Last Updated on July 30, 2020 by astrologerbydefault

The 12 houses of the horoscope are divided into the Dharma Trikon, houses 1, 5 and 9. The Arth Trikon 2, 6 and 10. The Kama Trikon 3, 7 and 11 and the Moksh Trikon 4, 8 and 12.

In Sanskrit the word Moksh is everything that a spiritual seeker aspires for. It is the Ultimate Knowledge which frees from the reincarnation cycle of birth-death-rebirth. It is the liberation of the eclipsed Sun and represents the complete balancing of karmic debts. Moksh means that the soul has experienced everything that is possible to be experienced including its own True Reality. It is the final understanding of the complete Universe.

In the horoscope the houses 4th, 8th and 12th are called the Moksh trikon, the triangle of release. The basic keywords of each of the houses/signs and planets are listed out in this post. The horoscope is the charted out path of a soul for one life-time, thus the release in this limited sense of one life-time, means the death of the physical-body and the movement of the soul out of it. These three houses are used to predict the situation when the soul separates from the physical body. (The timing of death is calculated using the Lords of the 2nd and 7th houses counted from the ascendant). The main house of body-death is the 8th. So let’s discuss the 8th first.

The 8th House

The 8th sign of the Zodiac is Scorpio and the owner Mars. The 8th house represents the moment of death of the body and the the physical situation of the body-death, self-destruction. This includes the reason of, the place of, method of and the environment in which the body-death occurs. This transformation is naturally ruled by Mars thus is very fast, terrible yet subtle and so complete that no trace of the previous soul identity remains. It is extremely powerful very secret and extremely personal. Death, and its opposite birth, is so common but is unseen and unknown, only can be experienced by the one soul who is going through it. The 8th is also the assets and wealth of the spirit that comes with death.

The 8th is the house of openings and the routes through which the soul travels to the astral planes. In my post on Kundalini I have described the naadi routes through with the prana and the kundalini travels, these secret routes are also in the domain of the 8th. The naadis are of different energy capacities. And the soul chooses that route which resonates with its energy. If it moves out through a higher energy route it will be reborn in a situation which will afford it better options for spiritual growth. For a normal mortal, the soul can exit through any one of the energy channels/naadis. This choice of routes is offered to the soul at the moment of its departure. For the enlightened soul who deserves Moksha, it leaves only through the brahamarandhra. This route to the brahmarandhra is opened and available only after intense Dhyan when the kundalini gets active.

It is extremely important to remain aware at the moment of exit so that you can make full use of the energy of release, this energy is generated by you yourself. The next birth occurs as per the mental/emotional/spiritual state of the person at the moment of death. Denying or resisting it is equivalent to resisting yourself. Your soul is in the center of the energy spiral and your new life is being formed around you. Thus participating in this energy game without fear and with full confidence and awareness is essential.

The 12th house

This is the ‘house of loss of the manifested‘. This house rules over the loss/reduction of everything that is visible and the increase of all that is invisible. It will reduce the vitality of the physical body, the conscious self, the waking state, the tangibles. It will enhance and expand the increase of the astral, the sub-conscious, the sleep and the dream states, and the unknown intangible.

This 12th is also the 5th as counted from the 8th house. The 5th house from anywhere is the expression of the intelligence and creativity of the matters of that house. Thus the 12th house represents the intelligence and creativity of the psyche at the point of death. And the 12th is the house of loss. Thus the 12th represents the transition of the physical manifestation to the astral. The identity of the Martyalok, based on the physical appearance, social status, ego, self is all lost. And the astral/spirit/pretatma identity of the Pitrulok is created.

We do this transition from physical to astral every night when we sleep, but here we return to the body when we wake up. But during body-death the chakra and naadi system /electrical energy-vortices and channels of the body are permanently blasted open. The energy of the blast, powers the permanent transition to the astral.

We are conditioned to think of death as a dark shock, a trauma where an unwilling soul is forced out of the body. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. When the body dies the soul moves out of the body very systematically, it is a natural process. The soul has completed the set of tasks it had laid out for itself as represented in the birth horoscope. If the 12th house, the sign/planets posted and aspecting are strong, the soul successfully and intelligently transitions and re-orients to the new realities of the astral. It utilises the energies operating at the moment of death completely, to choose the time to be spent in Pitrulok/astral world and the seeds of the identity and conditions of rebirth.

When a soul is ready to leave the body, his sub-consciousness plays before his conscious mind, a series of images from his stored karma. The soul intelligently chooses which image he wants to resolve in his next life. Thus the imprint of the new next life is registered. This is the creative aspect of the 12th house in relation to death. The soul chooses from the several possibilities of the astral energies. A stable emotional and mental environment at this critical moment allows a better choice. Thus spiritual aspirants, Yogis and Sadhus often leave their bodies when in meditation. During meditation the mind is stable thus the new rebirth is the best possible option. If the meditation is absolute, the soul attains Moksha.

The 4th house

And now the third side of the Moksh trikon. The 4th house, the foundation. Let’s now count from the 8th house of death, the 4th is the 9th house from the 8th house of death. The 9th house counted from any is the house of the paternal figures, ancestors, philosophies, rites, rituals, expression of ideologies and ceremonies associated with religion. So the 4th house represents the guidance, ideology and rites associated with the act of body-death.

The 4th house is one of the 4 foundation houses of the horoscope (the other 3 being the 1st, 7th and 10th house). This house is responsible for the wisdom that is available to the departing soul at this critical moment of death. Benefic planets, aspects and signs placed here allow the soul to receive protection, guidance and wisdom from the ancestors and guides who reside in the astral planes. This care-taking or sheltering support from the guides is very crucial as it will help you exercise your choice of regeneration better. This 4th house also determines the emotional stability and comfort level at the moment of body-death. If the soul is relaxed it will be better able to adjust to its new existence and also bid adieu to its previous physical manifestation.

The funeral rites, cremations and the mantras are very important as they create energies which propel the departing soul faster. Rituals have been designed by the ancient seers in such a way that every physical object used in the ritual resonates with its spiritual counterpart. There is no superstition. eg, the light of the lamp resonates with the light of ultimate enlightenment, the incense resonates with the prana energy etc.

The 4th is the house of bindings, thus your new identity of rebirth is bound to your soul here. The material, spiritual, social, emotional etc context of the new rebirth which you chose in the 12th house, at the moment of the 8th house is fixed in the 4th house.

The moment of release of the soul from its manifested physical body is the second most significant moment of the current life, the first being the moment of birth. So during this process, the conscious will of the soul has to dominate over the vagaries of the mind. Thus to really determine the success of this transition the 4th, 8th and 12th houses counted from the birth moon also have to be analysed. Counting from the moon will give the emotional context if each house. How you feel about the matters of that house.

This was the Moksh Trikon, analysed very differently. I do not believe that astrology is fatalistic. Yes, events happen but we always have the power to utilize the energy released from every life event to grow spiritually. There is no point of knowing the exact moment of death, which predictive astrology will calculate, if you are scared of it. Rather analyse your horoscope and be prepared to consciously use what will be offered to you. You always have a choice, this is in fact ‘Free Will’.