The Eight House

The 8th house is called "The Gate of Hades", Hades being the name of the Underworld in Ancient Greece. This is the part of the sky where planets begin to set. A realization begins to creep in that this is the beginning of the end and there is nothing to do about it. As a result, it is a place associated with death, decay, decline, loss and grief. The planets in this house have subdued self-expression and limited capacity to exert the influence that they would normally have. Also, they have no access (make no aspects) to the energy of the 1st house so there is an overwhelming sense of helplessness and being doomed.

SUN

Sun in the 8th house creates people who are drawn to intense emotions and lead a life of alchemical deaths and rebirths. These people illuminate the pretenses and lies of others. When they come into your life they are like a mirror that shows you your darkest sides. People with this placement have a very strong sense of self and this sense of self is closely linked to their deep psychological roots. They have inner strength that is very powerful and very rare. They are acutely aware of psychological games, and even from a tender young age they know how to protect themselves from emotional manipulation.

Love for the occult and a deep sense of connection with mysticism and the metaphysical is suggested. This depth is often misunderstood, especially in young age, which makes up for a lonely childhood and a strong need to connect with people. These people need depth that not everyone is capable of so as a compensatory mechanism they try to form connections on the basis of shared resources which can include money or objects but it can also mean shared projects or shared jobs- situations where the two people have to depend on one another.

MOON

With the Moon in this house, our emotional wellbeing is linked to our ability to find a soulful all-consuming relationship in which we share our entire being with our partners. Casual relationships are out. Partners may at times feel that too much depth and intensity is required from them.

The Moon here is an intense moon that dreams of complete merging. They assess people quickly and accurately with their intuition, and this intuition cannot be translated into words. You rarely do anything half way, you are either all in or not in it at all. There is a tendency to be emotionally destructive. This is a person that experiences emotions in extremes - love and hate, passion and disinterest. It would benefit them if they strive toward emotional equilibrium.

MERCURY

The 8th house is a place where a lot is felt on intuitive level. Mercury here gives these feelings an outlet preventing pent-up hurts and obsessions. Mercury lightens up the 8th house by introducing a more intellectual approach to deep feelings and the occult through the ability to put in words all these feelings.

There is increased interest in talking about what is being felt here and talking about feelings is how psychological healing works - it prevents the individual from drowning into misunderstood, inexpressible emotions. Mercury brings the problem from the subconscious to the conscious, to the realm of what is being understood.

The 8th house is also the house of shared finance where Mercury also brings benefits. Mercury rules over trade and merchants so is naturally skilled at deceit.

VENUS

Venus in the 8th house brings beauty and pleasure to the house of subconsciousness and sex. Sex for these people is an intense affair of merging on an emotional level but with a good focus on the pleasure of the physical as well. The intensity of the 8th house is offset a little bit by Venus’s love for balance and her tendency to avoid extremes.

With this placement, intimate relationships are marked by kindness and desire for harmony and ability to compromise. Venus is associated with many of the themes of the 8th house, such as finance and love, but its attitude to these things is much brighter and balanced. She is more rational than emotional. So Venus here brings materialistic rationality to what is otherwise a very metaphysical and detached from the 3D world house. Here, Venus gently eliminates or tones down those excesses that do not serve practical purposes.

It also brings artistic gifts to turn these deep emotions into artwork thus bridging the gap between the subconsciousness and the material world.

In terms of destiny, this placement may suggest that the person will marry into a wealthy family or that they will be very successful in investment. Venus is a benefic planet, so this placement is overall positive.

MARS

Mars in the 8th house brings a combatant attitude to the 8th house. The 8th house is the place of our deepest emotions that even we may struggle to express and understand. To make it even more delicate, these emotions may pile up and over time become a huge burden to the individual. Having Mars here is like bringing a match to an already volatile setup.

Mars can be very emotionally explosive here. A house of extremes with a planet whose ways are very aggressive, assertive and edgy, sort of knife-y, is a signature for explosions. The person will hold their emotions to be of ultimate importance and will demand that these emotions are validated by others. this could be done with a forcefulness that they may not respond to.

Mars holds on to his needs, it doesn't want to share or depend on others and in the 8th house we ara talking about psychological needs and intimate interdependence. But this is also a house of shared possessions, including the bodies we share with one another, the levels on which we have merged with others. I depend on you for my pleasure, you depend on me for your pleasure. Disregard for the other suggests emotional power struggles that go way beyond the surface and can be potentially explosive with a lot of harsh things being said.

With Mars here, the person is more of a taker than a giver. A strong sex drive is indicated. In terms of destiny and transits, Mars is the smaller malefic which means that a person with this placement will have some problems with investments and shared finances. Problems with sex might also occur.

JUPITER

Jupiter in the 8th house is a true investor. It is about gaining resources through others. Giving to expand and then enriching oneself through this expansion. This risk-taking is underpinned by Jupiter’s innate optimism with which miscalculations and subsequent losses can't be ruled out. Exposure to foreign cultures and philosophies can assist with personal transformation.

This is a house that is naturally interested in psychology and the workings of the human mind. Jupiter’s inclinations towards philosophy and religion can create a true clairvoyant, some one whose depth of feeling and breadth of knowledge can be a true gift to humanity.

SATURN

Saturn is a planet of mature discipline and when placed in the house of intimacy it is not comfortable. Intimacy requires letting your hair down, allowing yourself to be vulnerable, to be messy - these are situations that Saturn doesn't feel comfortable to be in.

Going with the flow is uncomfortable. Saturn is the presentable hard working tie-and-suit corporate employee. Intimacy is a foreign arena. As the person grows old, they learn to let loose and enjoy intimacy but with Saturn here it doesn't come naturally to them.

With regard to shared finance, Saturn here is a blessing. Mutual resources are carefully guarded and strategically expanded. Yet Saturn is the Great Malefic so some delays and complications with inheritances and taxes is suggested. Shared resources are a commitment for this placement so accepting, making or refusing gifts is a serious affair - these people understand that the physical object carries a deeper commitment within.

The 8th house is also the house of letting go, change, rejuvenation, beginning again - things that go against the nature of Saturn. Saturn is about old age and maturity. It is about building one thing your whole life in a serious and devoted manner. Having to start over from ground zero is an unwelcome turn of events.

Some level of repressed sexuality is also common.

And lastly, wherever we have Saturn in our chart, that's where we have a scarcity mindset. With this happening in the 8th house, there is a sense of others bringing nothing of material value into your life, of having to work for everything on your own.

And while Saturn likes to build itself on its own, that sensation never truly leaves.

URANUS

With Uranus in the 8th house, risky investment in futuristic technologies as well as reversals in the area of shared resources are indicated. Unexpected gains, tax audits, losses, loss of inheritance, unexpected financial ruin of a partner can also happen.

Uranus brings detachment and intellect to this emotionally saturated house providing a release valve of some sorts. Uranus is the higher octave of Mercury so intellectualization of emotions is suggested.

The 8th house is about sharing resources and the subsequent karmic obligations we have to other people. Sharing resources takes place when people begin to merge their lives together. This process is the opposite of freedom, and freedom is the component of life that Uranus most wants to hold on to. Merging with another? Uranus will always want to break free. Yet, we need intimacy. Striking a balance will the THE challenge.

This is the house of death, rebirth and transformation. With the planet of sudden unexpected events here, there is an indication that this person’s life will have more twists and turns than the average and these will be consequential.

NEPTUNE

Neptune in the 8th house creates people with a strong psychic energy! Neptune brings spirituality and transcendence to the house of intimacy and deep psychology. The result is someone very attuned to the energies around and with a profound ability to merge with others.

Some sort of close relationship with substances and even substance abuse are common place. The Neptune in the 5th house combo is all about living in the 5D. Alcohol, drugs, medication are seen as a potential aid in that process.

In terms of destiny and transits, with Neptune here, there is something hazy and hidden about the partner’s finances and the resources that they bring into the relationship. Lack of clarity with taxes and other money you owe the authorities . With Neptune in this house, it will be easy for these people to blur the lines between what is theirs and what is their partner’s. Setting boundaries with regard to what is mine and what is yours is difficult.

Wherever it goes, Neptune is a giver who, because of his rose-colored glasses, can be subject of abuse.

PLUTO

Pluto in the 8th house intensifies the depth and psychic abilities of this house. You are able to read people easily and your need for depth and authenticity is more profound than ever. No small talk, no empty conversations. Bring in the real talk.

Pluto here can make the heavy 8th house even heavier. As a result opening up to others may be challenging. "How much depth can they handle before they brand me as too dark and run away".

This is the place of shared resources and Pluto is possessive and obsessive. Sharing is not easy, especially, considering the fact that Pluto likes to have power over others, including over its significant other. And having power over someone means you have something more than them. A leverage. Power struggles may ensue. If the situation gets severely out of hand, divorces that go on for ages regardless of how much poorer both parties are becoming in the process.

Letting go is hard. Before it can happen Pluto needs to completely annihilate the past so that the new world can come out of its ashes. The process can seem unnecessarily painful and lengthy to external observers.

In terms of transits, when transiting Pluto hits the natal Pluto the result is a profound transformation on a fundamental level. It involves the purging of an entire old world and old way of perceiving the world. When this happens in the 8th house of transformation, death, rebirth and deep psychological currents, the process is more than cathartic. Everything has to burn before the case can be closed. And since the change is so profound, it takes looong, and Pluto is not at all interested in speeding up the process. Imagine it as someone who is cutting their wrist slowly, willing to deeply feel every millimeter of the cut, believing they deserve the pain for the mistake they had made to trust the wrong idea.

And lastly with this placement, sex is soulful. Pluto in the 8th house understands merging on physical, emotional, psychic and material level like no other combo.