Moving Abroad in the Birth Chart

Should I leave? Where am I better off — at home or far from the place I grew up, and which way should I look? These are questions astrologers have been asked more and more often in recent years. In Jyotish the theme of moving has its own houses, its own significators and its own periods. Below is how the tradition reads this theme in a birth chart, what it can suggest about direction and why the chart will not name a specific country.

The 4th house: roots and home

The 4th house is the homeland, the parental home, the mother, property and inner peace. A strong 4th house with benefics speaks of a deep bond with the place of birth: such a person finds firm ground most easily where they grew up. An afflicted 4th house, its lord in the 6th, 8th or 12th house, or malefics in the 4th are traditionally taken to mean that peace of mind comes far from home — or that the person changes homes often.

The 12th house: foreign lands

The 12th house is the main house of foreign lands in Jyotish. It governs life away from the place of birth, distant countries, seclusion, expenses and liberation. A link between the lord of the lagna or the lord of the 4th house and the 12th is one of the best-known indicators of life abroad: the person finds themselves where they are a "stranger". The planets in the 12th house describe how that life turns out: Jupiter — with support and study, Saturn — through hard work and a long road, the Moon — with homesickness, but also with a deep sensitivity to the new environment.

The 9th, 3rd and 7th: travel

The 9th house governs long journeys, study and pilgrimage, the 3rd short trips, and the 7th life and business away from home. A strong 9th house often speaks of journeys that change one's outlook — an internship, study abroad, a long trip. But a journey is not yet a move: whether a person will settle in a new place the tradition judges above all by the 4th and 12th houses.

Rahu and the movable signs

Rahu is the significator of everything foreign: foreigners, another culture, an unfamiliar environment. Rahu in the 4th, 9th, 12th or 1st house, as well as its link with the lord of the lagna, is common in the charts of people living abroad. For example, Rahu in the 12th house is traditionally described as a pull towards distant countries. Another sign is the movable (chara) signs: Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn. If the lagna, the Moon or the lord of the 4th falls in them, a change of place comes more easily to the person.

Direction: the compass points of signs and planets

Jyotish will not say "Portugal is right for you", but it can point to a direction. Each sign of the zodiac corresponds to a point of the compass: Aries, Leo and Sagittarius — east; Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn — south; Gemini, Libra and Aquarius — west; Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces — north. The planets have their directions too: the Sun — east, Venus — south-east, Mars — south, Rahu — south-west, Saturn — west, the Moon — north-west, Mercury — north, Jupiter — north-east.

The astrologer looks at the sign of the 12th house, the sign occupied by its lord and the strongest of the planets connected with moving. The direction is counted from the place of birth — from the town given in the chart. It is a bearing, not an address: west of London lie both Dublin and New York.

What about astrocartography?

Maps with planetary lines drawn over the globe are a tool of Western astrology; they appeared in the 20th century and are not used in classical Jyotish. The site does not build a separate astrocartography map. If you are choosing between specific cities, it is more useful to compare what the chart says about direction with the dashas you will be living through in the coming years — and, of course, with the real living conditions in each place.

When to move

Moves most often fall in the dashas of the lords of the 12th and 4th houses, of Rahu, and of planets placed in these houses. Saturn's transit through the 4th house from the Moon and the period of Saturn, when it is connected with the 12th house, are traditionally associated with a change of residence. The day of the move itself is chosen separately — see the article Muhurta for Moving Home.

What not to expect from the chart

The chart does not make the decision for you and does not guarantee that everything will work out in the new place. Many people with a strong 12th house live in their home town all their lives — for them the theme of "foreign lands" shows up through work with foreigners, travel or a secluded practice. Use the chart as a hint about where life may be easier for you, and make the decision with your family, work and paperwork in mind. The houses and the navamsha need an accurate time of birth; if in doubt, start with rectification.

What to look at in your report

• The sign and planets of the 4th house, and the lord of the 4th — which house it stands in.
• The planets in the 12th house and the lord of the 12th.
• A link between the lord of the lagna and the 12th house.
• The placement of Rahu by house.
• The signs of the lagna, the Moon and the lord of the 4th: are they movable or not?
• The mahadashas of the coming years: are their rulers connected with the 4th and 12th houses?

All of this is part of the free report: calculate your birth chart — the interpretation opens straight away.