Money and wealth based on the 2nd house

" I work all night, I work all day to pay the bills I have to pay. Ain’t it sad? And still there never seems to be a single penny left for me. That’s too bad". This is a fragment from a song by ABBA "Money, money, money" from 1976. The track was published a long time ago but its lyrics remain true to many people nowadays.

Discussing the matter of money and earnings is a delicate process, so to speak. We live in a world that promotes consumerism and the human status is largely defined by the number of cars and digits on the bank account. There's also the matter of displaying that big, shiny TV set in the middle of the living room, so that every of our guests can see it. Not having the newest iphone nor wearing branded clothes is considered a serious blow to a person's image. And when one gets hit several times to the face, that person (and everything he represents with his life) becomes labelled and is pushed down the social ladder. 

Often money is not needed for boosting one's ego, but to survive to the next paycheck. 

But when we look at the descriptions of the 2nd house, we only find information about the methods of earning and managing money, the ebb and flow of money and our attitude towards resources (especially those movable goods, like in horary astrology) in general.

So what is the nature of the 2nd house exactly? Does this house hide a bigger meaning than just money? What does it mean to "be rich"?

Talking about the material in an immaterial way. Enjoy the reading :-)

How to understand the 2nd house?

The 2nd house has a similar meaning to the Earth element, especially the Taurus sign - it is a sphere of experience of a very practical and down-to-earth nature - we're dealing money here. From the condition of this house (planets inside it, the sign on the cusp and the house ruler) one can get to know how the individual manages money and for what purpose it is gathered in the first place. Often money is only a medium that helps acquiring  other, more personally valuable, "resources" i.e. cards, stamp collections or furniture.

2nd house in the natal chart is an indicator of how much the native cares about building a financially stable environment as a way to feel safe in the world, and how this environment will look. Personally think this statement is the key to understanding the meaning of the 2nd house, as all the tendencies i.e. to hoard items or focus on the financial aspect above everything else in the world) have their source in this irresistible need to be secured and having tangible proof of it.

One can look at the 2nd house from a more psychological perspective - analysing the value system of a person. The value of an item is based on what one is willing to pay for it - this is one of the most basic trading rule, strongly tied to the 2nd house. Our approach to what we perceive as valuable, will dictate the way we deal with money and what we are willing to do (or not) to have it.

When we combine every perspective, the meaning of the 2nd house becomes quite clear. Every planet in the 2nd house (or the ruler of that house) will indicate what exactly has become a valuable resource, for which we're willing to pay money for. The sign on the cusp of the 2nd house shows the way the native handles money and the attitude towards the resources - are they used a boost to achieve goals? or are they controlled tight in order to cling towards the feelings of security?

Great, but is it possible to see how much will one earn? 

Yes and no. Every planet (or sign) has their own financial strategy and success will be determined by the implementation of this strategy. The evaluation of success, the method of earning money or finding the source of income according to our potential, is a matter of an analysis of our whole natal chart. Certain planets have the potential to bring more benefits i.e. Venus or Jupiter (benefics) in contrary to Saturn and Mars (malefics) that have more potential for loss, although this is not a rule!

It is the environment around us that defines the value of certain resources, thus the amount of income. For example, a person having a carrier tied to sports or other activities with full of competition, will have trouble using the promise of his/her natal Venus in the 2nd house as this planet is more about co-operation, thus the potential to attract Venusian income requires effort.

Similar issue with a carrier field heavily based on structured, like an office job, and a person with Neptune in the 2nd house. It will take an laborious effort and creativity for that individual to use imagination and inspiration (Neptune's resources) to attract the income and achieve the natal promise of Neptunian's wealth.

Wealth

The 2nd house shows what has a tangible value for a person. Contrary to what you might think, it doesn't have to have anything to do with material things, as emotions or ideas can be as real and "tangible" as any item. When you think about it, people often do not pursue money for its own sake, but for the things they could acquire for it, for example the feeling of being secured.

The sign on the cusp of the 2nd house symbolizes a unique style of expression that one uses to gather what he/she thinks has the most value. Only when enough of these valuable resources has been gathered, the individual could start to feel wealthy, as in having enough to feel materially safe.

When the cusp of the 2nd house is the:

- fire signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius), wealth means enthusiasm and being at high-spirits, enjoying even the smallest moments in life. What becomes a resource for these people is the feeling of living, taking control over one's destiny, ensuring things go their way. That's fun and rewarding.

Fire signs people gather money in a "fiery" way, wanting to use it according to what their will tells them to do. As to spending the money, the most important is the experience of the purchase - even a minor, insignificant item gains meaning when these people "try it out" and feel alive while using it.

For the fire sign people, money becomes a tool allowing them to commit to the activities that are really important to them i.e. hobby or ... praise and getting recognition from others. 

- air signs (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius), wealth is gained thanks to the ideas or the quality of the mental exchange between a person and his/her environment. Written or spoken words become resources they want to obtain, thus these people will spend/invest funds for the activities that allow them to get closer to the source of these words. For example, air sign people can invest their money for photo sessions, because doing allows them to keep contact with the artistic/modeling or stylization-related environment. 

Being with other people that are intellectually stimulating (value) will raise air sign people's curiosity and to the point they will try to establish even more acquaintances, thus participate more in the social life (wealth). Of course, every person needs communication and some form of contact with others, but the value for people with Air in the 2nd house cusp lies in the ability to express oneself and seeing the results (more friends, better ideas) of such intellectual expression of Self.

The common value for both fire and air signs is freedom (of speech, being who one is). A well spend money allows to experience this freedom. These two groups of people will often face dilemmas that will encourage them to think about borders between safely gathered and well spent money. Fire and Air element needs movement and this motion, in context of the 2nd house, means an irresistible need to earn and spend money, which can be difficult for any saving strategy they'd like to use.

- water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces), being wealthy means having memories one can cherish and gain strength from. Often behind purchased or gathered items, there's a rainbow of emotions, even whole stories. "This painting may not be aesthetically great, but so what? Someone close to me painted it for me specifically and I like it". 

"Don't judge a book by its cover" is something people with 2nd house cusp in water signs would say, as it doesn't matter how an item looks nor what's it purpose, but how does one feel when purchasing goods. 

Emotional shopping is an often occurrence for these people, for better or worse. Sometimes an item has to have some emotional value to even be considered as "worthy of acquiring". 

Water signs, just like water itself, take the shape of the vessel that contains them, which makes these signs one of the most "masked" ones in the zodiac. You never know for certain what motivates the people with water signs on the 2nd house. What is rough on the outside, could be soft on the inside. For example, these people could spend money on trips to Argentina, but it is not the curiosity that would drive them to do so (that's Air element), but perhaps memories of a childhood dream. What seems like a strict financial discipline, typical to Earth element on the 2nd house cusp, could only be a result of a deep feeling to quit smoking, thus not wasting money on cigarettes. 

- earth signs (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn), wealth means what does your typical dictionary tell - to have/own and the more digits on the bank account, the better. Often these people want to have something tangible thanks to money or to expand their current state of possession in order to live more richly. Seems quite simple, but even with such a down-to-earth meaning of the 2nd house, the motivation behind money management is not always about getting richer and richer. 

The financial security and further investments in the material plane give comfort and a feeling of safety. And what's most important, make it easier to function in the world and society on the most practical, most visible, level. That's the ultimate value for earth sign people.

Anything can become valuable, as long as the results can be touched, evaluated and seen. And when the earth signs pay for something, they expect the product will meet their expectations.

8th house - the hidden indicator of wealth

It is not enough to analyse only the 2nd house in order to have a full picture of a person's income and wealth potential in the natal chart. Just like each coin has two sides, the meaning of every house has much to do with its opposite. So in case of the 2nd house, it's about considering the 8th house as well to the overall wealth indicator.

8th house has several meanings, many of them don't bring positive associations to our head, for example matters of death or other dark stuff. Right now I'd like to look at the 8th house from the perspective of the 2nd house and its keywords like wealth and values. 

2nd house means our own resources, thus something opposite of it will tell of values and resources of others or from others - this is what the 8th house is about. The values from the 2nd house are a result of our commitment to the world, now the values from the 8th house come from openness (also commitment, although in a different way) to what the world and society has to offer. 

8th house shows the wealth gained from the people we stay together with. Individual personality traits (or ways of expression) of others can become a permanent part of our own personality.  It is a very subtle and deep change, similar to the nature of the sign and energy of Scorpio. Gaining values from the 8th house doesn't mean big ups and down, although many 8th house experiences are intense, so that their potential to bring change has a greater impact. 

Often it is the everyday life and small gestures that bring the transformation.

Our beloved always brings us a glass of water when we're lying tired, on the couch? Seeing that kind of behaviour could make people with a water sign on the 8th house cusp automatically "take over" this care (a value) from the other. People with the earth signs could take over various traditions (repeatable tasks) i.e. every Sunday evening there's tea and cookies after supper. In case of the air signs, the adopted value could be a unique language between people (words that only certain people know within the personal circle). As for the fire signs, very inspiring are the words of reassurance, gestures that make these people noticed and feel special. Seeing someone consciously using his/her will to cheer up, makes the people with fire on the 8th house cusp take over such attitude and spread it further.

Comparing the strength of the 2nd and 8th house tells whether the individual is more inclined to rely on himself in terms of defining values, or the influence of others is what makes the individual actually  create a system of values. 

About the material in an immaterial way

Interpreting the 2nd house in terms of money and methods of earning income is uncomplicated, but understanding the nature of money requires an effort. The importance of money in society exceeds by far the significance we find in the descriptions of the 2nd house. How to explain the fact that prestige, position in society or even the path of development we choose (or rather we do not choose, because we cannot afford it) depends on the stability of our financial situation?

Astrology can be defined as a language, capable of providing an extremely deep perspective on the world and individuals living in it. And on top of that, a flexible language, which form will largely depend on the behaviour of society itself. I think that astrology and everyone using this language faces a great challenge to be able to reflect the changes of the society's values and rules in the natal charts of people. The reason for this is the evolution of our resources' importance (thus money) that happened before our very eyes. Money within the 2nd house is no longer a tool for achieving material security. The amount of cash we have sets our well-being, goals, even our development and our attitude toward others.

One can say, where's money there's a human being (you have money, you gain priority). 

So what is the nature of the 2nd house and its resources in the current reality? Can the modern meaning of Money be found in the horoscope? I think so! In fact, this meaning of the 2nd house was always there, waiting to be used, all it took was ... to start looking at houses not as separate, independent spheres of experience, but spheres that strongly influenced each other.

The order of the zodiac signs is not accidental and the same rule applies to the houses as well. If people want to experience their value system, first they need to define and develop themselves - that is the 1st house. Now in the world it is the other way round - it is the 2nd house (money) that sets the self-development (1st house). So there's a strong connection between 1st and 2nd house - one is a result of another.

2nd house shows the most material manifestation of what we've engaged in the 1st house. When we experience ourselves in the 1st house, we are focused on our personality "out there", busy living and discovering ones identity. It's about the impression of becoming whole. Now the 2nd house is not just about resources, it is about using the experience of our identity in order to function materially on the social level, which is about money.

Money and wealth based on the 2nd house houses of the natal chart

Looking for money and wealth only in the 2nd house gives an incomplete picture. Attitude towards money is a result of a system of values that is a matter of joined experiences from the 2nd and 8th house. 

And there's the 1st house and our identity that gives foundation for the 2nd house ... or is it the other way around?  

This kind of perspective puts a person's natal chart in completely different light, especially when the cusp of the 1st and 2th house is the same sign or when in the 1st house there's a "trapped sign" i.e. Ascendant in Pisces and the 2nd house in Taurus, making Aries trapped.

So what does it mean when a person's system of value and attitude towards money influences directly his/her identity (2nd -> 1st house) instead of the personality dictating the values (1st -> 2nd house)? Does this "direction" of movement have a meaning? 

That's a topic for a different series ...