The 3rd House. If the 2nd House controls the programs of the subconscious that determine the interaction of a person with the outside world as a whole, the 3rd House programs allocate the world’s information flow in general, especially the part concerning the other humans. The Third House determines the ethics of a person’s relationship with people except for friends and siblings (ruled by the other Houses).
The 3rd House Characteristics
The 3rd House is characterized by exchanges of information: general conversations, proper journalism, phone chats, secretary work, visits to neighbors who are not friends, casual meetings, trips in public transport, etc. The Third House differs from Gemini in greater concreteness: when Gemini is on, we are talking more about the style than about the essence of what is happening. On the other hand, a secretary, telephone operator, courier, or postman (who have the Third House on all the time) can do their job fundamentally and steadily (Taurus), consistently (Capricorn), absentmindedly and lovingly (Pisces), etc.
The Third House is characterized by the information that is within the framework of a person’s picture of the world. The expansion of this picture refers to the 9th House, and here we can understand why some people (diligent folks at school) learn easily but are completely unable to engage in scientific and creative work, while others often study with great difficulty but perceive and generate new ideas easily: in the first category, the 3rd House is more active, in the second – the 9th.
A typical situation of the Third House is a school lesson or college lecture. The ability to turn on the 9th House at least sometimes is a rare gift, and pupils and students adore such teachers. But the developed 3rd House gives excellent erudition. The act of cognition is always the conquest of the unknown, and in a harmonious scenario, it goes like a balance of the III and IX Houses. First, the Ninth House works as a tank attack, breaking through into fundamentally new concepts and ideas; then the Third House consolidates the gains as new concepts are rationally comprehended and combined with old ones, forming a different picture of the world.
The logic of the subconscious is usually very simple and based upon completely rational beliefs and attitudes, which, however, are often deeply repressed. As for the 3rd House, it determines the attitude towards people in general (the Second House determines the attitude towards the world as a whole). Most often, there is a social standard in the subconscious: subconscious attitudes form an appropriate life position, which determines both the style and general direction of conscious thoughts and feelings and, ultimately, human behavior.
While the 1st House largely determines infancy and childhood, the 3rd House is active at school and adolescence, when there is intensive learning and the formation of knowledge about the world involved. If a person’s Third House is stricken, then this period will be, perhaps, the most difficult time in their life.
The Third House looms over situations where thinking takes place as an information process. It should be distinguished from the influence of Mercury, which includes thought as an independent principle with the power to control energy. These, of course, are close, but the planets are always sources of influence, energy, causes of changes, and Houses only concretize earthly situations and materialize the energy of the planets.
The evolutionary level of the Third House is closely related to the problem of its balance with the Ninth House. The pure 3rd House is what is called “cold reasoning” or even “dead mind”. Subtle mental movements, aesthetic assessments – here the mind of the Third House does not fit, it is too rough. This is especially true of spiritual truths (the highest octave of the IX House). On the other hand, the latter should not contradict reason, as pointed out by the ancient yoga teachers; the spiritual and mystical walls and ceiling of the human worldview will collapse without the rafters of rational logic.
Our civilization as a whole is characterized by the dominance of the 3rd House. Modern science is almost entirely within its framework, striving to expand the formal apparatus for describing the external world instead of deepening the human consciousness, in which the external and internal world are directly connected. The governmental structure is also characterized by the dominance of administrative and organizational entities, functioning within the framework of the 3rd (and 10th) Houses, over free communities, governed by their leading idea (9th House), which subjugates individuals directly, without an external administrative crutch.
3rd House Strength and Harmony
The ethics of human relations, the foundation of which is the Third House, determines not only the corresponding programs of the subconscious but also affects the external behavior during communication. If one’s attitude to things and money (II House) is often enough to judge one’s attitude to the world as a whole, then the way a person interacts with strangers and casual acquaintances should allow estimating both (1) the level of the 3rd House development, and (2) unconscious attitudes towards people. The lowest octave of the II House gives the ethics of parasitic consumption of the external world as a whole; the lower octave of the 3rd House gives the ethics of the exploiter and manipulator of human souls and destinies.
Weak Third House
A person with a weak Third House nowadays lives a hard life; such people are not respected. They get lost in the powerful informational flow and get confused even crossing the street. In the office or a waiting room, tetanus attacks them, and they learn with difficulty. However, systematic work can produce excellent results; at least this person should learn to distinguish the essential and the meaningful from the unnecessary.
Strong Third House
With a strong 3rd House, a person values intelligence and erudition, often confusing the two. If their 9th House is weak, it is very difficult for this person to understand and come to terms with the fact that the truth can appear as a revelation in an irrational form. They understand that the mind is a powerful weapon, but they must learn that it is also a rough one. However, going beyond the limits of their ideas is difficult.
If the 3rd House is strong, and Mercury does not stand in it and is not aspected (weak), then a large flow of people, communications, and information will go through the person who will not be able to effectively manage it. And, although over time he will get a little more comfortable, he will not have the strength to cope with it (unlike the case when Mercury is in the 3rd House or Gemini, or is heavily aspected). The opposite situation, when the 3rd House is weak, and Mercury is strong, leads to great power of thought and logic, but it will manifest itself in other spheres that are not entirely convenient and natural for Mercury.
Stricken Third House
The stricken Third House gives a peculiar, but often tough and egocentric attitude towards people, sympathy for a certain, rather narrow circle of people and the types of communication with them, but actual interaction and connections with people occur in very large quantities. If there is a male Sign at the top of the 3rd House, a person will often insist on his own, even being greatly mistaken, when communicating. This provision provides an incentive to organize thinking, which initially follows distorted patterns.
Harmonious Third House
A harmonious 3rd House gives excellent social adaptation skills: this person knows everyone and everything, understands things easily, can connect anyone with anyone. Here the temptation is the laziness of thought: those people who come to this person on their own (karmically) are not enough, and the rest come with difficulty (the necessity to pursue these harder connections is completely unclear to this person). At the same time, a harmonious Third House can give colossal distortions: a person seems to speak correctly, but all the emphasis are in wrong places, resulting in nonsense which he or she does not even notice.
The Signs and Planets in the Third House
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but these examples should solidify your basic understanding of what the Third House is, what areas it governs, and how it is affected by the other astrological players.
Taurus on the cusp of the Third House – relations with strangers, brothers and sisters are calm, stable, almost palpable. Perception of unusual information is difficult, but familiar information is well-received and it is remembered for a long time.
Scorpio on the cusp of the 3rd House – gossip can have a huge psychological impact on this person. Emotional, often intolerant attitude towards people are possible; in case of defeat – conflicts from excessive toxicity and distrust.
Sun in the Third House – it is natural for this person to participate in informational, communicational, and administrative activities as a connecting link. These are couriers, typists, popular scientists, lecturers, administrators, journalists, teachers at all levels, including those disseminating spiritual knowledge.
The Moon in the 3rd House in the lowest octave gives a talker, a person who cannot live without an information flow, but perceives it emotionally and sometimes goes into ecstasy. This person consoles themselves with a good informative book and rational reasoning, likes to communicate with people in general (if there is no strong affliction of the Moon).
Mercury in the 3rd House is a strong position, the energy of Mercury finds its natural application in mental operations and contacts with people. But with defeat or weak aspects of Mercury, unfavorable conditions happen in the sense of a social environment or loneliness, which is poorly tolerated. This person needs to learn to be less outspoken in public.
Venus in the 3rd House is a need and potential ability to build relationships with people (both individuals and social groups) with elegance and ease.
Mars in the 3rd House – communication energy, active social position. An energetic flow of information and a karmic requirement to learn to comprehend it.
by A. Podvodny
