Sex, Transformation, Mysteries
- Ninth House - Travel, Education, Religion, Philosophy
- Tenth House - Ideal Purpose, Career and Destiny (House of Midheaven)
- Eleventh House - Friendship, Electronics, Technology
- Twelfth House - Imagination, Subconscious Mind, Secrets, Mysteries
