As Astrology grows in popularity it is important to understand other parts of it than just your big three or big six. To really use it as a personal development tool, you need to understand the lesser talked about parts. In part 2 of this guide, I want to focus on the significant points I didn’t mention in the last post, the 12 houses and profection years. Once all these are defined I have more plans to talk about cycles in astrology, things that can help you understand how to read your chart (transits, aspects, quadrants ), and things that can give you a more in-depth explanation of how unique astrology actually is (astroids, decans, degree theory). If you enjoy this type of content, share it and comment so I know if it has been helpful or more confusing by how I explain it.
Sky points
Sky points in astrology refer to the four most important points in a person's natal chart: the Ascendant, Descendant, Midheaven, and Imum Coeli.
Ascending sign (Rising signs): represents the individual's outward personality and how they appear to others; typically the sign of the 1st house
Descending signs (Setting signs): represent how the individual interacts with others and their close relationships; typically the sign of the 7th house
Midheaven: represents the individual's career and public image; typically the sign of the 10th house
Imum Coeli: represents their home and family life; typically the sign of the 4th house
Other Significant points
Lilith: another important point in astrology that represents a person's shadow self and repressed desires
North Node: represents a person's karmic path and the lessons they are meant to learn in this lifetime
South Node: represents past life experiences and patterns that may hold them back
Part of Fortune: represents a person's overall well-being and prosperity; calculated based on the positions of the Sun, Moon, and Ascendant in a person's natal chart
Vertex: represents the intersection of the ecliptic and the prime vertical, and is associated with fated events and important relationships; calculated based on the positions of the Ascendant and Midheaven.
The 12 houses in Astrology
One of the most important aspects of astrology is the 12 houses, which represent different areas of life and show how we interact with the world around us.
1st house: house of self, represents our self-image, identity, and physical appearance. It shows how we project ourselves out into the world and is also known as the Ascendant. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on self-improvement and self-awareness. We need to work on developing a healthy sense of self and building confidence. This can be done through practices such as self-reflection, self-care, and self-love.
2nd house: house of possessions, represents our relationship with money, assets, and material possessions. It is the house of personal finance and shows how we acquire and manage our resources. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on building financial stability and managing material possessions. We need to develop a healthy relationship with money and learn how to effectively manage our resources. This can be done through practices such as budgeting, saving, and investing.
3rd house: house of communication, represents communication, learning, and short-distance travel. It is the house of siblings, neighbors, and community and shows how we interact with the world around us. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on improving communication skills and building relationships with siblings, neighbors, and community members. We need to work on listening skills and expressing ourselves clearly. This can be done through practices such as active listening, public speaking, and diplomacy.
4th house: house of home, represents the home, family, and our roots. It is the house of emotional security and shows how we relate to our family and home life. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on building emotional security and strengthening family relationships. We need to work on developing a healthy relationship with our family and creating a sense of home. This can be done through practices such as family therapy, home decorating, and home-cooked meals.
5th house: house of pleasure, represents creativity, self-expression, romance, and children. It is the house of fun and enjoyment and shows how we express ourselves creatively and romantically. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on creative self-expression and building romantic relationships. We need to work on developing our creativity and finding ways to express ourselves. This can be done through practices such as art classes, writing workshops, and date nights.
6th house: house of health, represents work, health, and daily routines. It is the house of service and shows how we serve others and take care of ourselves. t can also reveal information about our pets. This is because pets are often an important part of our daily routines and can have an impact on our overall well-being. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on maintaining physical and mental health and developing a routine that supports our well-being. We need to work on finding balance in our work and personal life. This can be done through exercise, meditation, and journaling.
7th house: house of partnerships, represents one-on-one relationships, such as romantic partnerships, business partnerships, and close friendships. It is the house of marriage and shows how we relate to others on an intimate level. To use this house for personal development, we must focus on building healthy relationships with others and developing healthy boundaries. We need to work on communication skills and developing intimacy. This can be done through practices such as couples therapy, assertiveness training, and socializing.
8th house: house of transformation, represents transformation, regeneration, and shared resources. It is the house of death and rebirth and shows how we handle change and transition in our lives. It is also commonly associated with sex and sexuality, as it relates to merging energies and resources with another person. The 8th house can reveal our attitudes towards sex, as well as our patterns of behavior in intimate relationships. It can also reveal our fears and desires related to intimacy and vulnerability. To use this house for personal development, we must focus on facing our fears and embracing change. We need to work on developing a healthy relationship with sex and exploring our desires. This can be done through therapy, self-exploration, and boundary-setting.
9th house: house of Philosophy, represents higher education, philosophy, travel, and spirituality. It is the house of the higher mind and shows how we expand our consciousness and beliefs. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on personal growth and expanding our consciousness. We need to work on developing our spirituality and exploring new philosophical ideas. This can be done through practices such as meditation, yoga, and religious services.
10th house: house of career, represents career, public image, and reputation. It is the house of ambition and shows how we strive for success and recognition. To use this house for personal development, we must focus on building a career and establishing a public image. We need to work on setting goals and developing a strong work ethic. This can be done through practices such as career coaching, networking, and self-promotion.
11th house: house of community, represents friendships, social groups, and aspirations. It is the house of hopes and wishes and shows how we connect with like-minded individuals. To use this house for personal development, we need to focus on building a community and connecting with like-minded individuals. We need to work on developing friendships and pursuing our aspirations. This can be done through practices such as volunteering, joining clubs, and pursuing hobbies.
12th house: house of spirituality, represents spirituality, the unconscious mind, and endings. It is the house of karma and shows how we release the past to embrace the future. To use this house for personal development, we must focus on exploring our unconscious mind and releasing the past. We need to work on developing our spiritual practice and learning to let go of things that no longer serve us. This can be done through therapy, meditation, and forgiveness.
Profection Years in Astrology
Profection years refer to a predictive technique that assigns each year of life to a specific house in the natal chart. The houses repeat in a specific order, with each house being activated for a year at a time.
During a profection year, the themes and issues associated with the activated house become more prominent and may manifest in various areas of life. For example, during a 2nd house profection year, financial matters and material possessions may become more important, while during a 7th house profection year, relationships and partnerships may take center stage.
Here are some things that can happen during each profection year:
1st house: A time of personal growth and self-discovery. This can be a year of new beginnings, where you focus on developing your identity and sense of self.
2nd house: A year of financial growth and stability. This can be a good time to focus on building your financial resources and establishing a solid foundation.
3rd house: A year of learning and communication. This can be a good time to focus on developing your communication skills and building relationships with others.
4th house: A year of emotional growth and strengthening family relationships. This can be a good time to focus on building a sense of emotional security and creating a sense of home.
5th house: A year of creative self-expression and building romantic relationships. This can be a good time to focus on developing your creativity and finding ways to express yourself.
6th house: A year of health and wellness. This can be a good time to focus on developing healthy habits and finding balance in your work and personal life.
7th house: A year of building healthy relationships with others. This can be a good time to focus on developing healthy boundaries and building intimacy.
8th house: A year of facing your fears and embracing change. This can be a good time to focus on exploring your desires and developing a healthy relationship with sex.
9th house: A year of personal growth and expanding your consciousness. This can be a good time to focus on developing your spirituality and exploring new philosophical ideas.
10th house: A year of building your career and establishing a public image. This can be a good time to focus on setting goals and developing a strong work ethic.
11th house: A year of building a community and pursuing your aspirations. This can be a good time to focus on developing friendships and pursuing your passions.
12th house: A year of releasing the past and embracing the future. This can be a good time to focus on exploring your unconscious mind and developing your spiritual practice.
Here are the ages we experience each house; In this example I just put where each year starts
(ex - you will experience themes of the 1st house from your birth to until you turn 1 yrs old, themes of the 2nd house from 1 yrs old to 2 yrs old, 3rd house themes 2 yrs old to 3 yrs old, and so on; each Profection year starts and end on your birthday)
1st house: 0, 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, 84
2nd house: 1, 13, 25, 37, 49, 61, 73, 85
3rd house: 2, 14, 26, 38, 50, 62, 74, 86
4th house: 3, 15, 27, 39, 51, 63, 75, 87
5th house: 4, 16, 28, 40, 52, 64, 76, 88
6th house: 5 ,17, 29, 41, 53, 65, 77, 89
7th house: 6, 18, 30, 42, 54, 66, 78, 90
8th house: 7, 19, 31, 43, 55, 67, 79, 91
9th house: 8, 20, 32, 44, 56, 68, 80, 92
10th house: 9, 21, 33, 45, 57, 69, 81, 93
11th house: 10, 22, 34, 46, 58, 70, 82, 94
12th house: 11, 23, 35, 47, 59, 71, 83, 95
The ages I marked red are the Saturn return years. It is an interesting time in life because it marks a time of great change, growth, and maturity. Since this is a topic related to ages I wanted to add it briefly to this post but I want to do a full post on cycles we experience.
How to Understand Perfection Years
For me to explain this I need to use my own chart as an example. To understand profection years, you also need to understand your rising sign, which zodiac sign rule over your houses and what is the ruling planet of that zodiac sign.
Here is a more comprehensive explanation of how to use profection years based on a person's rising sign/house rulers and how it impacts the theme of the year:
1. Determine your rising sign and the ruling planet of your rising sign.
Your rising sign, also known as the Ascendant, is the zodiac sign that was rising on the eastern horizon at the time of your birth. It is the sign that represents your physical appearance and the way you present yourself to the world. The ruling planet of your rising sign is the planet that rules over that zodiac sign. In this example, the rising sign is Cancer and the ruling planet is the Moon.
2. Determine which house will be activated for the current profection year.
Profection years are a predictive technique in astrology that assign each year of life to a specific house in the natal chart. The houses repeat in a specific order, with each house being activated for a year at a time. In this example, the activated profection year is the 10th house in Aries
3. Determine the ruler of the activated profection year house.
Each zodiac sign is ruled by a planet, and each house is associated with a zodiac sign. The ruler of the activated profection year house is the planet that rules over the zodiac sign associated with that house. In this example, the ruler of the 10th house in Aries is Mars.
4. Determine the sign and location of the ruler of the activated profection year house.
The sign and location of the ruler of the activated profection year house can provide additional information about the themes of the year. In this example, the Mars sign is Capricorn and it is located in the 7th house.
5. Based on the themes associated with the activated profection year house, you can figure out which area in your life will have the largest experience with personal development
In this example, the 10th house in Aries represents career, public image, and reputation. During this year, you may focus on building a career or establishing a public image. You may also work on developing a strong work ethic and setting career goals. Additionally, based on the sign and location of the ruler of the activated profection year house, the themes of the year may also be related to partnerships and relationships.
Using the themes of the activated profection year house, you can develop a plan for personal growth and development during the year. In this example, you may focus on building a career and establishing a public image. You may work on setting career goals and developing a strong work ethic. Additionally, you may focus on building healthy relationships with others and developing healthy boundaries in the workplace . You may work on communication skills and building intimacy. This can be done through practices such as career coaching, networking, self-promotion, etc.
My Experience with Perfection Years
I started to get really into protections when I was turning 21, so prior to my birthday I was doing so much research to find out what this will mean for me. At the time, I was in my final year of college, and during the 7th semester (I turned 21 in the middle of the semester since my birthday was always closer to the time of midterms in the fall semester), me and my fellow classmates were very focused on looking for internships because we needed on for our 8th semester because our program wanted us to organize our schedules that way so we could be set up to have a job in beauty or at least have more connections before we graduated.
This is what I found/ was suggested based on my research:
10th house is profected to Aries, they are likely to experience a significant focus on career advancement, success, and establishing a strong public image. This is a time to take on leadership roles and pursue new opportunities and challenges that may arise
the need to build a strong network of professional contacts that can support and facilitate career growth. This may involve attending networking events, engaging in social media outreach, or seeking out mentors and advisors who can provide guidance and support
May feel a strong desire to develop a sense of personal identity and purpose in their chosen career path. May also feel a heightened sense of ambition and determination to achieve their goals, which can lead to taking risks and embracing change in their professional lives
These are just highlights but I also want to share what made me actually start thinking of Profection years for personal development. Once I got more in touch with my spiritual side, I reflected back on the ages I was when key life events happened to see if it matched any of the themes that were aligned with the house:
Ages 11- 12: was the start of middle school and I had a lot of confusion with my sense of self during those years. It was a time of dealing with bullying, my first time thinking of identity and really thinking of my sense of self. I was alone a lot and even with having friends I spent a lot of time by myself, and those were heavy years that shaped what the next 12 years would be like.
Age 13: is when I started my first job I worked every summer. It was considered seasonal work and I never had to worry about not working in the summer.
Age 16: was a very dramatic year, I lost friendships (to a point where friendships, my friend group dynamic changed, fell in love with someone I was trying so hard not to, had someone confess they liked me for years, etc. the craziest year I had, 11-12 was a lot but age 16 had so many rapid transitions- it was my 5th house year and the sign that rules it is Scorpio. Since Scoripo technically has 2 planets it is associated (Pluto and Mars) with I think that’s why those shifts happened so rapidly and was such an emotional time. Typically I see the themes of the year July- October but November-December, after I turned 16, was a roller coaster.
Age 17: I got my 1st pet, Also since I was starting college in the fall I had to do a lot of planning to make a new routine for the next chapter of my life. (6th house year)
Ages 18-19: I started a Youtube channel which was something I was afraid to do for the longest time (18 was a 7th house year and 19 was 8th). It was also a time heavily focused on my romantic relationship from the end of my 5th house year that’s when this started but we didn’t become officially in a relationship until 3 months before my 7th house year and people found out about it a month after my 7th house year at Friendsgiving and it was hard because since it was my first relationship, figuring out what I needed and wanted in a relationship and how to compromise and learn how to communicate with another person while trying to let my own toxic traits/ traumatic experience influence the relationship. I spent both of those years heavily working through my insecurities because I wanted to face my fears that were personal to me but also affecting my partnership. I’ll probably explain this deeper on my podcast.
Ages 19-20: I focused on school and learning about different aspects of spirituality the most and had many things I wanted to try and practice. This part kinda is an addition to what I wrote about facing my fears, insecurities, and traumas so I can also be a healthier partner, friend daughter, sister, etc. 19-20 was more about the tools I learned for my development like astrology, meditation, shadow work, self-concept, Love languages, the 16 personalities, personality types (a, b, c, d), etc.
Astrology is a powerful tool for self-discovery and personal growth. It can help you gain insight into your personality, strengths, weaknesses, and life path. By examining your natal chart and the placement of the planets in each house, you can learn more about yourself and the world around you. Understanding profection years is just one aspect of astrology that can help you gain deeper insight into your life and personal growth. By using this technique, you can focus on the themes of each year and work on personal development in a targeted and effective way.
In addition to understanding profection years, it is also important to consider other predictive techniques in astrology. For example, transits and progressions can provide insight into the energies and themes that are influencing your life at any given time. Solar and lunar returns can also provide valuable information about the coming year. By using multiple predictive techniques, you can gain a more complete understanding of your life's journey and work towards your personal growth and development goals.
One of the best ways to use profection years is to keep a journal or record of the themes that emerge during each year. This can help you track your personal growth and development over time, and identify patterns and areas that need more attention. When you look back on your journal entries, you may be surprised at how much you have grown and how far you have come.
Overall, profection years are a powerful tool for understanding the themes and energies that are most important during each year of life. It is important to keep in mind that profection years are just one predictive technique in astrology and should not be used as the sole factor for decision-making. Other factors in your natal chart should also be considered.
Thank you for reading and if you have anything you want to see more of, be sure to comment with suggestions or email me. Remember to subscribe to my Youtube channel, and follow my Tik Tok, Instagram, and Twitter to connect and stay up to date. I am excited about my next blog post so make sure you come back. Until then, there’s a lot more content on my YouTube channel. I hope you have a good day, evening, or night.
Until next time,
xoxo Lay 💋