A Deeper Understanding of the 8th House in Astrology

A Deeper Understanding of the 8th House in Astrology...

Each house symbolizes a level of human development.
The 8th house symbolizes intimate relationships.
It is a house of self-development through relationships.

In the metaphoric journey of the soul through the houses, you have reached your second water house in the eighth house. So, you again deal with a symbolic death. In the eighth house, it's the death of your ego and individuality. To really give and share with another person, you must let go of your ego. Therefore, to really experience intimacy in relationships, which is the point of the eighth house, you must be willing to symbolically give up your own sense of individuality in order to completely merge with another person. As the last of the relationship houses, the eighth house represents how we reach this highest level of experience in relationships by freely allowing our symbolic death in merging with another person.

Every water house is indicative of the death of a phase in preparation for a new phase. In the eighth house, the death of your ego is required if you are to be reborn in the ninth house where you no longer abide by your ego, your own rules, or even by the rules of your mate. Instead, you abide by the higher laws of the universe and experience an existential and universal existence in this next phase of houses, the universal houses, where your ego has no relevance. Therefore, the eighth house is a transitional house, which is symbolic of the death of your selfish ego in preparation for your rebirth in the universal, ninth house.

The eighth house also involves taxes because of this transition into the worldly realm. By paying taxes, you must give up your money for the sake of the needs of the world in general. As with every water house, there is a great deal of pain involved with experiences here.

Death is not meant to be a pleasant experience, and the water houses are inextricably entwined with death. What's more, they are houses of emotion. So in the eighth house, you experience the painful emotion of the death of your individuality and ego for the sake of, not only other people in intimate relationships, but also for the world at large. It is your first glimpse of self-denial, not only for the sake of a mate, but for the sake of the greater good of society. Here, you must learn that it's not only okay to deny yourself, but it's necessary if you ever want to achieve a higher level of internal peace and existential, universal understanding.