The 1st House
Tanu bhava
What the 1st house rules and what Parashara says of it, how to read it in your own kundli with a worked example, each graha in it, and where its lord sits.
What Parashara says
Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra, chapters 11 and 12BPHS reads the 1st house, the lagna (ascendant), for the body and its appearance, complexion, vigour and frailty, the intellect, joys and sorrows, and one's innate nature. BPHS 11.2
When it is strong: When the lord of the 1st sits in a kendra (the 1st, 4th, 7th or 10th house) or a trikona (the 5th or 9th), BPHS gives bodily comfort at all times, and a benefic in those houses is counted a strong support for health. If the lord of the 1st, Budh (Mercury), Guru (Jupiter) or Shukra (Venus) is in a kendra or trikona, the text gives long life, wealth, intelligence and favour from those in power. BPHS 12.1–2, 12.5–7
When it is afflicted: If the lord of the 1st is with a malefic, or sits in the 6th, 8th or 12th, BPHS says bodily comfort lessens; if it is debilitated, combust or in an enemy's sign, the text warns of illness. It also asks for care with health when the lagna or Chandra (Moon) is joined or aspected by malefics with no benefic aspect. BPHS 12.1–3
These are the text’s readings under its conditions, as the old texts write them for a man; they apply to anyone. A real kundli is read as a whole.
How to read your 1st house
the checks the Janam Kundli report makes- Find its lord. Your lagna decides which rashi falls in your 1st house, and so which graha rules it. The table further down gives it for every lagna.
- See where the lord sits from your lagna. In a kendra (the 1st, 4th, 7th or 10th) or the 5th or 9th, it helps; in the 6th, 8th or 12th it is hidden, and the house’s matters come more slowly. In its own rashi, exaltation or moolatrikona (a stretch of a rashi where a graha works most like itself, ranked just below exaltation) it is strong; debilitated, weak.
- Look at the grahas in it. Guru (Jupiter) or Shukra (Venus) in it helps. Shani (Saturn), Mangal (Mars), Rahu or Ketu in it weighs against it, unless that graha is the house’s own lord: a lord in its own house guards it.
- See which grahas look at it. Any graha in your 7th house casts its drishti (a graha’s glance: the houses it looks at feel its influence) on the 1st. Mangal (Mars) also looks at it from your 6th and 10th, Guru (Jupiter) from your 5th and 9th, and Shani (Saturn) from your 4th and 11th. Our reports give Rahu and Ketu Guru’s 5th and 9th drishti, so they look at it from the 5th and 9th too. Guru’s or Shukra’s drishti helps; a malefic’s weighs against it, unless it is the house’s own lord. A malefic sitting in the house and a malefic’s drishti on it count as one weight between them, not two.
- Count its ashtakavarga points. Out of 56, a house with 28 or more carries its matters well; one under 25 asks for effort.
- Read its karaka (the graha that naturally signifies a house’s matters, whatever the lagna) beside it. Surya (Sun) is the natural significator of the 1st’s matters, whatever your lagna.
Each help counts one point for the house and each weight one against. Two or more on balance for it reads strong; any balance against it, weak; anything between, mixed.
An example: the 1st house in a real kundli
From the Janam Kundli report
1st · Libra Strong
Its lord Venus sits in your 9th house in Gemini, in a friend's sign.
No graha sits in it; it is read through its lord.
Drishti on it from Mars and Jupiter.
for it: lord well placed from your lagna · drishti from Jupiter · 28 points, 28 or more; against it: drishti from Mars
Read together: a house that gives its matters readily.
This is the chart on our home page. The Janam Kundli report reads all twelve of your houses this way, with the dasha periods that bring each one forward.
Each graha in the 1st house
by Lal Kitab, each with its own page| Graha | Lal Kitab | What it gives here |
|---|---|---|
| Surya (Sun) | Good | The Sun in the 1st house gives leadership, government favour, and a kingly demeanour. The person is self-confident and honourable. |
| Chandra (Moon) | Good | The Moon in the 1st house gives a charming personality, good imagination, and popularity. The mother is long-lived. |
| Mangal (Mars) | Good | Mars in the 1st house gives a strong physique, courage, and forceful leadership. The person is quick to anger. |
| Budh (Mercury) | Good | Mercury in the 1st house gives intelligence, wit, and communication skills but the person may be fickle-minded. |
| Guru (Jupiter) | Good | Jupiter in the 1st house gives a noble character, good health, long life, and spiritual nature. It is highly auspicious. |
| Shukra (Venus) | Good | Venus in the 1st house gives physical beauty, charm, artistic talent, and a comfortable life. |
| Shani (Saturn) | Hard | Saturn in the 1st house gives a disciplined but hard life. Success comes after great struggle. The person is long-lived but inclined to pessimism. |
| Rahu | Hard | Rahu in the 1st house gives an unusual appearance, unconventional thinking, and foreign connections. It may cause confusion. |
| Ketu | Hard | Ketu in the 1st house gives a spiritual and detached personality. It may cause confusion about one's identity, and health issues. |
Who rules your 1st house
it depends on the lagna| Lagna | Its lord, the lagna lord |
|---|---|
| Mesh (Aries) | Mangal (Mars) |
| Vrishabh (Taurus) | Shukra (Venus) |
| Mithun (Gemini) | Budh (Mercury) |
| Kark (Cancer) | Chandra (Moon) |
| Singh (Leo) | Surya (Sun) |
| Kanya (Virgo) | Budh (Mercury) |
| Tula (Libra) | Shukra (Venus) |
| Vrishchik (Scorpio) | Mangal (Mars) |
| Dhanu (Sagittarius) | Guru (Jupiter) |
| Makar (Capricorn) | Shani (Saturn) |
| Kumbh (Aquarius) | Shani (Saturn) |
| Meen (Pisces) | Guru (Jupiter) |
Where your 1st lord sits
what Parashara says of each placement (BPHS chapter 24)| Lord in | What it gives |
|---|---|
| 1st house | With the lord of the 1st in the 1st itself, BPHS describes bodily wellbeing and strength and a sharp but restless mind; it also speaks of two marriages and of relationships outside marriage. BPHS 24.1 |
| 2nd house | With the lord of the 1st in the 2nd, the text gives gains, scholarship, happiness, good qualities, religious feeling and respect, and speaks of more than one marriage. BPHS 24.2 |
| 3rd house | With the lord of the 1st in the 3rd, BPHS describes lion-like courage, wealth of every kind, honour, intelligence and happiness, and speaks of two marriages. BPHS 24.3 |
| 4th house | With the lord of the 1st in the 4th, the text gives happiness from both father and mother, many brothers, a passionate nature, virtue and charm. BPHS 24.4 |
| 5th house | With the lord of the 1st in the 5th, BPHS gives only moderate happiness from children and warns of the loss of the first child, as a caution for this placement. It describes a respected, quick-tempered person, favoured by those in power. BPHS 24.5 |
| 6th house | If the lord of the 1st is in the 6th, linked to a malefic and with no benefic aspect, BPHS warns of poor bodily comfort and trouble from enemies. BPHS 24.6 |
| 7th house | If the lord of the 1st is a malefic in the 7th, BPHS raises a caution about the spouse's longevity. If it is a benefic, the text speaks of aimless wandering, want and low spirits, or, when that graha is strong, of a rise to authority. BPHS 24.7 |
| 8th house | With the lord of the 1st in the 8th, BPHS describes an accomplished scholar, but warns of ill health, a hot temper, and leanings towards theft, gambling and relationships outside marriage. BPHS 24.8 |
| 9th house | With the lord of the 1st in the 9th, the text gives good fortune, popularity, devotion to Vishnu, skill and eloquence, and the blessing of spouse, children and wealth. BPHS 24.9 |
| 10th house | With the lord of the 1st in the 10th, BPHS gives happiness from the father, honour from government or those in power, fame among people, and wealth earned by one's own effort. BPHS 24.10 |
| 11th house | With the lord of the 1st in the 11th, the text gives constant gains, good qualities and fame, and speaks of more than one marriage. BPHS 24.11 |
| 12th house | If the lord of the 1st is in the 12th with no benefic joining or aspecting it, BPHS warns of little bodily comfort, money spent to no purpose, and a hot temper. BPHS 24.12 |
Common questions
5 questionsWhat does the 1st house rule in astrology?
Self, body, health and how others see you. It is called the Tanu bhava, and is a kendra and a trikona.
Which grahas are good in the 1st house?
By Lal Kitab: Surya, Chandra, Mangal, Budh, Guru and Shukra.
Who is the karaka of the 1st house?
Surya (Sun), as Parashara names it (BPHS 32.34).
What if my 1st house is empty?
An empty house is not a weak one. With no graha in it, the 1st is read through its lord, the grahas that look at it, its ashtakavarga points and its karaka.
Which grahas aspect the 1st house?
Any graha in the 7th; Mangal (Mars) also from the 6th and 10th, Guru (Jupiter) from the 5th and 9th, and Shani (Saturn) from the 4th and 11th.
A graha reads the same for everybody. Your chart does not.
Where each graha sits in your kundli, which bhavas it rules for your lagna and which dasha is running decide what it does for you. Make your free kundli to see all nine.
Create free kundli
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