The 8th House
8th House
shared finances: debts, taxes, your partner's finances
what you inherit
intimacy
death
psychological matters involving fear, taboo issues, your Shadow
The common thread in the above themes is that they are all matters you do no have complete control over. Whether you're dealing with finances, sex, permanent loss and transformation or your own Shadow, it's advisable but not easy to confront the issues buried there. Often, 8th House matters are submerged or ignored.
If you have anything natal in this house, you will have increased awareness of these matters, either through deep blockages and fears or access to deep power. For example, natal Saturn in the 8th suggests fears around true intimacy (there's an effort to always maintain control) perhaps due to early experiences of having your trust violated. Natal Sun suggests someone whose purpose involves exploring taboo matters, dealing with other people's resources or doing significant Shadow work. When I write about the Shadow, I'm referring to the dark/unpleasant/frightening side that everyone has. The things you'd rather not admit about yourself.
8th House planets can be quite magnetic, attracting others with a hard-to-define energy. This is especially true with Venus, the ruler of your 1st/7th Houses or your Sun. Again, the theme is energy that you don't fully control-people are drawn in without any effort on your part.
An 8th House death can be literal, or it can refer to any permanent ending and total rebirth. However, this does not mean that a transit or progression to the 8th will necessarily bring a physical death (but it usually indicates a metaphorical death). Outer planet transits to this house can purge secrets and push you to confront the power others have over you or where you need to develop your inner resources. Transiting Saturn can be about paying off debts, setting boundaries or ending deeply destructive habits. Transiting Neptune can indicate difficulties and deception with a partner's money, what you owe or what you suspect. There can be paranoia and addictions but also profound healing and the release of inherited pain (wounds passed down through the generations).
Progressed Moon through the 8th is often a time of emotional confrontations with the self. Some interesting needs and impulses can be revealed.
If you want to:
Get a handle on your debts, taxes or joint finances, a Saturn transit is excellent for defining boundaries and responsibilities.
Do some deep psychological work, a Pluto transit can be profound but difficult as it purges everything you've been repressing. This transit can also trigger endings and transformations in an intimate relationship or your own approach to sex. Get ready for some Shadow confrontations. A Neptune transit can be confusing but can also dissolve deeply buried fears and pain. A Jupiter transit will expand any issues, making them easily accessible.
Deepen your commitment to someone, transiting Saturn will define things and transiting Pluto will reveal truths. But if there are cracks in the relationship, these transits can also trigger permanent endings. 8th House relationship issues are a few levels deeper than the 7th House one-on-one exchanges and compromises.
Free yourself from addictions/inherited issues/a destructive connection, transiting Uranus can blow the lid off what's been buried while detaching you from who or what you've been dependent on. But this transit can also be jolting as it stirs up anxieties and heightens the lack of control.
The key with any situation governed by this house is to accept what you do not have control over while accessing the courage to deal with what you'd rather not confront.
