posted March 15, 2010 12:43 AM         

i know that a lot of newbies struggle with this. and, knowing the difference can really help with clarifying a lot of the confusion that surfaces in chart interpretation. i don't expect everyone to agree but this is just my 2 cents on the subject and i hope to start some type of dialogue.

Planets are the raw energy, an archetype. for example the sun is the archetype of the self, ego, the individuated soul.

Signs are the physical manifestation of that archetypal energy, what that energy looks like embodied in the material world. continuing the above example, leo is what the suns energy looks like manifested on the physical plane. in being the first personal sign, it is just realizing that is an entity that is separate from its environment, its possessions, its thoughts and its feelings. it seeks to express its individuality. hence, leo always being "on stage".

houses are, on a mundane level, the areas or facets of life within which we humans function. and on a spiritual level they represent our soul's journey from our "entrance" into the world...the experience of our immediate environment (house 1); to our "exit" from the world and the immersion of the soul back into the One (house 12). so, the 5th house comes after the 4th house which represents our roots. the 5th house is our souls first experience away from the tribe. we see that there are others and we experience romance, we take risks and we create using what we gained in houses 1-4.

rulership is another conversation so i'll leave it at that.