Dealing with a stellium in the sixth house

I'm an astrology newb ... and it's actually really hard to get myself to believe it sometimes ... but every now and then, I see traits and events in people and their lives that correspond so uncannily with their natal charts that I don't know what to think.

Like my significant other, for example. Throughout his teen and adult years, he's struggled with finding a direction in professional life, and given that he bases his self-worth almost completely on what he does academically and professionally, he feels inadequate, in fact useless. I want to emphasize that this is an absolute gem of a human being who just struggles to know what he wants and what he's good at and has been beaten down by poverty, depression and a toxic home environment all his life.

He has Mercury conjunct Uranus and Neptune and Sun conjunct Saturn all in the sixth house. From what I've been reading online, those planets and combinations in the sixth house are all supposed to test you through failure ... and I really think the stars have overdone it in his case.

So I guess my question is how one can mitigate and transcend powerful negative influences and find some measure of peace, understanding and contentment. I know astrology doesn't determine everything in a person's life, but if there are things that an individual can address in order to improve their lives or protect themselves from harm, what would they be?

I hope posting this here is okay. I'm not asking for a reading (and in any case, would have nothing to give in return unfortunately), just looking for some perspective from kind souls who know more than me. Would really truly appreciate it. Also, if you need any additional information, I'd be happy to share. I love this guy, if there's any way he can get over his funk by tweaking things here and there, I have to tell him.

fairylights, I think we'd need more information before we could offer advice that would be meaningful rather than unintentionally misleading. Nothing in a chart happens in a vacuum, so trying to analyze your significant other's Sixth House without knowing anything else would likely do as much harm as good. It would be important to know, for instance, which Sign is on the cusp of his Sixth House, and if any of the Planets you named there fall into other Signs. Where are the planetary Rulers of the Sixth House Sign(s)? What kinds of aspects do all of these Planets make? What's going on with his Second and Tenth Houses (both of which will be important if you're trying to analyze issues revolving around self-worth, money, work, and career)?

I'm not sure if you're allowed to post his chart or provide his birth data here or not -- maybe one of the moderators could speak to that -- but that would help a lot. If the answer to those questions is no, then maybe you could at least provide some of the info I was listing in my first paragraph up above...people might be willing to give you some basic feedback at that point!

frac_ture said:

fairylights, I think we'd need more information before we could offer advice that would be meaningful rather than unintentionally misleading. Nothing in a chart happens in a vacuum, so trying to analyze your significant other's Sixth House without knowing anything else would likely do as much harm as good. It would be important to know, for instance, which Sign is on the cusp of his Sixth House, and if any of the Planets you named there fall into other Signs. Where are the planetary Rulers of the Sixth House Sign(s)? What kinds of aspects do all of these Planets make? What's going on with his Second and Tenth Houses (both of which will be important if you're trying to analyze issues revolving around self-worth, money, work, and career)?

I'm not sure if you're allowed to post his chart or provide his birth data here or not -- maybe one of the moderators could speak to that -- but that would help a lot. If the answer to those questions is no, then maybe you could at least provide some of the info I was listing in my first paragraph up above...people might be willing to give you some basic feedback at that point!

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Thanks for the response, frac_ture (like the username, by the way!) Yes, I can provide a birth chart with identifying data blacked out. Will get on it soon.

Here is his chart.

Thanks for the chart, but if possible can you simply post his date, time and place of birth. It's much easier to set up a chart and examine other factors using my preferred house system and the planets' essential dignities.

I use a traditional approach, so I would not attach importance to Uranus and Neptune. What is clear is that Saturn, which is the out of sect malefic (the sun having just set) is in the sixth and squaring the Moon on the MC. By whole signs, the MC is in the ninth house and this suggests that career or public action may well be based on academic considerations. The square from Saturn is going to weaken that situation or at least he will instinctively feel that his aspirations are constantly blocked. The chart therefore matches your description of the situation.

His Ascendant ruler is the Sun and it is in it's Detriment (sign opposite it's own sign of Leo) in Aquarius, so he is not the most self confident person by any means. By whole signs the Sun is in the Seventh being conjunct the Descendant. His main focus in life, whether he knows it or not, is you and the marriage. That mitigation can come through the marriage is shown by Venus, the benefic of sect being in the seventh house and also being co-present with the Ascendant ruler, the Sun. So you are the person who can best mitigate his depression. You might not be totally successful but you are one of the best things he has going for him!. How you do that is going to require some thought on your part, as I can also see a clear link from the marriage to his health.

Saturn is the planet of melancholy or depression and placed in the sixth, it's probably that or other Saturn type conditions are the biggest threat to his health. Incidentally, how is your own health?

That's a very very simplistic take on the chart but if you can give his natal details I can perhaps go further and correct any errors I find in the above first take.

OK, first of all. Wow. Thank you! I would never have expected such a detailed and thoughtful response when I first posted this thread. This is really nice of you.

I will PM you his birth info as I would prefer not to have it totally public, if that is okay.

I'm ... honored that his chart suggests I have a big part to play in his life though it is also a lot to live up to. For better or worse, I feel fated to be with him and care for him, whether or not we work out in a classical sense. I've made my peace with that (as my own birth chart is not very love/marriage friendly, to be honest).

Right now, our connection is not a priority for him. More than anything, he wishes that he had something else to live for and call his own and be proud of but he doesn't know what it could be. He's also worried that his apparent lack of achievement means that he will never be able to bring enough to our relationship. This isn't a concern for me but I know he won't be happy until he finds this missing piece for himself ... I just want to help behind the scenes.

He has no idea how to take care of his own health though he has recently started to try. His health, like mine, is good right now, but we both have troubling aspects in our family medical histories (cancer and joint/pain disorders in his, hypertension and heart disease in mine) so we absolutely need to take care of ourselves if we want to keep enjoying good health.

Once again, thank you so much. I'm touched by your kindness (and I hope to be able to pass it on some day at the very least.)

Minderwiz said:

Thanks for the chart, but if possible can you simply post his date, time and place of birth. It's much easier to set up a chart and examine other factors using my preferred house system and the planets' essential dignities.

I use a traditional approach, so I would not attach importance to Uranus and Neptune. What is clear is that Saturn, which is the out of sect malefic (the sun having just set) is in the sixth and squaring the Moon on the MC. By whole signs, the MC is in the ninth house and this suggests that career or public action may well be based on academic considerations. The square from Saturn is going to weaken that situation or at least he will instinctively feel that his aspirations are constantly blocked. The chart therefore matches your description of the situation.

His Ascendant ruler is the Sun and it is in it's Detriment (sign opposite it's own sign of Leo) in Aquarius, so he is not the most self confident person by any means. By whole signs the Sun is in the Seventh being conjunct the Descendant. His main focus in life, whether he knows it or not, is you and the marriage. That mitigation can come through the marriage is shown by Venus, the benefic of sect being in the seventh house and also being co-present with the Ascendant ruler, the Sun. So you are the person who can best mitigate his depression. You might not be totally successful but you are one of the best things he has going for him!. How you do that is going to require some thought on your part, as I can also see a clear link from the marriage to his health.

Saturn is the planet of melancholy or depression and placed in the sixth, it's probably that or other Saturn type conditions are the biggest threat to his health. Incidentally, how is your own health?

That's a very very simplistic take on the chart but if you can give his natal details I can perhaps go further and correct any errors I find in the above first take.

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Thanks for the natal details and the further background. I'm away from home at the moment, so it will be tomorrow at the earliest before I can give more details.

I do have a clearer view from your comments of something I did not mention earlier. He does need to 'succeed' in relationships but the problem in the chart is that the house of marriage and relationships is ruled by Saturn. Now that does not specifically mean you personally, any relationship will be a challenge to him and that challenge may lead to depression or other problems. You task is to help him find a way in which he can feel successful in the relationship, in his own eyes.

Now this is possible because Venus, the beneficial of sect in a night chart, also lies in the seventh by whole sign houses. The chance for success is there, for him.

Thanks for letting me know and of course it is no problem at all. I really appreciate that you're taking the time to talk me through this. In any case, I have decided, with some difficulty, not to push this situation to a hasty conclusion and to keep the status quo until I have greater clarity. Which I'm hoping this forum can help me with, partly.

I'm also posting my own natal chart. Is there anything specific that I could do to help him? I hope this is okay, I don't want to impose, particularly when you're busy and have been unwell (saw some of your posts, hope you feel better soon.)

http://i.imgur.com/1uKynwu.jpg

Minderwiz said:

Thanks for the natal details and the further background. I'm away from home at the moment, so it will be tomorrow at the earliest before I can give more details.

I do have a clearer view from your comments of something I did not mention earlier. He does need to 'succeed' in relationships but the problem in the chart is that the house of marriage and relationships is ruled by Saturn. Now that does not specifically mean you personally, any relationship will be a challenge to him and that challenge may lead to depression or other problems. You task is to help him find a way in which he can feel successful in the relationship, in his own eyes.

Now this is possible because Venus, the beneficial of sect in a night chart, also lies in the seventh by whole sign houses. The chance for success is there, for him.

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Thanks for the natal details for both of you.

Ok so we have a night chart that indicates he should be focused more on his relationships than any other area, over his lifetime. I stress that last caveat, because I'm not claiming that he will always see this as his main focus or won't try something else. It's just that he is likely to focus more on it than anything else over time. It also happens to be potentially the best area of his life, as he has Venus, the benefic of sect in the same place.

The problem is that he might not find this goes easily. His Ascendant ruler is the Sun and the Sun is ruled by Saturn, the out of sect malefic, and therefore the biggest threat. Saturn is in its own domicile, Capricorn but it is placed in the sixth by whole signs. Being badly placed Saturn will tend to weaken his need for a relationship. I think you said something about the connection between you being treated as a low priority by him. Even worse, Saturn will weaken Venus, for exactly the same reason. Venus is well placed in the seventh but ruled by Saturn in the sixth. Things will not go well easily for him in terms of relationships. In the extreme he might not be able to form one, though as he has you, we obviously are not at that extreme. However that doesn't mean that things will not be difficult.

You asked what can be done. Venus rules the tenth place of career (and we have already seen that Saturn squares the Moon on the Aries MC) so I'm not going to say that career is an easy answer, but it might be worth exploring initially, even if you have to look elsewhere later.

With Venus in the seventh, there's a possible link between relationship and career. That could be through both of you working together. Now there might be practical or other issues on that, so before I go any further, can you tell me something about his career to date (and that includes study for qualifications, as the ninth place is involved).

He was initially going to get his degree in psychology but that wasn't going very well. It was also tending to aggravate his tendency to sink into his own head and stay there. He didn't really know what he wanted to do with his life.

That was about the time I met him. I felt that he was standing in his own way with his career, so scared of failing that he wasn't even trying, and that maybe setting the bar higher seemed to be the answer. We discussed various options at the time; he said he'd enjoyed chemistry in high school and seemed to be interested in medicine so I suggested that he might want to pursue that as an option. Which he did with a blend of enthusiasm and wariness.

However, in all honesty, he is prone to a certain kind of magical thinking where he cannot help believing that he's special and does not have to try as hard as others, despite clear and repeated evidence to the contrary. This, to my mind, is a combination of clinical depression and having a hard time trying at anything that he is not 100% committed to. Also, it is difficult to dedicate yourself to anything when you're always hurtling from one crisis to another, which is what his life seems to be like. Anyway, the track he's on has not worked out very well. His performance has been average at best and he has failed classes at worst.

For now, he is continuing with the classes he's enrolled in but trying to figure out whether he can go on like this or what he might like to switch to. He's brought up writing and acting as options. I want him to do what makes him happy but my practical side is uncomfortably aware that these are unlikely work out for him as a sole career. However, I am not going to crush his dreams and spirit by saying he can't do something.

He says, also, that he finds comfort in indecision, because where there are options, there's hope. On the other hand, he feels really stuck right now, because while he is experiencing indecision, he feels like he has no real options.

He works a job in food service at the moment to pay for school and other bills and wants to get the hell out, but without further educational qualifications, that will be extremely difficult.

Minderwiz said:

Thanks for the natal details for both of you.

Ok so we have a night chart that indicates he should be focused more on his relationships than any other area, over his lifetime. I stress that last caveat, because I'm not claiming that he will always see this as his main focus or won't try something else. It's just that he is likely to focus more on it than anything else over time. It also happens to be potentially the best area of his life, as he has Venus, the benefic of sect in the same place.

The problem is that he might not find this goes easily. His Ascendant ruler is the Sun and the Sun is ruled by Saturn, the out of sect malefic, and therefore the biggest threat. Saturn is in its own domicile, Capricorn but it is placed in the sixth by whole signs. Being badly placed Saturn will tend to weaken his need for a relationship. I think you said something about the connection between you being treated as a low priority by him. Even worse, Saturn will weaken Venus, for exactly the same reason. Venus is well placed in the seventh but ruled by Saturn in the sixth. Things will not go well easily for him in terms of relationships. In the extreme he might not be able to form one, though as he has you, we obviously are not at that extreme. However that doesn't mean that things will not be difficult.

You asked what can be done. Venus rules the tenth place of career (and we have already seen that Saturn squares the Moon on the Aries MC) so I'm not going to say that career is an easy answer, but it might be worth exploring initially, even if you have to look elsewhere later.

With Venus in the seventh, there's a possible link between relationship and career. That could be through both of you working together. Now there might be practical or other issues on that, so before I go any further, can you tell me something about his career to date (and that includes study for qualifications, as the ninth place is involved).

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