The 6th House
Ripu bhava
What the 6th 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 17BPHS reads the 6th house for the maternal uncle, fears about death, enemies, wounds and sores, and the stepmother. BPHS 11.7
When it is strong: BPHS's chapter on the 6th house deals almost wholly with illness. Its one relief: when Guru (Jupiter) joins the lords of the 6th and 8th in the 1st house, the text says it destroys disease rather than causing it. BPHS 17.9–12
When it is afflicted: If the lord of the 6th is in the 6th, the 1st or the 8th, BPHS warns of wounds or sores on the body. With the lords of the 6th and 8th in the 1st alongside Surya (Sun), it warns of fever and swellings; alongside Mangal (Mars), of injuries; alongside Shani (Saturn), of vata (wind) disorders. Shani with Rahu, while the 6th house and its lord are with malefics, is the text's sign of long-standing illness. BPHS 17.2, 17.9–19
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 6th house
the checks the Janam Kundli report makes- Find its lord. Your lagna decides which rashi falls in your 6th 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, or in the 6th itself, 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.
- Count from the 6th house itself. The lord in the 4th, 5th, 7th, 9th, 10th or 11th from it supports it; the 6th, 8th or 12th from it is a difficult place. For the 6th, those are your 11th, 1st and 5th houses.
- Look at the grahas in it. Guru (Jupiter) or Shukra (Venus) in it helps. The 6th is an upachaya house, which grows with effort, so Shani (Saturn), Mangal (Mars), Rahu and Ketu here are not counted against it.
- See which grahas look at it. Any graha in your 12th house casts its drishti (a graha’s glance: the houses it looks at feel its influence) on the 6th. Mangal (Mars) also looks at it from your 3rd and 11th, Guru (Jupiter) from your 2nd and 10th, and Shani (Saturn) from your 4th and 9th. Our reports give Rahu and Ketu Guru’s 5th and 9th drishti, so they look at it from the 2nd and 10th too. Guru’s or Shukra’s drishti helps; a malefic’s weighs against it, except in an upachaya house like this one.
- 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. Mangal (Mars) and Shani (Saturn) are the natural significators of the 6th’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 6th house in a real kundli
From the Janam Kundli report
6th · Pisces Strong
Its lord Jupiter sits in your 9th house in Gemini, in an enemy's sign.
In it: Moon.
Drishti on it from Ketu.
Its lord stands in the 4th from the house itself — a supporting place.
for it: lord well placed from your lagna · lord in the 4th from the house itself, a supporting place · 31 points, 28 or more
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 6th house
by Lal Kitab, each with its own page| Graha | Lal Kitab | What it gives here |
|---|---|---|
| Surya (Sun) | Good | The Sun in the 6th house gives victory over enemies and good health but may cause trouble through a maternal uncle. |
| Chandra (Moon) | Hard | The Moon in the 6th house makes a person prone to cold, cough, and waterborne ailments. Enemies may cause mental stress. |
| Mangal (Mars) | Good | Mars in the 6th house gives victory over enemies and good health from physical exercise. The maternal uncle benefits. |
| Budh (Mercury) | Good | Mercury in the 6th house is exalted in Lal Kitab. It makes a self-made person who gains through intellect, trade, writing, printing or land, and whose words carry weight; lawsuits tend to go their way. A north-facing home and greed weaken it. |
| Guru (Jupiter) | Hard | Jupiter in the 6th house causes trouble from enemies, liver and digestive issues, and debts. The support of teachers and elders is less. |
| Shukra (Venus) | Hard | Venus in the 6th house causes marital discord, kidney or urinary problems, and losses through women. |
| Shani (Saturn) | Good | Saturn in the 6th house gives victory over enemies and good health through discipline. It brings success in service-oriented work. |
| Rahu | Good | Rahu in the 6th house gives victory over enemies through cunning, success in healing, and good health. |
| Ketu | Mixed | Ketu in the 6th house is in its pakka ghar (the house Lal Kitab gives a graha as its own, where it is steadiest), yet Lal Kitab reads it both ways. It is good for the children and makes a sound adviser while Guru is strong, but it can trouble the maternal uncle and bring aimless travel. |
Who rules your 6th house
it depends on the lagna| Lagna | 6th house rashi | Its lord |
|---|---|---|
| Mesh (Aries) | Kanya (Virgo) | Budh (Mercury) |
| Vrishabh (Taurus) | Tula (Libra) | Shukra (Venus) |
| Mithun (Gemini) | Vrishchik (Scorpio) | Mangal (Mars) |
| Kark (Cancer) | Dhanu (Sagittarius) | Guru (Jupiter) |
| Singh (Leo) | Makar (Capricorn) | Shani (Saturn) |
| Kanya (Virgo) | Kumbh (Aquarius) | Shani (Saturn) |
| Tula (Libra) | Meen (Pisces) | Guru (Jupiter) |
| Vrishchik (Scorpio) | Mesh (Aries) | Mangal (Mars) |
| Dhanu (Sagittarius) | Vrishabh (Taurus) | Shukra (Venus) |
| Makar (Capricorn) | Mithun (Gemini) | Budh (Mercury) |
| Kumbh (Aquarius) | Kark (Cancer) | Chandra (Moon) |
| Meen (Pisces) | Singh (Leo) | Surya (Sun) |
Where your 6th lord sits
what Parashara says of each placement (BPHS chapter 24)| Lord in | What it gives |
|---|---|
| 1st house | With the lord of the 6th in the 1st, BPHS warns of ill health and friction with one's own people, yet gives fame, wealth, honour, daring and virtue. BPHS 24.61 |
| 2nd house | With the lord of the 6th in the 2nd, the text gives daring, fame among one's people, life in foreign lands, happiness, skilful speech and attention to one's own work. BPHS 24.62 |
| 3rd house | With the lord of the 6th in the 3rd, BPHS warns of a quick temper, a lack of courage, enmity with all siblings, and disobedient staff. BPHS 24.63 |
| 4th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 4th, the text gives intelligence and great wealth, but warns of little happiness from the mother, a habit of carrying tales, jealousy and ill will. BPHS 24.64 |
| 5th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 5th, BPHS describes fluctuating finances and friction with children and friends, along with happiness, self-interest and kindness. BPHS 24.65 |
| 6th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 6th itself, the text describes enmity with one's kinsmen but friendship with others, and moderate happiness in matters such as wealth. BPHS 24.66 |
| 7th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 7th, BPHS warns of little happiness in marriage, yet gives fame, virtue, honour, daring and wealth. BPHS 24.67 |
| 8th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 8th, BPHS warns of ill health, hostility, coveting others' wealth, interest in others' spouses, and impure ways. BPHS 24.68 |
| 9th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 9th, the text speaks of trade in wood and stone (the word can also mean poison) and of fluctuating fortunes in work. BPHS 24.69 |
| 10th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 10th, BPHS describes a person well known among their people and gifted in speech, happy in foreign lands, but lacking respect towards the father. BPHS 24.70 |
| 11th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 11th, the text gives gains through enemies, virtue and daring, with somewhat less happiness from children. BPHS 24.71 |
| 12th house | With the lord of the 6th in the 12th, BPHS warns of constant spending on vices, hostility towards the learned, and cruelty to living beings. BPHS 24.72 |
Common questions
5 questionsWhat does the 6th house rule in astrology?
Illness, debt, rivals, service and daily work. It is called the Ripu bhava, and is a dusthana and an upachaya.
Which grahas are good in the 6th house?
By Lal Kitab: Surya, Mangal, Budh, Shani and Rahu.
Who is the karaka of the 6th house?
Mangal (Mars), as Parashara names it (BPHS 32.34); later texts add Shani (Saturn).
What if my 6th house is empty?
An empty house is not a weak one. With no graha in it, the 6th is read through its lord, the grahas that look at it, its ashtakavarga points and its karaka.
Which grahas aspect the 6th house?
Any graha in the 12th; Mangal (Mars) also from the 3rd and 11th, Guru (Jupiter) from the 2nd and 10th, and Shani (Saturn) from the 4th and 9th.
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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