Gifts of the 8th House: Transformation and Change - Light on Vedic Astrology

7/26/2019 Gifts of the 8th House: Transformation and Change - Light on Vedic Astrology

1/13

Articles

What's Popular

Gifts of the 8th House: Transformation and Change (/published-articles-h/22-gifts-of-the-8th-house-transformation-and-change)

Interview with K.N. Rao: Conversations with one of the Eminent Vedic Astrologers of our Time (/published-articles-h/26-interview-with-k-n-rao-conversations-with-one-of-the-eminent-vedic-astrologers-of-our-time)

Navigating By The Stars (/published-articles-h/101-navigating-by-the-stars)

K.N. Rao Interview: The Necessity for Research in Astrology (/published-articles-h/7-k-n-rao-interview-the-necessity-for-research-in-astrology)

Important Clues From the Previous Dasha (/published-articles-h/23-important-clues-from-the-previous-dasha)

Astro-Profile: Dr. Masaru Emoto - The Hidden Messages of Water Signs (/published-articles-h/25-astro-profile-dr-masaru-emoto-the-hidden-messages-of-water-signs)

The Double Transit Phenomenon of Jupiter and Saturn (/published-articles-h/433-the-double-transit-phenomenon-of-jupiter-and-saturn)

Saturn: Deliverance from Life's Lessons (/published-articles-h/102-saturn-deliverance-from-life-s-lessons)

The Five Foundations of Jyotish (/published-articles-h/100-the-five-foundations-of-jyotish)

The Significance Of The Mystical Number 108 (/published-articles-h/103-the-significance-of-the-mystical-number-108)

The Power of Synchronicities and Omens (/published-articles-h/429-vedic-astrology-article-the-power-of-synchronicities-and-omens-by-vaughn-paul-manley-m-a)

Astro-Profile: Venus Williams's Big Comeback (/published-articles-h/24-astro-profile-venus-williams-s-big-comeback)

Gifts of the 8th House: Transformation and ChangeWritten by Vaughn Paul Manley, M.A. (/vaughn-paul-manley)

! Created: 01 March 2009

This article appeared in The CVA Journal - Spring/Summer 2009

Get Our Newsletter

(/index.php)(/index.php) (/index.php)(/index.php)

Student Login (/welcome-students)

(https://www.facebook.co

/lova.institute)

(/twitter.com /VaughnPaulManle)

(https://www.youtube.com /channel

/UCjm3aEk4er0iS_HtCrSs

Tweet 52 people like this. Bethe first of your friends.

LikeLike ShareShare

Enter Email Submit

Gifts of the 8th House: Transformation and Change - Light On ... http://lightonvedicastrology.com/published-articles-h/22-gifts-of...

of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


2/13

www.councilvedicastrology.org (http://www.councilvedicastrology.org/)

(Revised for publication from Aug 2005 online version)

The 8th house has earned the dubious reputation as the ugliest house in the Jyotishneighborhood. Its the one capable of wrecking the most damage, even death, and itshard to get more morbid than that. It can be summed up as the house of change -sudden, dramatic and intense change. As a society we love the kind of drama that the8th house provides, as long as its happening to somebody else! Just consider our obsession with sensational news, reality TV shows, and thriller movies, like The Dark

Night , which recently broke all records at the box office. Its just when change affects uspersonally that we fear and resist it. Nobody wants to lose anything they value: health,

wealth, job, loved ones, etc. So when we do, its understandable to blame it on the 8th house, its lord, or its karaka,Saturn. But do we really need another scapegoat for our woes? I mean, in addition to the boss who fired us, or thehusband who left us? This article explores different perspectives about the 8th house, and the gifts that can bediscovered alongside its typical wreckage. It also discusses careers and events of the 8th house that are not merelyruinous.

Change and The 8th House

In Vedic astrology undesirable change is associated with influences of the malefic planets Saturn, Mars, Rahu, andKetu (secondarily the Sun) and the dusthana houses, the 6th, 8th, and 12th (secondarily the 3rd). Of the dusthanasthe 8th house is maligned as the most malefic because its the 12th house (loss) from the 9th house (fortune), whichmakes it the house of misfortunes - change, death (the ultimate change), obstacles, disappointments, upheavals,scandals, reversals, chronic illness, among other typically undesirable outcomes. The classic text, Laghu Parashari says, The Lord of the 8th house by virtue of being the 12th from the 9th does not produce good results.(Ch 1shloka 9) For instance, M.S. Mehta quotes K.N. Rao in his book, Analyzing Horoscopes Through ModernTechnique , as saying, "In the ending of any marriage the role of the 8th house or planet in the 8th is well known."

The malefic influences in our chart generally deliver to us our negative, undesirable karma during the times of their dashas and transits. They fall into the category of tamas or decay in terms of the three gunas: rajas(creation/Brahma), sattva (maintenance/Vishnu), and tamas (destruction/Shiva). Their role is to do the astrologicaldirty work by passing on the negative effects of our past actions. Therefore, during 8th house influenced time

periods, such as the dasha of 8th lord or planet placed in the 8th house, a variety of difficulties are likely to occur:pursuits resulting in disappointment, losses of things you value, etc. You dont need to be creating negative karmaat the time. Bad things can happen to nice people, due to their past, unseen karma.

Even though its valid, from an astrological standpoint, to define the effects of the 8th house as malefic, it's our attitude about change that's important. Our happiness is internally based, not externally. People are disturbed not by things, but by the view they take of them, writes Greek philosopher Epictetus in the 1st century B.C. Astrologyreveals the likely outcome of our external situation but not our internal reaction to it. That is our choice, moment tomoment. We either choose to be 'victims of our fate' or we rise above it. We either look for the 'silver lining', the'blessing in disguise', the 'opportunity for growth,' or we continue to feel like our situation really, totally and justifiably'sucks.'

Blessings in Disguise

If we don't look beyond our surface frustrations to the depths of our life lessons we're missing the greatest gift of the8th house - spiritual transformation. The 8th house is not only a dusthana house, but a house of moksha or liberation along with the 4th and 12th houses. Isn't it interesting that the most malefic house is also a house of liberation? The 8th house takes us to our edge where transformation and rebirth are just on the other side of despair and death. Its a house of transition from one state to the next. Its role is not just to create upheaval thatleaves us in a sobbing heap on the floor, but to liberate us. The destructive principle of tamas paves the way for new creation (rajas), just as compost provides fertile soil for new seeds to grow.

Just like compost takes time to transform from waste, the blessing that the 8th house invariably gives, may taketime to be revealed. A rebirth is guaranteed following any kind of death, but there may be a gestation period. TheDalai Lama says, Sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck. We all know of people


of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


3/13

whove lost their dream only to find that something better was around the corner, if not immediately, then eventually. A Course in Miracles says, All things work together for good. There are no exceptions except in the egos judgment. Often letting go of our judgments and learning to trust the process are the most important lessons of the8th house.

Slaying Demons

The change of an external situation, like transitioning from a job or marriage, are obvious kinds of transformation butwhat about spiritual, inner transformation? The 8th house, like its karaka Saturn, often represent the hardest lifelessons in the chart, yet also the most rewarding. Its the house of intense transformation because it corresponds to

the 8th sign of Scorpio, the most intense sign. The last moksha house, the 12th house, represents the ultimatedissolution of the ego, but the 8th house is often where the battle between the ego and the soul takes place. Mars,the planet of war, rules Scorpio. Its where we face our demons and slay them. Our demons are our compulsions,obsessions, phobias, and fears, with death being the ultimate fear. This is our psychological baggage, which is whythe 8th house is a house of psychology. The moksha houses correspond to the water signs, and the water elementrepresents our past psychological conditioning, and the unconscious mind.

We slay our demons by facing them and making them conscious. The great psychologist Carl Jung said, Whatever is not conscious will be experienced as fate. Just like history tends to repeats itself, were doomed to repeat our personal history until we learn from our mistakes. Therefore, it's valuable to take the time for reflection during thetransitional periods of the 8th house, so we can learn from our past. "Where the wound is, is also where the gift is," says Sobonfu Som, author of The Spirit of Intimacy . When we take the time to dive for those pearls we are able to

transform our lives the most. We may choose to make a resolve (vrata), like committing to a mantra practice for aspecific length of time, that significantly changes our karma from that point forward.

Crisis Counseling and the 8th House

A crisis is the most potent time for transformation, because its during a transition that new seeds are sown. AlbertEinstein said, In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity. However, making a major shift, especially inner, is noteasy. After all, were creatures of habit, and usually defend against changing them. Harville Hendrix, the author of the best selling book, Getting the Love You Want , talked about his experience of counseling couples for over 25years in a TV interview. He said, When it gets really bad thats when its about to change. And most people leavewhen its really bad, so they never get to the change. I think thats such a tragedy.

We frequently play the role of crisis counselors as astrologers, because clients often come for a reading while in atransition. This makes it a unique opportunity to facilitate positive change.

This is the chart of a woman who tried for more than two years to heal her marriage but was unsuccessful.


of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


4/13

Natal Chart

She came for a reading during her three year Rahu-Venus dasha. Notice how Venus is placed in the 8th house, andretrograde. Its also in a tight conjunction with the 8th house karaka, Saturn, which is debilitated in Aries. In the year since starting her Venus sub dasha she had separated from her husband, moved to another state, and had her second child. Needless to say, it had been a tumultuous time as a single mom.

However, it had always been an unstable relationship with her husband. They had met and married while she wasin her Rahu-Mercury dasha, with Mercury being closely aspected by Mars, the 8th lord from the lagna and the

Moon. Mercury is also in the 8th house in the Navamsha chart, conjunct debilitated Saturn and Venus in Aries.

Navamsha Chart

They had separated in her Rahu-Ketu dasha, but she was still determined to work things out. However, by the timeVenus began it was clear he wasnt willing. This made it necessary for her to make a major shift even though shewas pregnant with their second child.

In typical 8th house fashion, her sub dasha of Venus has been extremely difficult, yet has also led to very positivetransformation. The reason she wanted a reading was to understand the karmic reasons why she married her husband, as well as to get clarity about how to avoid this situation in the future. She had been spending much timestudying the psychology of relationships since Venus began. Venus is not only in the 8th house of psychology, but


of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


5/13

its the 9th lord and conjunct the 5th lord Saturn. This reveals that her Venus dasha was not only been a time of intense change due to its position in the 8th house, but also of acquiring knowledge and wisdom due to theinfluence of the trinal lords.

Its important to assess the strength of the planets causing the malefic influences of the 8th house. In her case,Saturn and Venus are natural friends, and are both vargottama. In addition, Saturns debility is cancelled by itsassociation with Venus, its exaltation lord. These factors soften the malefic influence during her Venus sub dasha.

Heres the chart of a woman who came for a reading shortly after starting her 1 ! year Moon-Saturn dasha.

Natal chart

Notice how Saturn is the 8th lord from various lagnas in the chart: the ascendant, Moon, Sun and the dasha lord,also the Moon. Major areas of her life were in flux: job, home, and relationship. She was about to quit her job, andcould either move to a foreign country shed never been to with her boyfriend, or face being alone. What made iteven more challenging was that shed normally use her intellect to solve problems, but since starting her Moondasha shed been very emotional and withdrawn. Notice how Saturn is aspected by the 7th lord, Jupiter, and alsoaspects and rules the 7th house from the Moon. This combination of being in a Moon dasha and the sub dasha of the 8th lord, revealed that this was not just about the potential move with her boyfriend, but about past unresolvedrelationship issues that were preventing her from moving forward with clarity.

Astrologers, Dur Yogas and the 8th House

Since a major role of astrologers is to assist clients through transitions, its not surprising that the profession itself attracts people with 8th house connections in their own charts. Usually the 8th house or 8th lord will be connectedwith either the 10th house (career), the 1st house (self, identity), the Moon (mind, emotions), or the Sun(personality).

The following chart is of astrologer Marc Boney.


of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


6/13


7/13

Natal chart of professional psychic

Its during 8th house influenced dashas that people often get interested in astrology and metaphysical subjects. The8th house is a house of depth, seeing beyond the obvious to the causal level, to the hidden meaning. This is whyastrology, psychology, metaphysics as well as research are all associated with the 8th house. It is the mostmysterious and the least tangible house.

When I first went to India in 1992 I studied with R. Santhanam, the translator of many classic Jyotish texts. After reviewing my chart he said, "I see you began studying astrology during the sub dasha of your 8th lord. This also

happened to me. I took up astrology in the dasha of my 8th lord." Since beginning the sub dasha of my 8th lord, mylife had changed radically. My mother died suddenly, I was in a career transition, and I began studying astrologyintensively to find answers. After getting my first reading I became hooked, and began taking as many classes as Icould. Within a year I was in India studying with R. Santhanam.

R. Santhanam and Vaughn Paul, Dec 1992

Research and the 8th House

The 8th house is a house depth, seeing beyond the obvious to the hidden meaning at the causal level. This is whyastrology, psychology, and metaphysics are all associated with the 8th house. However, any profession that

explores hidden knowledge, like research, could have combinations involving the 8th house.

Heres the chart of a woman who has a conventional job doing research on public policy for a state legislature.


of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


8/13


9/13

Notice how the ascendant lord, the Sun, is placed in the 8th house with Ketu. In addition, the Sun is a karaka of the10th house, and its conjunction with the 12th house karaka, Ketu, in the 12th sign of Pisces further contribute to hisskill in probing to profound depths of insight.

Other People's Money and the 8th House

A more tangible gift of the 8th house is receiving money from inheritances, grants, insurance policies, or simplysnatching it from your wifes purse! The 8th house is the 2nd house (gains) from the 7th house (relationships) andrepresents other people's money in general, especially one's spouse.

The following chart is of a client who received a huge inheritance in her Venus-Moon dasha.

Natal Chart

Her father had passed away and left her with a fortune that changed her life completely. She had been working as atherapist and suddenly didn't have to work another day in her life.

Notice in her chart that Venus, a natural benefic and a temporal benefic for Libra rising, is in the 8th house in its ownsign of Taurus. Venus is also in the 11th house (gains) from the Moon and in the 2nd house from the Sun. Frommany angles, Venus certainly represents the possibility of receiving a large sum of money in her Venus dasha. The

8th house, as previously mentioned, is the house of death and is also the 12th house (loss) from the 9th house(father). The inheritance came while Jupiter was transiting through her 2nd house of wealth and aspecting both her mahadasha planet, Venus, and her sub dasha planet, the Moon.

This was, of course, a mixed blessing since she had the experience of grief and a new found financial freedomsimultaneously. This demonstrates how our lives are complicated and why we can't just evaluate a dasha period insimplistic terms like 'good' or 'bad'.

Heres another example chart of a man who worked with other peoples money for over 35 years as a taxaccountant.


of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


10/13

Natal chart of tax accountant

Notice how his 10th lord, Moon, combines with the 8th lord Venus, and Jupiter. The other important combination ishis raja yoga in the 8th house between the 9th lord Mercury and the 4th lord Saturn. This powerful yoga wasactivated during his consecutive Saturn and Mercury dashas, which spanned the most successful years of hispractice.

Ultimate Lessons of the 8th House

The 8th house represents many things, but it cant be underestimated for its ability to create change during itsdasha. When we're going though intense change it can be helpful to think of the wheel of samsara or illusion asbeing an actual wheel. The closer we get to the center or hub the less spinning actually takes place. This is whymeditation and spiritual practices are so important because they pull us back into the peaceful center of our beingsso we can stop spinning out with our minds. The way out is in.

In Marianne Williamson's book, The Gift of Change , she says, "The most important thing to remember during timesof great change is to fix our eyes anew on the things that don't change. Eternal things become our compass during times of rapid transition, binding us emotionally to a steady and firm course." The 8th house is where we face our extreme vulnerabilities and where we realize our invulnerable Self.

In Paramahansa Yogananda's classic book, The Autobiography of a Yogi , he writes about his meeting with

Anandamayi Ma in his chapter entitled, 'The Joy-Permeated Mother.' He asks her, "Please tell me something of your life." She replied, "Father, there is little to tell. My consciousness has never associated itself with this temporary body. Before I came on this earth, Father, I was the same. I grew into womanhood, but still I was the same. Whenthe family in which I had been born made arrangements to have this body married, I was the same. And Father, infront of you now, I am the same. Even afterwards, though the dance of creation changes around me in the hall of eternity, I shall be the same."


0 of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


11/13

Anandamayi Ma

This is one of my favorite quotes and something valuable to remember when we're going through major transitionsin our lives, or counseling someone else who is.

Conclusion

Its easy to jump to negative conclusions when analyzing malefic influences in a chart, especially involving the 8thhouse. However, its helpful to remember that no planetary combination in the chart is all malefic or benefic, andtherefore cant be summed up as simply good or bad. Its always a mixed blessing, just like the material world is amixture of the three gunas. As astrologers we can be of the most service when we help clients find the gifts amidstwhatever challenges theyre facing, especially the gifts of the most malefic house, the 8th house.


1 of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A


12/13


13/13

" Prev (/published-articles-h/23-important-clues-from-the-previous-dasha)

Next # (/published-articles-h/7-k-n-rao-interview-the-necessity-for-research-in-astrology)

Copyright 2016 Light On Vedic Astrology. All Rights Reserved.


3 of 13 5/6/16, 10:27 A

Documents

Gifts of the 8th House: Transformation and Change - Light on Vedic Astrology