by Jeff Jawer

Houses are arguably the most contested area of basic astrological practice. While there is almost universal agreement as to their importance and meaning, there are many differing opinions about which system to use and how to use it. There are well over a dozen house systems, as well as disagreement about the significance of house cusps. Few astrologers understand the underlying symbolism of the houses because the construction of most systems is much more abstract than the calculation of planets' positions in the Zodiac.

The Placidus system is the most popular one in the western world, its success based as much on widespread publication and distribution of its tables as its efficacy. It is based on the tri-section of the semi-diurnal arc, a process that divides the distance/time between the Midheaven and the Ascendant. In fact, most systems use the Midheaven as the cusp of the Tenth House and the Ascendant as the cusp of the First House. The differences come in the calculations of the other house cusps, called the intermediate houses.

"Tri-section of the semi-diurnal arc" (division of one quarter of the day into three parts) is not a phrase that rolls easily off the tongue. It does not paint a picture that opens the mind to understanding. It is, rather, an arbitrary mathematical system that has become the standard for the majority of western astrologers. But, without a symbolic understanding of this technique, we are accepting it on faith and by experience. The notion that "it works" and is therefore the correct system weakens astrology. I accept that "it works" is a valid reason to use a technique, but not to tout it as better than those that don't work for you. Each astrologer is going to resonate with different techniques. The magic, then, lies in the practitioner, not in the technique.

House Cusps
Many astrologers interpret house cusps very precisely. That is, if you have a planet 1 minute of arc (a 60th of a degree) from the cusp of the Third House it is still interpreted as if it is in the Second House. Transits and progressions, too, are reported when crossing cusps. I have some questions about this approach for several reasons:

• Different house systems will give different cusp positions
• A 4 minute error in birth time will move cusps about one degree
• Ptolemy gave a 5 degree orb to house cusps (with Equal House system)
• Hindu Bhava system reads the middle of a house its strongest point
• The Gauquelin research suggests an orb to house cusps
• The Huber School recognizes peaks within a house, not at the cusp

I once asked astrologer Rob Hand which house system most accurately represents what we see in the sky, that is, is most correct astronomically. He told me that each one is correct within its own system, through its particular lens. Each represents reality according to its own rules, perfect in its own universe, but dumb to all the rest.

While Placidus is the most popular house system, such diverse twentieth century astrologers as Dane Rudhyar and Charles Jayne used the Campanus system which has some great logic going for it. In this system, the horizon (Ascendant/Descendant axis) is a great circle, like a disk, that we're standing on. The meridian (MC/IC axis) is a vertical circle passing through the north and south poles. The Prime Vertical is another vertical circle passing through the east and west points of the horizon. Campanus divides the Prime Vertical to produce its cusps. Yet in practice I didn't like what it did to charts generally (enlarged first and seventh houses), nor what it did to mine, so I set it aside.

Grant Lewi used the Equal house system. Some twentieth century English astrologers promoted it because it did away with the great extremes of house sizes at latitudes far from the equator. It's also found in many traditional systems. But, since houses are measured in equal 30 degree arcs from the Ascendant, the Midheaven is excluded from the house building equation. I like Rudhyar's idea that we must include the Midheaven (vertical axis or "spine" of the chart) because "we don't live lying down."

Many of my colleagues and I use the Koch house system. My teacher started using it, I liked the book it first appeared in, and it was written by a triple Virgo. I took it as an improvement of the Placidus system, but don't think of it that way any more. It's just part of the way I tune my instrument. Clearly, no single system has demonstrated universal superiority.

... More than One Way to Slice a Chart Continued

Were You Born on the Cusp?

About the Author
Jeff Jawer is the co-author of Barnes & Noble's Your Astrology Guide 2006. A professional astrologer since 1973, his articles have appeared in astrology journals and magazines and Web sites around the world. He holds a B.A. in The History and Science of Astrology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and teaches and lectures both in the United States and abroad.