Nick Dagan Best, an astrological collaborator known for his celebrity birth chart database, joins fellow astrologer Lisa Scheim to explore the fourth house in astrology. They discuss how this house impacts personal life, family dynamics, and heritage, using over 50 celebrity charts to illustrate these themes. The conversation delves into privacy, family legacies, and the interplay of personal experiences with larger societal narratives, shedding light on famous figures like King Charles III and Britney Spears through the lens of astrological influences.
The fourth house in astrology signifies home, family, and personal foundations, contrasting with the public life of the tenth house.
Placement of the ruler of the Ascendant in the fourth house reveals how familial ties significantly impact an individual's identity and direction.
Jimi Hendrix's troubled family dynamics exemplify the fourth house's influence on personal trauma and its repercussions on artistic expression.
Greta Garbo's retreat from public life underscores the fourth house's connection to privacy, personal identity, and familial legacies.
Emmett Till's tragic story illustrates how fourth house themes intertwine with societal narratives and racial injustices affecting family and home life.
Joan Ganz Cooney's educational innovations with Sesame Street highlight the fourth house's role in nurturing and developing future generations through family values.
Deep dives
The Importance of the Fourth House in Astrology
The fourth house in astrology represents core themes of home, family, and one's private life. It's a space that signifies personal foundations and roots, contrasting with the public life represented by the tenth house. The fourth house also encompasses issues of ancestry, lineage, and the hidden aspects of our lives that often influence our identities. Understanding the dynamics of the fourth house is essential for interpreting an individual's chart, especially in terms of how familial influences shape their experiences.
Significance of the Fourth House Ruler
The placement of the ruler of the Ascendant in the fourth house serves as an important indication of how family and home life can substantially influence a person's identity and direction in life. This placement often highlights significant connections to one's roots and upbringing, suggesting deep ties to family values and influences. Individuals may find their careers and passions intertwined with their familial and cultural backgrounds. Those with rulers of the Ascendant in the fourth may also exhibit a strong desire to create a nurturing and stable home environment.
Sibling Dynamics: Jimi Hendrix's Chart
Jimi Hendrix's chart is an intriguing example because he experienced considerable family dynamics that influenced his life trajectory. Born with Pisces on the fourth house cusp, he dealt with significant family changes, particularly surrounding his parents' turbulent relationship and his upbringing in a complicated household. The third house perfection year at age three saw his father reclaiming him from relatives, establishing a sense of family stability. However, losing his mother at age 15 during the subsequent perfection year profoundly affected him, leading to themes of trauma and loss that echoed throughout his music and life.
Greta Garbo and the Fourth House of Privacy
Greta Garbo exemplifies the quintessential fourth house placement through her Virgo rising and significant Scorpio placements in the fourth house. Known for her retreat from the public eye, her acting career was marked by a strong focus on private experiences, even as she became a Hollywood icon. Garbo's deliberate withdrawal reflects the privacy associated with the fourth house, where personal identity can become intertwined with familial legacies. Her iconic quote, 'I want to be let alone,' encapsulates her desire for solitude, further emphasizing the hidden and secretive dynamics of her fourth house influences.
Death and the Fourth House: Emmett Till
The tragic story of Emmett Till illustrates the darker implications of the fourth house, marked by his brutal murder at a young age. With Aquarius rising and Saturn in Taurus in the fourth house, Till's life was a painful reminder of racial injustices deeply entwined with family and home. His death sparked national outrage and played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement, revealing how fourth house dynamics can shape societal narratives. Till's open casket funeral served to confront America with the realities of racism while simultaneously embedding his story firmly in the annals of American history.
Family Legacy: Julia Child
Julia Child's chart depicts her enduring influences from family and her trajectory into culinary fame. With Mercury retrograde in the fourth house, she effortlessly conveys her upbringing and experiences through her remarkable cooking shows and culinary literature. Her sunny disposition, accentuated by Venus in the fourth house, intertwines personal narratives with broader societal impacts, as Child made French cooking accessible to American households. This strong connection between her family legacy and her public persona illustrates the fourth house's significance as the foundation of her successful career.
Connection to Place: Dave Grohl
Dave Grohl's position as a prominent musician is reflected in the transformative role his childhood home played throughout his career. With Capricorn rising and the ruler of the Ascendant, Saturn, in the fourth house, Grohl often highlights the grounding influence of his upbringing in Massachusetts. His deep appreciation for home is evident in his goal to buy his mother's house as a gesture of love and gratitude. This connection to his childhood and the importance of place reinforces the fourth house themes that resonate strongly in his personal and professional life.
The Enigma of Jimmy Hoffa
The chart of Jimmy Hoffa exemplifies the more tragic aspects of the fourth house, as his disappearance and subsequent death remain shrouded in mystery. With Saturn in Taurus residing in the fourth house, Hoffa's story intersects with themes of family conflicts, power struggles, and ultimately, the impact of his personal choices on his home life. His controversial legacy continues to captivate public attention, exploring broader societal issues of labor and justice. The unresolved mysteries surrounding his life and death serve as a testament to the weight of fourth house themes when it comes to family legacies.
Exploring Ancestry: Joan Ganz Cooney
Joan Ganz Cooney's contributions to children's education through the creation of Sesame Street are deeply rooted in her fourth house placements. With Mercury in Sagittarius and the Sun in Capricorn occupying the fourth house, her background in education and her desire to impact childhood learning align with the core themes of nurturing and development. Her innovative ideas paved the way for accessible quality education for children, showcasing the power of home and the family unit in shaping future generations. The success of Sesame Street highlights her commitment to fostering a learning environment that transcended traditional boundaries.
A Culinary Legacy: Jim Henson
Jim Henson's significant cultural impact through the creation of the Muppets highlights the prominence of the fourth house in his chart. With the Sun in Scorpio and a focus on creativity and storytelling, Henson effectively built a legacy that incorporates family values and the importance of relationships. His work blends humor and lessons about the world through his characters, creating connections that resonate with audiences of all ages. Moreover, Henson's commitment to graduate his art while nurturing family dynamics underpins the fourth house's emphasis on creating a supportive and loving environment.
The Intersection of Fame and Family: Bindi Irwin
Bindi Irwin’s chart illustrates how family can profoundly influence a public persona, particularly in the case of a child celebrity. With Mars in Cancer exalted in her fourth house, she embodies the spirit of her father's legacy as a wildlife conservationist and TV personality. Her family's commitment to sharing their passion for wildlife and conservation education has fortified her own identity, as she balances fame and the values instilled in her childhood. Bindi's dedication to her father's mission showcases the interconnections of fame and familial obligation beautifully expressed through her fourth house placements.
Legacy and Identity: Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley’s passing and subsequent recognition posthumously highlight the impact of the fourth house on legacy and identity. With a heavy fourth house emphasis, the connection to family and his heritage shapes the storytelling in his music. His art transcended tragedy, resonating deeply with listeners and reflecting profound emotions of loss and longing. The interplay of family history and artistic expression showcases the dynamic nature of the fourth house, where personal identity is intricately linked to family narratives and legacies.
In episode 467 astrologers Chris Brennan and Nick Dagan Best do a deep dive into the meaning of the 4th house in astrology, and examine the birth charts of more than 50 notable figures who have the ruler of the Ascendant in the 4th in order to demonstrate what the house means.
The fourth house is traditionally said to signify topics such as: home, parents, family, private life, secrets, the past, death, and matters after death.
We open the episode by talking about the significations of the fourth house in detail, and discussing the way that it was conceptualized both in ancient astrology and in more recent times.
Afterwards the rest of the episode is focused on looking at examples of people who have the ruler of the Ascendant in the fourth house, and these have been arranged into groups that concentrate on specific significations associated with the 4th house.
After that we have some brief concluding remarks before wrapping up.
Followup Episode on the Ruler of the 4th House
This is the first episode in a two part series on the 4th house in astrology, and part 2 will cover the ruler of the 4th house when it is placed in each of the 12 houses.
Part 2 on the ruler of the 4th house has already been recorded, and get early access to it now through our page on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/posts/115743332
Research Notes PDF
Patrons of the podcast get access to a PDF that contains our research notes and outline for this episode.
This PDF includes a handy episode guide plus bonus content not featured in the episode.
Become a patron of the podcast through our page on Patreon to access this:
https://www.patreon.com/astrologypodcast
Nick's Website
NickDaganBestastrologer.com
Timestamps
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:45 Structure of this episode
00:03:42 Bonus content
00:07:43 Significations of the 4th house
00:38:45 Preliminary remarks to chart examples
00:53:40 Ruler of the Ascendant in the 4th house
00:54:11 Parents
03:11:00 Home and living situation
04:10:25 Privacy, secrecy, and hidden things
05:25:50 Inner world & contemplation
06:04:49 The past, history, and ancestry
06:24:38 Death, endings, posthumous matters
08:32:23 Concluding remarks
08:39:57 Credits
Watch the Video Version of This Episode
Watch the video version of this episode on the fourth house on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEx3PaQSwfk
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Transcript
A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 467 transcript
Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode
Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3:
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