As per classical Jyotish each ascendent sign has one particular sign which has the potential to cause trouble in the chart. The ruler of this sign is called the ‘Badhesh’. Signs of the Zodiac, are classified into ‘in motion’ ‘fixed’ and ‘dual natured’ ones, so

• So if a ‘in motion’/Chara sign (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) is rising in the ascendant, the 11th sign counted from it is its Badhak.
• If a ‘fixed’/Sthira sign (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius) is rising as the ascendant, the 9th sign counted from it is its Badhak.
• And if a ‘dual nature’/dviswabhavi sign, (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces) ascendant is rising then the 7th sign counted from it is the  Badhak.

Now let’s check out why these Badhak relationships exist like this.

Aries– Aquarius/Saturn – Their owners are neutral to each other and technically the 11th house and the 11th lord are considered to be beneficial but then why are they badhaks here? Look at the personality of the Aries ascendant, very vigorous, pioneering, dominating, confident and very very individualistic. This sign as the ascendant itself is doubly reinforcing the attributes of Mars. Aquarius on the other hand is all about working with a like minded group. Aries by its inherent nature does not like equal and sustained interactions in groups. He does not have the patience to bargain and interact with foreigners and strangers as equals. He likes to challenge and conquer. Now the 11th house is important and if Mars cannot learn this important core skill related to the house of gains, he will gain less than he expects.

Taurus – Capricorn/Saturn – Their owners are best buddies but still why this Badhak tag? Taurus by his inherent nature is the hoarder, he likes to collect treasures and enjoy with his close family/friends. Capricorn however is calculative in a different way, here the ways of influencing the society are explored. Ways which add to the social prestige and power (not necessarily just money!) are seen from Capricorn, hard work too!. Enjoyment is not very important for Capricorn. Now the 9th house is the foundation in every way. The philosophies and also the people. The peers, patrons, ancestors, teachers and paternal figures. These will behave as Capricorn decides. And the personality of Taurus feels this to be a challenge.

Gemini– Sagittarius/Jupiter – Jupiter dislikes Mercury and though Mercury doesn’t consider Jupiter as an enemy he can get a bit uncomfortable around him. A Gemini ascendant will grant duality, confusing, quick mental movements, fast shifts in perspectives, superficial analytical thinking etc in the personality and the environment. Sagittarius, his preferred partner in the 7th does not like this aspect his personality. Sagittarius is more stable, philosophical, serious, more considered, his thought processes are deeper and mature. Gemini is prone to juvenile and unstable behaviour and unless he works on himself and gains a ‘depth’, he will not be able to interact in a balanced way in all his partnerships, they may be business, personal, spiritual, emotional or mental partnerships.

Cancer– Taurus/Venus – Venus considers Moon as an enemy,  Moon is neutral around Venus. Badhak still? Both are linked to emotions but there is a big difference. Moon is love linked to security, comfort, compassion and basically ‘neediness’. Venus is love linked to the senses and based on individuality. In a Cancer ascendant personality, the house of gains is Taurus. Cancer ascendant can get very changeable as the personality is very fluid. To make the most of the potential of his 11th house this person needs to understand that collecting and hoarding resources is important, maintaining the lineage and family values is also important and to appreciate the sensual components of social relationships and interactions with friends and family. He needs to understand himself as an individual first keeping aside his need for maternal security and comfort (which can get quite difficult.). Emotional stability and maturity linked to his sense of individuality will grant him the gains promised by his 11th house

Leo– Aries/Mars – Sun and Mars are best friends but both have very different natures which affect the foundational philosophies of the native. Aries as the 9th house expects the Leo ascendant to ‘walk the talk’! Aries as 9th house will give foundational elements which will reward pioneering, challenging, risk-taking etc behaviour. Leo basically likes to shine. But if he wants to make the most of the opportunities offered by his peers, ancestors etc he will need to work, explore new horizons, take risks with confidence, etc. Just ‘shining’ will not be enough, more martial behaviour is required of this Sun!

Virgo– Pisces/Jupiter – Jupiter dislikes Mercury. Mercury is neutral and a bit uncomfortable around Jupiter. The same Mercury/Jupiter conflict expressed in a different way. Virgo ascendant over-analyses, wants to put a value on everything, think on several options and then again recalculate. Mind always whirring on different subjects always. His 7th house is Pisces, dreamy, vague, working on sub-conscious cues with little coherent thinking faculty. Now for Virgos to succeed in the aspects of the 7th house, they will need to incorporate a bit of ‘Pisces-ness’ in themselves which is like asking ice to burn! It can get exceptionally difficult.

Libra– Leo/Sun – Venus and Sun are arch enemies. The Libra personality is all about equitable sharing, balance, alliances and legal contracts. But his 11th house is all about self-entitlement, self-ego, personal shining and keeping oneself a bit above the rules. If a Libra ascendant wishes to make the best use of the potential of the 11th house he needs to learn to assert himself over the legal partnerships. If he always sticks to the concepts of fairness and parity he will not be able to adjust to the environment of his 11th house and thus his gains will be not as per his expectations. Behaving like the glorious ‘Sun’ in the house of extended marketplaces is a challenge for the fair ‘Venus’.

Scorpio– Cancer/Moon – Moon is neutral around Mars, but Mars considers Moon as a friend. Scorpio is the sign of debilitation for the Moon, i.e. the environment of Scorpio is perfectly unsuitable for the Moon to be in. But why would the 9th house Cancer be a badhak for Scorpio rising? Scorpio natives are extremely secretive and with hidden dangerous depths in their fiery emotional nature. They are like underwater volcanoes! Now for this native, his foundations of life are based on peers who are like the Moon/Cancer, emotionally supportive, caring, maternal, comforters, providing security shelter, sticking to culture and traditions and loving. This is the exact opposite of the Scorpio nature! But if this Scorpio has to make the most of his 9th house he has to interact sensibly with such patrons. For a Mars to understand and appreciate the Moon. A difficult proposition indeed!

Sagittarius– Gemini/Mercury – Jupiter dislikes Mercury but Mercury is neutral and a bit uncomfortable with Jupiter. This is the same as the Gemini/Sagittarius axis above. Here Sagittarius/Jupiter is required to understand the mental workings of Gemini/Mercury. Bringing the pedantic philosophical humanist Jupiter to the level of the chatty, gossipy, hyper-analytical Mercury is not easy!

Capricorn– Scorpio/Mars – Mars is neutral around Saturn, Saturn however considers Mars as an adversary. Here the Capricorn native is the hardworking Saturn, doing his public approved duty. He is interested in power which he can show off, prestige in society and raw power which sways masses (not just money!). He wants public recognition. But with his 11th house being Scorpio, his like minded groups from which he will profit are very different to his own nature. Scorpio is a mystery, fiery, explorer, drilling into the depths despite discomfort. Now Capricorn wants public recognition but his sources of gains are mysterious and secret! He needs to learn things antithetical to his nature which is always difficult.

Aquarius– Libra/Venus – Their owners are best buddies. Now an Aquarius personality is about making profits, interacting with like minded groups, etc on the ‘one to many’ scale. The 9th house of this rising sign is Libra its biggest challenge. Let’s see how this works. The foundation of this persons life is based on balance, parity, equitable sharing, and most important one-on-one interaction. For an Aquarius person developing deep meaningful alliances one-one with his peers, patrons etc is extremely strange, as it goes against his basic one-to-many concept. But peers and paternal figures are extremely helpful in various ways to make ease and sense in life thus they need to be cultivated.

Pisces– Virgo/Mercury – Jupiter dislikes Mercury but Mercury tries to be neutral but remains uncomfortable around Jupiter. The same thing as Virgo/Pisces above. Here the Pisces ascendant will be required to add a bit of Virgo-ness in his dealings with the agents of the 7th house, which is quite stressful for the dreamy dual minded fish!

The terms Badhak or Badhakesh are often used to scare. However they just indicate aspects in your life where you will be required to work hard but the returns will not be what you expect. We always expect, expectations are the root of every action. And every action is linked to your own personality and your personal environment. All your actions are thus ultimately a function of your 1st house. But it is not necessary that you will get what you expect exactly. And you know it in your sub-conscious levels. This internal expectation of not getting what you expect (some weird internal logic) is reflected by the badhesh and the badhak house.

Disappointments are an important karmic lesson. It is important to understand that the badhak energies are bringing up unresolved emotions from your past life baggage. If you can intelligently leverage these experiences you can learn the karmic lesson being taught to you and finish it once for all. Badhak is always a ‘good’ house, the 7th, 9th or 11th. This concept means that to get full use of the energy of the badhak house you need to work on yourself first. Only then will you be able to fruitfully utilise the ‘partnerships’, the ‘foundations’, or the ‘gains’ of the ‘badhak’ house.