#house systems

Ah yes, ye age olde debate... which house system to use?

When first getting into astrology, the majority will use the placidus house system whether or not they know it. Placidus is the default for modern/ pop astrology; every chart generation website automatically uses it. Nowadays, the most common runner up house system to placidus is Whole Signs (often used by traditional/hellenistic astrologers). Yet, there are many house systems...:

➔Whole signs ➔Placidus ➔Koch ➔Equal/ Equal (MC) ➔Porphyry ➔Regiomontanus ➔Morinus ➔Alcabatius ➔Campanus ➔Meridian ➔Vehlow ➔Meridian

In this post, however, I will give my own argument on why I use whole signs and why I disagree with placidus. If you disagree with me thats fine, but I hope to at least educate on how these house systems even work and the deeper meaning behind why using whole signs is improtant.

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First, how does Placidus work?

The ascendant (as well as the dsc, mc, ic) is a mathematical point based on the on the sign on the Eastern horizon. Placidus works by marking the cusps of the houses into two-hour intervals starting from the time of your birth. This is then pushed every 2 hours for the 12th 11th 10th 9th 8th and 7th house cusps ( because by the 7th house cusp it has completed 6/6 of its daily solar arc ) and then mirrored for the houses below (already an...interesting method). It is a quadrant system.

How does Whole Signs (WS) work?

Whole signs is not a time based system like Placidus. Whole signs split the houses into equal 30 degree segments, much like how the zodiac signs are split, so each house is equal in size and all the signs start at 0 degrees. The ascendant point, MC, IC, and DC float within the house instead.

Main issues:

Historical

➥The maths for this was laid out by Ptolemy for the purpose of understanding primary directions, of which most people now believe was actually used to predict lifespan - not for a house system. And then eventually an astrologer called Abraham ibn Ezra interpreted Ptolemy's works as a house system which Placidus then came along and validated. ➥During the 17th century British astrologers took this and ran. The Church did not like Placidus' works and so the astrologers essentially pushed the system as revenge against the Church/a big F you to them, making it the popularised system to use. This sacrified accuracy. Placidus rests on a foudnation not even designed to be a house system in the first place which creates a lot of problems as we will see below. P.S. I would HIGHLY recommend reading this article on the popularisation of placidus for a more indepth, better explanation.

Functional

➥Placidus simply falls apart at extreme latitudes (which people ARE born at). Take this chart for example:

Is everyone born at extreme latiudes suddenly inherently special for having such a chart where the houses are so vastly unequal and inutile in size? How does one go about interpreting the significance of this? Houses are literally swallowed up/duplicated or are massive or tiny. Just because your houses might not change so much in WS or placidus does not mean its still valid - a house system has to work for everybody universally. In WS however:

This works and makes SENSE. It is not an issue of being able to interpret the so-called intercepted house (which placidus has the issue of as the maths for it was never intended to be a house system in the first place) or not, it is about being accurate in how to read a chart. ➥Notice how in the placidus chart it appears the ascendant is in the 12th house. This is another visual issue with placidus, for instance apps like CoStar will even tell you that your ascendant is in the 12th house... Placidus or not though the ascendant is always in or at the first house, the ascendant can never be in any other house - the 1st house is literally YOU. The cusps just looked messed up because of the intercepted houses. And chart generating platforms like CoStar relying on placidus mess up even further...

➥ Intercepted houses mean a sign/s is "swallowed up" and doesn't influence any house cusp, which contradicts the principle that every zodiac sign has a clear role in the chart (every house and sign matters whether or not a house is empty etc). The idea that a sign is somehow blocked or inaccessible is untrue, whether or not you think it relates to you (certain aspects in your chart for explain that feeling when read properly rather than this, either way astrology does not care about how you feel or how you wish your chart was; many people get upset that their sun sign moves from the 5th to 6th house for example in WS).

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Rebutting common arguments for placidus

"Whole signs doesn't take into account the rotation and curvature of the earth!"

✣First, as explained above, WS houses remain consistent regardless of the observer's latitude, avoiding the distortions and inaccuracies systems like Placidus introduce, particularly at extreme latitudes. WS houses rely on the zodiac's natural, unchanging divisions, which are independent of the Earth's curvature and geographic location (as explained in this post), providing consistent and straightforward house boundaries. ✣WS matches the universe's system. The signs, and therefore the houses are all about the sun rising from zero (its declination/ going from 0 degrees of whatever sign up till 29 and into the next) as the system follows every 30 degree section of the ecliptic , and correlates with the length of the sign's period. If the ascendant involves the ecliptic meeting the horizon , the ascendant point is a specific coordinate that is located within the first house whose cusp starts at 0 rather than marking the beginning of the cusp. Why should the house system not match what is going on above from which we observe and practise.

"Why not a time-based system if astrology is all about predictive techniques and seems so time sensitive?"

✣ Time doesn't exist in space in the same way it does here, time is just our tool to pinpoint moments against a measurement from which we can organise things (generally speaking). Time is, however, crucial for predictions only in how translate what happens up there to below, less so for diving the sky which is basically already divided for us. ✣ Time-based divisions, like placidus, introduce unnecessary complexity without adding real astrological value, as the essential qualities of the houses are fully captured by the zodiac's natural 30-degree segments in WS anyway as explained above.

"The MC and IC cannot be in houses which are not 10th and 4th!"

✣ Yes they can, this is quite straightforward. In WS, the IC can be in the 2nd-6th house and MC in 8th-12th (extremely rarely it can be in the 1st/7th house too). It is a floating mathematical point (like the asc and dsc) and does not mark the beginning of the 4th house and 10th house cusps like in Placidus. ✣ This is because the MC is the point where the sun culminates at its highest position in the sky at a given location, corresponding to the local meridian. The IC is directly opposite, marking the lowest point below the horizon. The MC and IC are not tied to the zodiac signs but are based on the intersection of the ecliptic (the Sun's apparent path) with the meridian line of the observer's location. This intersection varies based on the time of birth and latitude, and these points can occur at any degree of the zodiac. Because WS houses are aligned with the zodiac signs and the MC/IC are specific points along the ecliptic, the MC and IC can fall at different degrees that don't align with the 10th and 4th house cusps. ✣ This adds more nuance to readings. For instance, if the MC is in the 9th house instead of the 10th, it might indicate that one's career/public life/legacy/how they come off is strongly influenced by 9th house themes like higher education, travel, or philosophy. Thus, they add more information to how 10th and 4th house themes manifest. ✣ Here is a must-read article if you want more information (thorough analysis of MC/IC through the houses) on this topic: Patrick Watson- What To Do When the Midheaven Is Not in the 10th Whole Sign House.

Ending thoughts

People find it difficult to move on from placidus because they think their placidus charts makes complete sense/they resonate deeply with it/ they simply prefer their house placements in placidus to WS. All this is because of, for lack of better wording, a skill issue. You think it makes more sense but thats because you don't actually know how to properly delineate a chart - end of. And that's fine, astrology is complex and interpretation requires a lot of practise and deep study, especially into hellenistic works for a richer understanding of astrology.

Using placidus makes readings and your understanding of astrology unnecessarily complex and undermines the true art of chart intepretation, allowing for pop astrologers to import their own 'psychological' analysis, for instance, onto you via astrology - a deep misuse. Astrology has never been about psychologically explaining yourself - it is a map of your entire life of which you will not always 'relate' to, especially at different points in your life because those energies simply won't be pertinent/obvious when we are 5 vs 50 for example. I have spoken about the problems of using "resonating" to determine the accuracy of your astrological studies in my introductory post already, but it is a point which keeps needing to be re-emphasised.

The Whole Sign system is the oldest of all house systems, used effectively by ancient astrologers for thousands of years. It provides consistent and reliable results, particularly in predictive work, without the unnecessary and inaccurate complications introduced by varying house sizes and interceptions. If you want to use profection charts for instance, or many other traditional techniques, placidus will not work.

Placidus (as well as modern rulerships and the ABC house system which I will make posts on later) will take a while to unlearn - it certainly took me a long time to adjust out of the grips of modern pop culture's inaccurate and misleading yet addictive astrology. This is okay. But at the end of the day, wrong is wrong no matter how you try to justify it.

However, it is your personal choice. Posts like mine can only hope to encourage you to explore the deeper layers of astrology. Things like WS can take a while to accept, or you may never accept it - but as long as you make that decision fully informed. Yours sincerely, an ex-Placidus user xoxo

As some of you may have seen from my recent posts, a couple of weeks ago a youtube/tik tok astrologer called whole sign users - including me - "lazy, non-abstract thinkers who can't think outside of the box". I dare to say it is ironic because people who use Placidus - a house system that is a default system in all astrology websites and software (aside from CHANI!) - are actually the ones leaning towards being lazy and unwilling to branch out and try something new. They are complacent in that regard. So that inspired me to talk about house systems in general and about why I personally find whole sign system the most accurate. I may do a part two where I will read a few charts to give you examples and illustrate my thought process. This part is an introduction and the theoretical reasoning behind my choice.

MY BACKGROUND

Like probably 99% of people, I've started my astrological journey with Placidus. It didn't last long (although if you count the time I've been indirectly under my mom's teachings then it's about 15 years, lol) because after a couple of months of my independent deep dive on astrology I switched to equal house system, which I found a nice compromise between an equally-divided houses and the fact that the 1st house starts at the ascendant.

And honestly, it's not like I jumped to the equal system just like that. I really didn't want to at first because that'd mean I wouldn't be able to be on the same page with everyone else - which still to this day is annoying sometimes when someone is showing a chart in Placidus and in my head I'm like "but this placement you're talking about! It would fit perfectly if you switched to whole sign!". But people refuse to keep their minds open and really stop and think about it. And I mean, really stop and think, not switch the system, look at it for 5 minutes, not really giving it a chance and then switch back to Placidus again.

So I've mentioned it ages ago but that deep dive into astrology started with synastry. I was looking at the bi-wheel of me and someone else and as much as I loved the thought of them having Venus in my 1st house, I just couldn't find logic in it: how can a Pisces Venus be compatible with my Aquarius ascendant if it's in a neighbouring sign and neighbouring signs have nothing in common??? It was a hard pill to swallow because I wanted it to be in my 1st, but it wasn't. It's two different energies, on paper Aquarius and Pisces shouldn't work together, so why is this trying to force me into thinking they do?

This is how I ditched Placidus. Because of synastry.

And to be fair, I have my rising sign at 0° so equal and whole look pretty much identical in my case. So it's not like a bit of Pisces could still be in my 1st house. But like I said, I thought that'd be a nice compromise.

But later on I've discovered ancient techniques and the most important and impactful of them all:

ANNUAL PROFECTIONS

So, in annual profections you basically use whole sign system. Helenistic astrologers had equal system and Porphyry at hand, yet they used whole sign exclusively for that technique. Even modern astrologers who use Placidus for everything will tell you: whole sign for profections. Because, just like with many things in life, there are certain tools for certain techniques and mediums. You know, you use acrylic paint for wood, not watercolor. Or, you won't use the same paint for your walls as for your steel fence, right?

So I used profections. And they were spot on and continue to be. Therefore my conclusion was, it doesn't make sense to constantly switch between houses - although, again, some people do that and that's fine but I like consistency and going back and forth became a bit chaotic. Because if certain placements get activated during certain years with profections, then why would I read these placements differently on a day-to-day basis. You know?

One thing I will say though is that sometimes I will look if a planet is cadent or angular. I guess this is also just to see if it's moving towards the angle or moving away from it.

MODERN APPROACH

So back to Placidus for a bit. Maybe this is beside the point cause we're talking house system usage in and of itself but Placidus users often value the intricacies of a "personalised" chart, where every chart of, let's say, an Aquarius rising isn't divided the exact same way. They also like the intricacies of interceptions.

Yet they don't mind using generational planets as rulers for every Scorpio, Aquarius and Pisces (wow, every Scorpio rising born between 1983-1995 has Pluto in Scorpio, how boring). They also often don't use house rulers. I've yet to see a modern astrology book that teaches about house rulers except for the ascendant ruler. Heck, my certified astrologer mom was never taught that - and she went to school for that!

And, the horror, they resort to the notion of "1st house placement is the same as an Aries placement". Which I despise bacause that is a thinking of a dummy and I have a separate article on it HERE if you want to give it a read.

Again, not all Placidus users but kind of following that default system and not looking for alternative points of view leads most of them to these ways of reading charts. Because Placidus has been closely ascribed to the modern approach.

And I think "personalising" a chart with things like traditional rulers, having MC-IC possibly fall into houses other than 10th and 4th and certainly using house rulers is far more superior than having things like interceptions, which I personally find to be a bit gimmicky.

And to quickly answer your question: interceptions are said to symbolize "blocked" energy, right? I find it a redundantly philosophical concept where you have to make up stuff in order for it to fit: and it either doesn't or the answer can be found in a different spot in the chart. I did watch some of the stuff from that avid Placidus worshipper and they blamed intercepted Moon for themes of secrecy when the Moon was in Scorpio - a sign that is already secretive. So, was it an interception specifically that caused it?

HOUSE RULERS

Such an underrated thing yet so accurate. How many times have we all seen people ask "but what if my house is empty?". Usually the answer is "look at the sign that rules that house", when in fact it should be: "look at the house ruler!".

And house rulers work best with whole sign houses. Profections are an amazing way of demonstrating that. Look at your chart or the charts of others and really pay attention to what planet rules your profection year: I can guarantee you that using whole sign you'll see a massive difference between, for example, benefic-ruled years and malefic-ruled years. It's like a night and day. Of course there's a lot of factors and sometimes a Venus-ruled year might go south on you when it's the year of Venus retrograde or Saturn is transiting your natal Venus. But that only proves that it is Venus being switched on that year, not another planet.

Or when your year is ruled by a planet that is exalted vs in detriment or in fall.

House rulers using Placidus? Or any quadrant system in general? A mess honestly. I was reading reddit, as I often do, and I've scrolled through a discussion on house systems. A user called StellaGraphia put it perfectly so I'm just going to quote them:

"house rulers are muddled in quadrant systems. There will often be a planet in a different sign than the sign on the house's cusp, and the ruler of that sign is ruling the next house, not the one the planet is in. So who is that planet relying on? That planet's whole condition, etc. in relation to who it is operating under is muddled."

TRANSITS AND SAME ENERGY SITUATION

I think even transits can illustrate it in a good way. There's a reason we have sign-based aspects because the same energies feel each other.

Let's say someone has Sun in Pisces but using quadrant system Pisces takes up two different houses. Transiting Saturn goes into Pisces, the Sun's going to immediately feel it - because it's the same sign, the same energy. And let's say that Sun is in the 3rd house and Saturn is still in the 2nd. How can it affect 2nd house issues if it's already affecting the 3rd house Sun? Personally I just think it gets unnecessarily messy.

This is kind of simmilar to that synastry example I was talking about earlier.

WHY IS PLACIDUS *THE* SYSTEM ACTUALLY?

I think the topic of quadrant systems is messy in general because there's so many of them and no one really is right in saying Placidus is better or Regiomontanus is better or Campanus or whatever. They're all someone else's idea of what a house division should look like, it's all hypothetical and the only real thing there is is ascendant-descendant degree cause that's a literal horizon and MC-IC degree cause that's a literal meridian of the Earth. Everything else? Theories. So which one is right?

The goal of a lot of scholars throughout the years was to finally crack the code what kind of system was Ptolemy (2nd century) describing in his texts on astrology. A few astrologers tried to push their own theory on what it was, including Placidus whose interpretation was pretty detailed in calculations. And so this is exactly why it got popular - it had the advantage of being an appealing old concept (or so they thought) that could finally be put into practice thanks to the technological advancement that made it possible to calculate easily.

Funnily, much later it turned out that Ptolemy was most probably using some sort of equal house division and nothing really that complex to calculate.

And so at that time in the 17th century older systems have been pushed to the side because of the excitement surrounding a system that required more nuanced math. And more nuanced math meant more advancement - at least for astrologers of that time.

Whole sign system is, for obvious reasons, tidier and simpler (as in more direct) but that does not equal to "easier to read" or, how our Placidus bully said, "for the lazy". Because there's nothing easier or more difficult about reading one or the other. It's just quadrant houses get more clunky if you want to read with house rulers and no, clunky does not mean more intricate. It's just clunky.

It's also more convenient if you don't know someone's exact time of birth but you know their ascendant. You don't really need the exact degree to divide the houses. Same thing if someone has an approximate birth time - as long as the ascendant stays in the same sign you're good to go. This is definitely an additional advantage of the whole sign houses that come in handy surprisingly often in my experience.

And earlier I said I used to find equal system a nice compromise. I think an equally (no pun intended) good compromise - if not slightly better - is Porphyry, which still retains quadrants but divides them into equal sections. So if you do like each of the axis to be the beginning of an angular house but like me, you find interceptions useless and like things to be more tidy, maybe give Porphyry a try!

So what I’m trying to say is, if someone wants to use Placidus - or any other quadrant system - then go ahead but don't be silly and say crap about other systems, especially whole sign, when it's a method that's been the blueprint and despite its simplicity (or maybe because of it) it works like a charm and it's been used by all the fathers of astrology and they didn't need such convoluted system like Placidus.

hey hey!

i use whole sign houses because it makes more sense to me as a traditional hellenistic astrologer and for that reason it is more accurate TO ME. but being self taught starting off, i did learn placidus. the whole sign house system however is closely aligned with the techniques and principles of traditional astrology, which is based on the teachings of ancient astrologers like ptolemy, ancient stuff. but as with so many other things in life, there are many teachers and ways to get to the same truth. so I say use what works best for your own comprehension and leave the rest.

the understanding with the whole sign house system is based on the idea that each sign has a distinct energetic quality, and this quality is expressed through the entirety of the house that the sign rules. by using whole sign houses, astrologers can more accurately assess the energetic dynamics of a chart.

Thank you so much!

I follow both! I studied both since the start, but I was mostly interested in mastering Tropical astrology first since it didn’t involve mythology and religion-based context. But I’ve always read Vedic as well, and honestly I’m starting to think it’s really one of the most accurate systems out there when you take into account the numerous charts they have, the nakshatras and padas, and all the little details. I honestly love it 🥺

For Tropical I follow Placidus but sometimes I either make it Whole or Equal house system to keep things spicy 🌶️ I study the charts of my friends so when I’m curious I like to change things up and see things from a different angle. And for Vedic I always use the Whole sign system since it’s always been used that way. I also think it works best that way because there are loops and troubleshooting things you can do that make up for it to be more precise in its predictions.

My reason for Tropical astrology and using the Placidus house system is honestly because I think it makes the chart really individualised to the person. Yes, Whole sign systems will give you general accurate predictions and maybe even long term predictions, but Placidus gets you straight into the general psychology of the person, and with aspects it makes things make more sense. In the short term at least, it gives me a good idea of who you present yourself to be and how you generally move through life.

Written for self-reference and posted for those trying to learn and practice astrology seriously. Refer to my blog bio for more.

Introduction

The houses are one of the most important concepts in astrology. They represent major themes and areas of your life, the world you inhabit, and your character, and understanding them is crucial to accurate natal interpretations. They are determined by the native's birth time and location, but also by the house system used.

This post is to help you understand what a house system is, and the most important differences between them. A follow-up post explaining my personal takes on when and how to use them is on the way. This one is solely for technical reference.

You'll notice below that the introduction includes a list of essential vocabulary. This is for reference. It is not necessary for seasoned astrologers to read. Feel free to skip ahead to the guide itself.

Newcomer's Glossary of Terms

The houses are a section of the natal chart in which objects and signs may fall. They are madly dividing the chart into twelve, and are named for their numerical order. So, the first house precedes the second house, the second house precedes the third house, etc.

A placement is a position in the chart. These positions are marked by degrees. There are 360º comprising the entire chart, obviously, but a placement is more often referred to by the degree out of 30º they occupy in the relevant zodiac sign. Placement may also refer more generally to the house or sign a specific position lands in.

Objects are any planets, non-planets such as asteroids and stars, or hypothetical planets which have placements. One may also use astronomical or other mathematical equations to determine significant positions of the chart. Such non-object placements are referred to as points.

Cusps are a type of point that marks the border between two houses. One house's territory begins with that house's cusp, and ends with that of the next house. So, the 1st house cusp marks the 1st house's beginning, but it also marks the 12th house's end. The 12th house cusp marks the 12th house's beginning but also the 11th house's end, and the 11th house cusp marks the 11th house's beginning and the 10th house's end, and so on, and so on.

The angles are the four most important cusps or points of a chart. They are generally found by referencing natal time and place. The four angles include the Ascendant (also referred to as the Rising), the Descendant, the Medium Coeli (also referred to as the Midheaven), and the Imum Coeli.

The Ascendant generally cusps or determines the sign of the first house. The Descendant is the angle opposite the Ascendant. It cusps or determines the sign of the seventh house. The Medium Coeli is the highest point of the chart. It either cusps the tenth house or, to my knowledge, exists somewhere between the 9th, 10th, and 11th house. The Imum Coeli is the angle standing opposite the Medium Coeli. It either cusps the fourth house or exists somewhere between the 3rd, 4th, and 5th house.

The Types of House Systems

There are three major types of house systems: temporal, spacial and ecliptic. The difference between them is in how they are calculated as well as the type of system it produces.

To call a system temporal means that it refers to the movement of celestial objects to determine house cusps.

To call it spacial means that the system refers to location in physical space to determine house cusps.

To call a system ecliptic means the houses are assigned equal divisions of 30º, with the Ascendant or Midheaven sometimes determining cusps, otherwise determining the houses' signs.

Temporal Systems

Placidus is the most popular temporal system. It is also the most commonly used system in Western astrology. It is a temporal and quadrant system. Quadrant systems prioritize calculating the angles, and calculate other cusps in relation to them.

Placidus is based on the arcs of heavenly objects. Basically: all objects have a set arc they travel through space. We divide that arc into twelve parts, making two halves of six parts each. The half exposed in the day is called the diurnal arc, and the half exposed at night is called the nocturnal arc.

The point between the two halves is represented by the Ascendant. (Hence the other name, the Rising, as this is the point from which objects rise out of the nocturnal arc and into the diurnal arc.) From this, the other four points can be calculated, such as the Descendant, which marks where objects transition from day to night, and the Midheaven, the highest point of the day's arc.

The Koch system is probably the second most popular temporal system, and is a relatively popular system for Western astrologers overall. It is also both a temporal and quadrant system.

The difference between Koch and Placidus is that while Placidus prioritizes calculating the Ascendant axis, Koch prioritizes calculating the Midheaven.

Spacial Systems

Campanus is the most popular spacial house system, and the only one I've personally seen used with any regularity. It is a spacial and quadrant system that references the birth location.

Campanus is similar to the previous systems in that it does rely on creating day and night halves of six parts each. However, rather than referencing the projected arc of objects, this system is created by dividing the celestial space itself.

The horizons divide the two halves, represented by the Ascendant, the western horizon where the sun rises, and the Descendant, the eastern horizon where it sets. The zenith, or the midpoint point of the sky during the day, Is marked by the Medium Coeli, and the nadir, or midpoint of the night sky, by the Imum Coeli.

Regiomantus is an alternative spacial and quadrant system that references the equator rather than the birth location.

Meridian System

At the start, I specified three major types of systems. This is true, but not the whole truth.

The Meridian system is calculated using both space and time, so technically, it counts as a spacial and temporal system. It is also a quadrant system, like those mentioned prior.

The Meridian system divides the celestial space into the halves of six, just like the spacial Campanus system, but the axis of this division is aligned to the celestial poles rather than on the horizon.

Ecliptic Systems

The Equal Sign system and the Whole Sign system are the two most popular ecliptic systems.

The Whole Sign system is the one I've see most used in Vedic. It assigns each house a 30º space which aligns with the occupied sign. Hence, a Taurus-ruled 1st house would have its cusp at 0º Taurus, regardless of the specific degree of the Ascendant.

The Equal Sign system begins by assigning a 30º space to the 1st house, starting with the Ascendant as its cusp, then assigns each preceding house a space of equal degrees. So, if the Ascendant is in 19º Taurus, the 2nd house cusp will be at 19º Gemini, the 3rd house cusp at 19º Cancer, and so on.

An alternative variation on the Equal Sign system is used by some, which prioritizes the Midheaven as the inciting cusp. This can result in Ascendants that do not land in the 1st house. So, say the native with a 19º Taurus Ascendant has their Midheaven at 7º Pisces. Using the Equal Sign MC system, the 10th house starts at 7º Pisces, the 11th starts at 7º Aries, the 12th at 7º Taurus, and the 1st at 7º Gemini, resulting in a 12th house placement for the Ascendant.

Of course, using the normal Equal Sign system on a chart with these placements would result in an 11th house Midheaven. This is the trade off of using an ecliptic system. It may seem strange or counterintuitive to quadrant system users, but it also opens up new avenues for placement interpretation.

Conclusion

What sign and the placement of your Mars Sign can indicate what causes you may fight for or feel passionate about.

Mars in the 1st House tends to sympathize with those who have gone through the same struggles they have. They may be more outspoken about the causes they care about. Fighting for a cause may also be attached to their identity somehow. 

Mars in the 2nd House is hardworking and practical towards their efforts in a cause. When Mars is in the 2nd house that energy can become a resource for the individual. This means drive, passion, vitality, and high energy or activity come naturally or can be tapped into in a very realistic or tangible way. Mars in the 2nd is likely driven to support businesses that share or support their beliefs and causes. 

Mars in the 3rd House can be promising for teaching others about a cause. They may also have an influence on children and/or their community in shaping the beliefs around a movement. Mars in the 3rd can also be the broadcaster, the one to spread awareness for a campaign or set of principles. They in turn are also very susceptible, their passions easily ignited by news, stories, possibly propaganda, gossip, rumors, but also education. 

Mars in the 4th House tends to fight for or believe in causes that hit close to home. Anything that personally influences their life or family. They can have a deep understanding that laws, politics, news, etc. are not abstract - that they directly influence community, families, people. At times Mars in the 4th could also be closed off to issues that do not affect them. 

Mars in the 5th House can indicate a passionate, creative, and lively environment surrounding their Mars placement but Mars here is all about personal satisfaction, creation, celebration, romance, a little bit of drama, recreation, and pleasure. To fight for one’s enjoyment might be a motivation coming from Mars. When hyper focusing on causes, fighting, defending this placement fights for the right to party. They are also here to remind us to not spend too much time worrying, that passion and energy can be spent in many other areas other than fighting, and that comedy or to make light of a situation or policy can be a powerful tool in taking its power away. 

Mars in the 6th House has passion and heat involved in their every day life. They can be quite proactive in practicing what they believe in. An example that comes to mind is living more environmentally friendly. They may be interested in volunteer work, being part of a team, or working for a nonprofit. 

Mars in the 7th House may be most inspired by those they are close to in terms of causes and movements, taking on what they believe in. This person may also fight or be protective over loved ones, especially partners. But they can have a thin line between protectiveness, jealousy, and competition. Mars in the 7th is typically known as a very independent placement. Rebelling against a best friend or ex’s beliefs may be a temptation. Exploring what causes truly matter to them may be an empowering experience. 

Mars in the 8th House tends to sympathize with those who have experienced a lot of suffering. They may have an especially soft spot or passion to fight for those who have suffered abuse. Restrictions on one’s body, physical intimacy, choices about life and death, and privacy may be topics they care about. They tend to not be very vocal or open about their beliefs or anything they are willing to fight for or defend. But when push comes to shove they will not hesitate to correct or inform someone, they can also transform intensely to defend, fight, or bring change. Their biggest strength is intuition and a willingness or understanding to bring “death” or “destruction” to an old way of thinking or system. 

Mars in the 9th House tends to discover causes worth fighting for by traveling or learning more about the world. They can help educate or spread knowledge about an issue. Mars in the 9th sympathizes with those who don’t have an access to education, in foreign matters, and sometimes causes that are strongly linked to religion or spirituality. This placement might get easily riled up and zealous about their beliefs. 

Mars in the 10th House could fight for something because it influences their reputation. On a deeper level their passions may surround issues about workers, companies, freedom or ability to make your own destiny or success, possibly security or privacy, and the functioning of society. They may show their support or fight the most via their purchases and financial decisions. They may also be one to try to start their own organization or charity.

Mars in the 11th House tends to focus on the big picture when it comes to fighting for what they believe in. They are attracted to joining groups and organizations that support or fight for whatever they are passionate about. They tend to sympathize with social issues or anything large enough to affect all or most of humanity. They could also easily sympathize with friends’ causes or beliefs. At times this person may be influenced by their peers, the mainstream, the collective in terms of what they support and fight for. They are also someone tempted to create their own organization, charity, nonprofit, or club based on the causes they are fighting for. 

I use whole sign houses because it gives me less headaches, and because I still consider myself a beginner and it's easier, because I havent had much practice with reading for other people, I just study a lot. But I like Alcabitius as well. I watched Luis Ribeiro's classes on the reasoning and the methods of calculation for the quadrant houses and Alcabitius is simply the one which I like the best. Quadrant houses are more realistic in the way they represent the visible sky and this has always been a very important thing to consider. The signification given to everything in astrology has always been derived from how things actually look like. I always recomend learning astrology while looking at the sky. Stellarium is a good app to have as an astrologer. But Whole signs is still something you have to keep in mind even when you read using other systems. I use rulership of houses only by whole signs for example, and then the MC and IC are things of their own and they also indicate the angularity and strength of the planets. If I use Alcabitius and I see that someone has a planet on the 3rd sign from the asc but it's in the 2nd house, I would read it differently. I'd say that somehow in some small way that planet has some part in that person's finances as well, but especially I'd say that planet isn't really cadent or weak just because it's in the 3rd sign.