Rahu in 2nd House / Ketu in 8th House

Dear ardent readers here comes the second in series of Rahu / Ketu (The Nodes) in 2nd House / 8th House, these articles focus mainly on mental, behavioral & thought planes rather than material level. The earlier series on Rahu / Ketu in Signs published in 2007 also is equally important & worthwhile reading, however care should be taken not apply these writings verbatim on any chart, as there are many other factors which need to be studied always before coming to any conclusion

Rahu in 2nd House / Ketu in 8th House

The Rahu in the second house is fortunate for the native’s personal worth; his/her business will prosper, he will accumulate wealth fairly rapidly, and many strokes of luck will urge him onward. It also favours a rich marriage for love, with an intellectual partner, of tall stature, gentle disposition and clear complexion.

The Ketu in the eighth house will bring trouble connected with the sense; abuse of the animal passions. It is also a sign of a peculiar death, often connected with a relative, or the marriage partner, or his/her parents, who may suffer from heart trouble. This position also implies trouble in connection with inheritance.

Emphasis is on developing personal resources. Can attract money, and needs to do so in order to develop ‘attracting’ power. The ability to attract (Venus), whether it is material or spiritual, is to be built in. Reliance on other people’s resources or other people’s money must go.

The person having the Rahu in the 2^nd will be faced with the problem of earning and managing his/her own resources. It is instructive for him/her to depend upon others’ finances and resources. He must build his/her own if his/her destiny is to be fulfilled. This nodal position needs to develop practicality, physical endurance, and perseverance. Rahu here must relate loyalty to sex, and must bring it down to earth and reality.

Ketu in the eighth is secretive. There is an innate knowledge or extreme interest in sexual matters as a true regenerative force. It gives a natural talent for the occult arts. Ketu in the eighth gives a desire to be supported by another, or the partner’s money is extremely important to him. It gives a knowledge and talent for handling other people’s money. This person needs to lose reliance on partner’s finances. He/she is not afraid of the thought of death or dying. It gives an extreme hunger for knowledge of the hereafter, coupled with an innate wisdom of our connection with the cosmic forces. Death seems to play an important part as a rejuvenative force in his/her life. There is a preoccupation with his/her sexual knowledge and prowess. however, he/she is very considerate of his/her partner’s satisfaction in sex. Ketu in the eighth can bring fame after death, depending on aspects to the Sun and Moon.

This condition often signifies unusual financial activities, or abilities to deal with resources successfully or unsuccessfully in this life. They have to learn to abide by their resources rather than others’ possessions. Tricky affairs with others’ resources in the past life would have taught them strong lessons. Thus, in this life, they try to stay away from credit matters and others’ resources as much as possible. Their partner’s money or possessions become a ‘headache’ for many of these individuals. Another significant lesson they have to learn in this life is to understand and diagnose the occult or hidden influences in their judgments and actions.

The individual with these Nodes spends a good amount of his/her current-life energies on the darker side of life. From past incarnations he has secrets which he now spends most of his/her time guarding carefully. His/her greatest difficulty is in attempting to lead a life which is beyond reproach, for his/her lower self is powerfully strong.

He/she desires light, but with every step he takes toward it the aching of his/her guilt-ridden subconscious blocks the road.

He/shehas had much prior-life experience behind closed doors, where the eyes of open society failed to look. He/she is even accustomed to creating deceitful circumstances where there were none before.

Actually, he/she is testing the limits of other people’s values; and while many may know him/her closely, none will know him/her well.

Inside, he/she is highly nervous for fear of others unlocking his/her secret doors; for well he knows that he is undermining nearly everything he/she touches. Yet he/she has the self-assuredness to believe that all will go well no matter where his/her sometimes immoral adventures continue to lead him/her.

Because this individual has not yet established his/her own sense of values, he/she tries desperately to study the values of others. In so doing, he/she inadvertently pushes others off their track and therefore can be a threat to all that others hold near and dear. In former incarnations he/she destroyed much of his/her own value systems, so now he finds it difficult to understand why others cherish the things they do. He/she doesn’t have his/her own stake in this life, so with nothing to lose he/she feels free to claim-jump the stakes of others. Usually, this is accomplished in such subtle fashion that it is extremely difficult to recognize.

There is also strong past-life residue of sexual misuse. He/she has learned to think of his/her sexuality as his/her strength, using it as foothold to gain possession of others. In the female, this is the story of Delilah Mata Hari, whose unusual sexual powers lured the strongest of men from their appointed missions. In the male, much of the life energy is dissipated on sexual thoughts. He doesn’t use it for power in the same sense as the female, but it is for him the reassurance that all is going well with his ego.

The interesting thing is that sex is never the end but always the means. In the give and take barter system, sexual allure or responsiveness becomes the payment in exchange for another’s values.

Individuals with these Nodal position become jealous easily. Constantly they wish to trade places with whoever seems to have a greater backyard; and all too often they feel the sex is a fair price to pay for all the honors they may eventually receive.

From past incarnations, this individual feels shunned by society. Now, on the outskirts of acceptance, he is like a little lost child, peeking into the window of a brightly lit cabin with the hope that somebody will come and let him out of the night.

He/she is less than discriminating, for he/she desires such an immediate release from his/her current pain that it hardly matters to him/her whether he/she is jumping from the frying pan into the fire.

He/she turns to wherever solace is available, for his/her loyalties have not yet reached the state of evolution at which they may be considered totally trustworthy.

In his/her current-life childhood, he/she experiences fear of death, almost as if death itself would be the logical punishment for all his/her misdeeds in past incarnations.

He/she keeps feeling that he/she has to fight for the things he/she needs, for he/she has no sense of having yet earned them. When he/she falls short of reaching the brighter side of life, he/she secretly blames others for his/her misfortunes.

In a few rare cases, this individual must overcome past life criminal tendencies or residue of witchcraft. Only through a proper assessment of his/her second house Rahu can he establish the substance that will lead to a new rebirth.

Here the memory of past lives has to be brought to the surface and then eliminated completely in this/her eighth house of death before the soul can progress into a new set of values.

The individual must learn to develop and build that which is sincerely meaningful to him/her, understanding clearly that that which is dishonorably obtained is highly difficult to preserve. He/she cannot expect to grow through other people’s efforts, for if he/she wishes to cross the bridge, he must pay the toll out of his/her own pocket.

As soon as he grows to this realization, the lighted door cabin swings open for him/her not through the goodness of others, but because he/she has earned it!

The sign which contains the Ketu indicates the ways in which former incarnations have brought the individual to be too preoccupied with the business of others.

The sign which contains the Rahu shows the ways in which he/she can now build a substantially new and meaningful life for himself by establishing his/her own value systems.

Conflicts: Personal worth vs. worth to others. Practicality vs. sensuality. Ability to influence others vs. ability to be influenced by others.

Extravagance. Involvement in shady dealings. Creation of false values. Lack of discrimination. Misuse of sex, occult knowledge or joint resources.

Earn what you accept. Seek possessions for their practicality or intrinsic beauty rather than for their value as status symbols. Keep some strength in reserve for your own needs rather than using it all in pleasing others. Invest in known commodities rather than high-risk ventures. Keep spending slightly behind income.

When the Rahu is in the second house, there’s a hang-up about security. According to what stage of the balancing act the person is in, he or she can exhibit wild extravagance or greed and parsimony. In either case, there’s an emphasis on possessions as status symbols. The actual possessions may take various forms - from ultra-expensive to the recycled bargain. In any case, they’re only a symptom of the cause, which in reality is a perverted or underdeveloped spirit of enterprise. Sometimes possessions are used to assuage feelings of inadequacy caused by a constitutional weakness; other times they’re a means of providing some measure of present security to compensate for a childhood lack. There’s a strong tendency to trust to luck or be attracted to get-rich-quick schemes. Often, possessions are gained only to be lost again through extravagance or blind generosity. Sometimes there’s a tendency to gamble, with disgrace or disaster ensuing.

Chances are that some important form of security was withheld in childhood. Clients with this placing invariably complain of some traumatic lack of privacy. Having to share a room with several siblings, having to conform to stifling regulations while in boarding school, a parent who listened in on ‘phone conversations, opened mail, read diaries etc. - these are some of the most common experiences mentioned. As a result, these people have come to feel that they have nothing to truly call their own. Thus, even if they should acquire great wealth, they’re afraid to give even a little for fear that others will demand more and more until once again everything they have is gone.

This last form of expression may also result from a surfeit of negative eighth house Ketu experiences in the adult years.

Rahu in the second house wants assurance that his/her or her financial needs will always be met. He or she may dream of great wealth, but more commonly just wants enough to provide the basic necessities plus an allowance for indulgence in one major luxury - expensive beauty treatments, antiques, books, or whatever. (This luxury in itself doesn’t seem to have any bearing on the nodal sign; it’s more often connected with a rising or otherwise predominant planet.) Peace and harmony are also important components of the dream. In contrast, this person is often subject to feelings of strangeness or bouts of moodiness that hinder harmony and successful attainment of dreams. It’s interesting to note that there’s often marked psychic ability that’s repressed or totally denied. When this is channeled, moods often improve. In extreme cases, there’s compulsiveness that can lead to underhanded methods of obtaining goals. Again, this sabotages the need for harmony.

One tends to protect personal secrets, perhaps associated with feelings of undefined guilt and insecurity. An example of your self-protective needs could be your tendency to weave misleading webs around yourself as a form of ‘disguise’, or possibly from a fear of anyone coming too close emotionally. This insecurity influences relationships, and you may fear social condemnation if your attitudes and hidden personality are exposed. These fears may be unfounded, yet they exert inner stress and pressure, shaping communication and often causing you to withdraw from more intimate contacts.

You tend to undermine things unconsciously, having an unsettling and sometimes disturbing influence on events and people, as well as on your own life. A firm stand of personal values is probably missing; and this can have a negative effect on your identity. Intentionally or not, you can challenge the values of others in a manner which weakens them, as your impact can shake their foundations. As you lack firm values, you can fail to appreciate their worth or understand how others may rely on them for support through investing in beliefs, attitudes, and ideals which provide personal meaning.

You may feel socially unacceptable, although your isolationist stance contributes to this, as do deeper insecurities. Simultaneously, however, you may want to be part of the same society which another part of you is rejecting. Pain may come from fearful feelings of social rejection. The danger is that these unresolved, wounded feelings can make you want to undermine people and society deliberately, to blame and punish them for your lack of social adaptation and integration. The feeling that you deserve more than you receive, coupled with a knowledge that you are failing to make sufficient effort, can create contradictions which generate suffering, inner discord, and dissatisfaction.

Sexuality will have a high profile, and much attention will be devoted to your adult needs. Yet attitude change may be required, especially if you prefer domination and power over others or use sexuality as a means of releasing aggressive energies. Through deeper sexual experience, a path toward enhanced harmony with others could be discovered - a path whereby relationship negativity and confusion could eventually be transformed.

You need to learn how to build foundations based on your values and worldview, on what is personally important and holds meaning and purpose. Look honestly at yourself, define these important values, and seek to apply them in daily life. Once you learn self-respect and honor these values, you will cease to undermine those of others, and instead will respect them too. As you begin to recreate yourself, relationships will also improve and become more satisfying. You will discover a new social affinity; and thorough acceptance, self-rejection and disruptive pain will dissolve. You can benefit from self-directed changes along these guidelines, and they will transform your life. Human nature is more flexible and amenable to change than is often realized. Choosing to change will provide considerable insights into your nature. You could offer yourself as an example and help others by encouraging their transformation into a more meaningful life.

Essentially, with Rahu in the 2^nd house, we are concerned with exploiting our capital resources. We must learn to use the possessions, capabilities, and knowledge we have acquired or partly acquired. There is no need to rely on others for their help or financial assistance. We ourselves have sufficient strength and funds to play our part in life.

The 2^nd house has to do with personal possessions. It is an ownership house. The individual who has the Node in the 2^nd house must use what he or she owns in order to make progress. One becomes effective only when one begins to employ one’s capabilities, talents, or whatever one has - material as well as intellectual. Generosity, too, is important to cultivate, because as a rule there is a reluctance to give; or, depending on the sign, there is not enough self-knowledge and self-confidence in what one has. In which case, one must start to create this/her sense of security by continuing to build up one’s resources.

The area of life concerned is one in which, over a fairly long period in early youth, substantial acquisitions are being made. It does not matter if these are material, intellectual, or spiritual, provided they are solid. Then comes a second period, in which these solid values are put to work. Here, too, the key question is that of generosity - of whether or not one is prepared to give. If so, the discovery is made that abundant giving yields an abundant return.

When charts have this placement, one sometimes finds a poor self-image, especially when the Nodes receive hard or in conjunct aspects. The native underestimates his/her personal merit, which, in the 2^nd house, is judged by possessions. Consequently there can be a determination to hold on to these possessions without sharing them; also a desire to collect more. On the other hand, the native can become dependent on the wealth of others.

With the Rahu in the 2^nd house, the vital assets are sound, but this/her fact is left out of account until it registers in the conscious mind. The complaint is made that one is being exploited, or that others are earning more or are better off than oneself. But when the influence of the Moon’s Node enters consciousness, it brings with it a belief in one’s intrinsic worth.

If the Rahu is in the second house, the person’s greatest growth, evolution and fulfillment come through appreciation and enjoyment of earthly pleasures. In past lives, the person has been preoccupied with the profundity of life, mysticism, spiritual development, and helping others find their values and self-worth. It is not time to expand the practical side of being, and cherish God’s creation to the fullest. The person should focus on wealth, comforts, the arts etc.. Collections of any kind are very much to be favored. The person must let go of patterns of detachment and indifference, and engage fully and passionately in life. Enjoyment of the physical universe is his/her path to happiness, spiritual integration, and higher realms of awareness.

The person should concern himself/herself with personal security. He/she needs to take jobs that are steady and stable, and that allow him to cultivate a conservative, systematic manner. Endeavors involving agriculture, gardening, or archaeology will bring satisfaction and delight. The person should surround himself/herself with beauty, and take his/her appearance very seriously. He must honor the qualities of patience, consistency, firmness, and determination. Above all, he/she must learn to acknowledge and value his/her own personal needs and desires. He/she should seek out the real and tangible, and remain somewhat skeptical of that which he cannot see, smell, hear, touch, or taste. Self-identity is extremely important during this/her lifetime; and the person is developing loyalty, balance, and equanimity.

Sex may be enjoyed for the sensuality and sheer pleasure of the experience, but not as a means of gaining power, indulging in passion, or losing his/her identity to another. Unless other aspects of the birthchart indicate otherwise, the person may have little desire for the occult or mystical side of life. He/she is not much concerned with psychological transformation and spiritual methods of evolutionary growth. The Ketu in the eighth house is good for intuition and psychic ability.