You may know about Sun signs, Moon signs and Rising signs, but have you delved into the world of the astrological houses?

　　What is an astrological house?

　　There are 12 houses in astrology, just as there are 12 zodiac signs.

　　Think of the zodiac signs as basic math and the astrological houses as calculus – similar concepts, but an advanced understanding. The houses can give us deeper perspective into our personalities by applying our characteristics to specific areas of our lives, such as how we choose our careers or what we’re looking for in our relationships.

　　Have you ever asked someone who’s into astrology, “You’re telling me that the entire population of the world can be broken into 12 personalities, solely based on when you were born?” I have asked this myself before learning more about astrology, and understanding just how the houses can expand on this, highlighting how different we are, going beyond our birth date.

　　Zodiac signs are determined simply by your birth date. By adding on the time and location of our birth day, we get a snapshot of the planetary and astrological alignments at that exact time to give us additional info. Where the planets and signs were located at the exact time and place of your birth is extremely important – and knowing where they were starts to paint a picture of your unique personality.

　　This is what we mean when we talk about a birth chart. The 12 houses start to layer different qualities over our Sun sign (Also known as your zodiac sign or star sign), kind of like one of those 7 layer dips. (But with 12 layers, of course.)

　　Today we are looking at 2 houses that can tell us a lot about our relationships and partners, whether in business, love or regular life, and having a good understanding of what signs you have in the 5th House of Pleasure and the 7th House of Partnerships can reveal all kinds of helpful information!

　　What zodiac sign is in your 5th and 7th houses? Give our Birth Chart Generator a spin now!

　　

The 5th Astro House – Pleasure

The 5th house is ruled by creative, playful, attention seeking Leo, often thought of as the inner child of the zodiac. This house will tell you a lot about how you derive pleasure from your life, depending on what sign it resides in your chart. It can also tell you what qualities you are drawn to when looking for someone to share that pleasure with you.

　　Picture yourself as a child, before you had to worry about responsibilities, your job, paying the bills, not eating donuts. What were you drawn to before you felt judged about it? How did you spend your time? What delighted you and made you laugh with joy?

　　Exploring these questions could help you understand what exactly will bring you that sense of satisfaction in your relationships, and what you are seeking in love and life on a deeper level.

　　Knowing that being recognized for your sense of humor or the way you present yourself brings you the most joy could help point you in the direction of someone who feels fulfilled when they are encouraging others (Look for Virgo or Pisces in your partner’s 5th house if this resonates with you.).

　　The 5th house also points to our individual ways of expressing ourselves – not necessarily from a communication point of view (That’s the 3rd astrological house.), but from a spontaneous-acting-in-the-moment place. If you have Aries in your 5th house, for example, you might feel happiest when you are physically engaged in activity, especially something you can win at!

　　You will be more fearless in taking on new hobbies and probably in endless pursuit of goals, with a short attention span. Soccer this week, hiking next week, it’s all about the pursuit of the new challenge. You also might prefer individual sports, or within teams or groups, find yourself as the leader.

　　You can look to this sign when thinking about your relationships, as it’s all about what makes you happiest. If you are feeling dissatisfied in your job, in your personal life or within a friendship, you can look to the sign in your 5th house to see if you are struggling because you aren’t being true to that inner child.

　　

The 7th Astro House – Partnerships

The 7th house is ruled by diplomatic, harmonious Libra and the planet of relationships, Venus. The 7th house speaks to what we admire in others, the qualities we are attracted to and how we will seek out relationships with those people, whether in business, friendship or our hearts.

　　It is often described as the way we seek out others as a reflection of ourselves, and how we find balance to our own personalities, as Libra seeks to find the other half of themselves to create a whole. Knowing what sign we have in the 7th house can help us understand what it is we are seeking to find in a partnership.

　　Do you have philosophical Sagittarius in your 7th house? You might have a great idea, but need a solid, detail-oriented business partner to balance out your scatterbrained ways. Maybe you’re looking for an equally curious lover who will experiment in life, love and travel?

　　A strong partnership of any kind will depend on other factors, but if you have compatible 7th house signs, you’re on the road to success.

　　If you have Virgo in your 7th house for example, you are on a constant search for improvement, plus you have a deep humility and desire to help ‘fix’ others. You will be drawn to people who are also on a quest for self-improvement and be kind when they need help picking up the pieces if they don’t make it this time.

　　On the flip side, you’ll probably be turned off by anyone who is a slob, rude or dishonest, so much so, these will likely be deal breakers for you in any kind of relationship. You might also be adverse to someone who has a very emotional or co-dependent and overly affectionate sign in their 7th house, as Virgos are not known to be cuddle-bugs.

　　

What Do the 5th & 7th Houses Tell Me About My Relationships?

Simply put, looking at compatibility in any of our relationships does not stop at the surface of our zodiac sign, but can be further nuanced and explored through the houses in our birth charts. There are still natural connections made between Fire signs and Air signs within the houses, for example.

　　If you, an Aries, are turned off when you find the person you’ve had your eye on is a Capricorn, remember that there is a reason you were drawn to them in the first place.

　　If your 5th and 7th houses are compatible, that can speak to success and connection on a deeper level, because you may share a similar view on what brings you pleasure, or what you ultimately value in a relationship or the way you communicate.

　　Are you compatible? Our Love Compatibility Generator breaks it down for you.

　　Understanding your birth chart is a great way to dive deeper into your own quirks and nuances, and will give you more tools in your kit when you face problems.

　　A Taurus in love with a Gemini on paper looks to be a complete mismatch – Taurus looks for consistency and long-term, loyal security in a partner, while free spirited Gemini is terrified of being bored and feeling constricted in idea or action.

　　If Taurus has Pisces in their 7th house and Gemini has Cancer, they have compatible Water signs in their partnership houses that both care deeply about nurturing others and finding a deep, intuitive bond. In this case, Taurus would then have Capricorn in their 5th house and Gemini would have Taurus, bringing them a grounded approach to pleasure and how they seek out entertainment.

　　Gemini will still be a kooky, unpredictable character and Taurus will still be drawn to find financial security, but in enjoying the same activities and finding pleasure from the same magic bag, this could be a good foundation to build a long term relationship upon.

　　

Conclusion

We all know the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and in the case of astrology, we apply the same logic. Judging someone’s character by just their Sun sign is like not buying a book because it has a stupid title or you don’t like the picture on the front. What’s inside?

　　How is each chapter written and would you be pleasantly surprised by the rich and full story contained within? You’ll never know if you don’t open it. Think of each house as a chapter in a page-turning book. Think of the layers available to you to go deeper into your relationships of all kinds and you could unlock mysteries that will astound you.

　　Have you found your best match? Read How to Know if You’ve Met Your Soul Mate next!