Do you believe that the sins of the father are visited upon the son?
I originally posted this in 2007. At the time, I did not see that my brother was suffering because of my father’s sins. I also did not see my husband’s son, suffering for his father’s sins. I see this differently now.
I am not a “son” but I do have my sun in the 8th house and I most definitely carry the legacy of the men in my family. I’m talking about my father, who beat me to a pulp, many times. His father, who also beat me and my other grandfather who was good as good; probably a saint.
So now, my body is all jacked from the horrific injuries, inflicted on me, pretty much daily from as far back as I can remember, until I left home at fifteen years old. There is no way to deny, I’m bearing the weight of my father’s sins. I didn’t see this before, because I’m uber-resilient. Emotionally, I feel really good, see?
I started to cripple up, due to my injuries, in my mid-late 30’s. I still didn’t see it, right away. I thought I did it! Nine surgeons and many MRI’s later, I am well aware this burden was put upon be by my father.
So what about your father, or you as a father? Let’s say your father is a weak man. He failed to protect you. He abandoned you. He put himself first. I think over time, you might realize the load your father put on you with this behavior.
I’m pulling this up because it’s not often discussed, but also because I care about kids, A LOT. If you are a parent, you ought to try not to load your kid down with a burden that you should have handled.
If you’re a parent who is right now, this minute, doing the wrong thing and you’re reading this? GOOD! Don’t make your kids carry your bags!
Do you have planets in the 8th house? What do you Scorpio Suns think?
The sins of the father, sure, but also the blessings of the father. I’ve got a packed 8th house. (I’m gleeful about actually knowing this now. Hee! Learning is so much fun!) Mercury, Mars, Pluto, and Uranus are all in the 8th house, which happens to be Libra. My Sun sign is also Libra, but it’s in the 7th house.
So, yes, I guess I see it as a balanced thing. Sins of the father are definitely visited upon the off-spring–but so are the blessings! And there are usually more blessings than sins. At least, in my life.
Only to the degree that a person inherits a weakness or disease. I believe we are untimately responsible for our own lives, actions and responses and that’s why we are endowed with the ability to learn and adapt. To blame your problems on inherited “sins” is copping out and thus refusing to grow in the direction life is pushing you with that particular problem. My first reponse to something going wrong in my life is to figure out what the lesson is and internalize it ASAP so I don’t have to go there again.
I have known people who came from wonderful healthy families who turned out terribly and people from horrible families that are the salt of the earth. The common denominator I see is people who turn out well accept responsibility for themselves and use the lessons to learn and grow while the ones who turn out badly usually blame other people or circumstances for their “bad luck” and refuse to accept personal responsibility.
My eighth house is ruled by Sagittarius but is split almost equally between Sag and Capricorn. It contains on planet, Jupiter (retrograde).
Yes I do. and no I don’t. I think that each child pays for their parents mistakes until they realize that it is a cycle in the family and then if they work at it they can change it. I know I am in my family…Ill see if it works for my kids as well.
I believe they are. Its up to the next generation to change it.
I dont have any planets in the 8th house, 8th house falls in leo. But my son has planets in sun, venus and mercury in the 8th house.
Yes, I definitely think so. I also think some beings have the opportunity to transcend the sins of the father, and that it is easier for some beings to do this than others…
There are multiple generations of four sisters on my mother’s side, and I am part of one. I am the only sister without an 8th house Moon, which I am always wondering what means.
I have no natal planets in my Pisces 8th house, but Transiting Mars and Transiting Uranus will be conjunct there at the last of the spring, and I am skeered!
Yes, definitely. And redemption from those sins carries on to heal future generations. For good or bad, legacies are passed from one generation to the next.
Scorpio moon and ascendant, Cancer Venus in the 8th.
No, I don’t think so. I am deeply linked to my parents, but on a deeper level than their and my actions. What they do, they do, what I do, I do. I feel more responsible for (attempting to) right the actions of previous generations, than on a family level. Moon in aquarius in 8th
We may inherit juju/legacies from our families, but how I deal with it in this lifetime is my doing and my contribution to possible futures as well :).
I think it’s a matter of choice. Yes, we can be deeply affected by the lives of our parents, but just like any other form of data that enters our lives, it’s what we do with the knowledge that makes our existence unique and ours. You can continue the cycle, tweak it, or break it completely.
I have an 8th House Taurus Sun/Chiron conjunction. I don’t know what that means exactly.
I think the ‘sins of the father’ is that which causes affliction in the sons that must be resolved by the new generation in order to live a fulfilled life. The most blatant examples of this IMO is child abuse, addiction or an absentee father. Now a son must resolved those sins of the father in his own life to be liberated from them.
Yes, and it is shown in the child’s chart and synastry with the parent.
i have an 8th house moon. 😉
i have 8th house sun and venus and yes i think the sins of the father definitely visit in the 8th house. my fathers absence/lack of attention impacted my self esteem. inorder to get his attention i got praise /succeess hungry which only backfired…. now i can see how much they r his baggage… but im too deep in it to not be what he expected me to be.
but i shouldnt blame my father , ill blame my birth chart 🙂
What’s crazy is that today I learned I am not exempt of embarrassing situations, and I can’t blame all of my life on dysfunctional family members who I generated from. I will always be in embarrassing situations got to laugh and live.
An addendum to this blog, a year after the fact is here:
https://elsaelsa.com/astrology/setting-the-record-straight-re-the-8th-house-and-the-sins-of-the-father/
Famous grim poem about this
Philip Larkin – This Be The Verse
They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.
Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.
”Yes, definitely. And redemption from those sins carries on to heal future generations. For good or bad, legacies are passed from one generation to the next”
I agree with this Lupa!!
I have SN Libra 8th house,
anddd Pluto Scrpio in (8th house too)
I have Libra. I’m conflicted. I don’t think it’s necessary, but I certainly think that some people don’t know any better than the way they were raised.
I have Sun, Mars and Venus in the 8th.
I love the poem, Jilly!
I believe that we inherit certain traits from our parents and ancestors, positive and negative, including creative talents, and the dysfunction is passed down generation to generation, until a particular generation (it could be one person), decides enough, already, and takes on the “hero’s journey” to heal the wound. I decided not to have children, but love them.
If you believe in the Greek tragedy of the House of Atreus, it is a good example of a legacy of child abuse, murder, and hubris that began with Tantalus, who held the favor of the gods, but killed his son Pelops, and attempted to feed him to the gods. The curse of child abuse and hubris followed Orestes, who after killing his mother, and her lover for murdering Agamemnon was haunted for many years by the Furies, until he came to realize that he had to end the cycle of hubris.
Therefore, he pleaded to Athena. No descendent of Atreus had ever done so noble an act, and the curse was lifted, not only upon Orestes, but also future descendants. Thus, Orestes’ humility and conscious realization ended the curse of the House of Atreus.
The myth is a very interesting read.
I am the one in my generation, who has chosen to become conscious in this lifetime. This way, I don’t have to pass on the eternal legacy of “fuck up.”
Yes but perhaps to a lesser degree. Mars and Jupiter in Taurus in the 8th.
Firsty,I don’t believe in “sins”.Not in a traditional religious sense anyway.But i do think genetic traits can be passed down generationally thru DNA and such.A couple of examples would be alcoholism,and a tendency to suffer with mental illnes.I also think if you come from a family who has not sought out higher education,I think you’d be more inclined to follow in that same pattern.of course we all have free will.so we can choose our own paths.provided we haven’t been so horribly damaged by extreme neglect and/or abuse.you still have the option of being a good person.unless that abuse creates a psychopath.I’m not sure if they can decide to be “good” if they are totally lacking in symathy/empathy.I have Venus in the 8th house and alot of pluto.
Sins of the father passed to the son? Not automatically, is my answer.
The only thing I have in the 8th is the Part of Fortune, in Taurus.
also, i’m a libra scorpio cups with saturn conjunct sun, and venus
IT’s so funny this topic comes up. I feel this phrase really gets to the heart of venus retrograde in scorpio.
Venus represents relationships – love, whether romantic, friendly or familial, as well as business relationships and friendships of all kinds. The Venus retrograde period in Scorpio has shown me how much each of the people in my life take on my dark side, and how i take on theirs.
Many of my relationships are with people older than me. Friends, mentors, lovers, and of course older family members. While i looked to them for guidance and direction, venus retrograde is showing me how following their direction can actually lead me to take on their mistakes (karma might be another word for it, as I’ve studied and emulated their way of thinking and acting).
I think the sins of the father are visited on the son because we can’t help but emulate imperfect role models. And in an alchemical reaction I can’t quite work the math out on, I feel these kinks in human nature have to be worked out one way or another, and are passed on, from generation to generation, until they are. Until they are worked out. Until the world may be as one.
It could be, very interesting indeed.
l did wonder sometime.
My dad and l both have chiron in the 8th house. He was scorpio sun, marcury venus, mars.
My south node aries in the 8th
scorpio moon/uranus, venus and mars in the 8th, pluto trine sun…
l have to resolve unresolved things…it’s just a feeling…l also feel l inherited his depth. l did feel conected with him.
oanney in love
“Sins of the father” is about as valid as describing a glass of water as half empty. Interpret that however you want.
I don’t know if I fully understand.
My brother was 11 when my dad passed and he is nothing like him mentally. There is no signs of any inherited virtues or sins. Temper , mood or nerve issues don’t exist in my brother . My brother is very opposite my dad…and through my mom ,who knew my fathers father tells me he was also very opposite of my dad. But my brother was taken good care of by my cancer uncle after dad died and it may have had a huge inpact on my brother. ALSO my brother is leo sun , sag moon 🙂
Stellium in my Eight (Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars) Capricorn.
I would say NO. At least it has not been my experience.
Hi
My daughter has an eighth house stallium.
Just curious if your dad left you in some way in your early years. I haven’t found anyone who still has their dad around or parents together ☠️
I don’t have any planets in the 8th, but I was so hurt, damaged and injured by my parents, I cut them out of my life. For good. They’ve never even met my husband of 37 years.
I didn’t have children because I didn’t want to pass on that behavior. I spent my 25th birthday in the hospital getting my tubes tied, and I wasn’t even dating at the time, no boyfriend, no husband, no children.
My sun is in the 12th house. Sins of my Dad yes impacted me on a very psychological basis for 60 years.His acts was a betrayal of my innocent spirit . I have to let it go. I loved him dearly because most of him was generous, loving ,kind and understanding. Never laid a hand on me in violence.
I have Neptune in Scorpio stationary retrograde 8th house. My father died of cirrhosis. My former fiance was diagnosed with the same after I called off the engagement.
By the way, I brought this up in part because this is one my mind:
https://elsaelsa.com/astrology/why-is-everyone-so-messed-up/
Collectively speaking, what we’re doing to children at this time IS egregious. They will bear these scars for the rest of their lives.
Depending on the house system, I either have one planet or three planets in the 8th. My unequivocal sense is that people do inherit an invisible legacy. I take it as a matter of course that when interacting with a person, I’m interacting with that person and their entire collection of baggage – if that’s what you mean by a person with a packed 8th being sensitive to ‘legacy’. Take this blog. I feel it is steeped in legacy. Your (Elsa’s) comments, posts, stories, videos, are eons of legacy tied up in a bow for us to take from as needed. Your children can’t not know their legacy, even if they did everything to avoid you, because they would bump into one of us and we would say, ‘Hey your mom was the one who lived in the desert til she went to the city to find a man! Etc.’ And, precisely because we blog readers partake in your legacy (certain parts anyway), and to some extent are bearing its weight, I think it can free your kids from the weight of their legacy, if that’s what you and they want. So, taking a leaf out of your book, if parents feel unsatisfied with how they’ve handled their legacy and want to help their kids out, maybe they should write a book, paint a painting, write a song, donate money and have a hospital wing named in their name, or whatever it is, to represent their legacy in some public way that we can all interact with. It could lighten the load? Just an idea.
I am not sure about the 8th being ‘Sins of the Father’.Yes, l understand: inherited traits, archetypal links…someone wrote about myths–the 8th goes deep and is very old, it goes back to nature, before ‘learned’ ways of being.
I might be responding to patriachal language too ‘sins of the father’–what about the buried, denied, wounded, enraged ‘feminine’ energy we all carry? There are issues around the failure of care and nurture too (Not just a job for women). All of this is twisted up in the 8th, when there in an imbalance of power.
Yes, it is up to us to sort out, or we repeat, teach and pass it on–repetition compulsion.
The 12th has a strong connection to the 8th and can be a door way in–l have found.
I have North node in the 8th in Libra (Venus in Cancer), Virgo cusp. (Merc. Taurus).
Some of you have suffered terribly–l am sorry.
Oh Elsa, I am so sad to read of your being “beaten to a pulp”. You probably get a little tired of hearing ‘how strong you are’, and what a ‘survivor’ you are. I hope you have cried and comforted that little girl inside who is still bewildered by such unfathomable treatment. It helps to understand the astrology and the pathology, but the heart is still sad for the defenceless child.
I wasn’t exactly defenseless. But yeah, if you can avoid psychopaths, you should!
Neptune at 4′ and Jupiter at 23’Scorpio at the cusps of the 8th house. Secrets, poverty, addictions, excessive sexualities, emigrations, and artist talent all run in the family tree but I think the Jupiter brings family long term perspective (and memory) and volumes of mind blowing tales from the family tree. So, a range from very dark to fascinating and historic. In the end I was never bored although most all my family have passed on now.
In a way, yes. A lot of times, a parent passes along the baggage they couldn’t handle for the next generation to solve, resolve, fix or settle. It’s not the child’s fault but if the baggage has a real presence or effect on their lives, it’s their responsibility. It’s like inheriting a house, but with a leaky roof or outdated wiring. If we wish to inhabit it, then we better fix it (or, get rid of it somehow, which is a form of resolution).
It’s weird because I’ve seen patterns go multiple generations, even if the newest one knows nothing about what happened in earlier ones. For instance, a grandparent used her multiple pregnancies as leverage in her marriage and family (the grandparent admitted this to me at the end of her life). I’m stunned how one of my nieces in the generation after mine does this (and who never knew this person).
It’s not guaranteed, but perhaps this is likely in soul families or connections if you believe in that.
Mine is more so the maternal legacy shadow. I made a conscious decision when my son was born to never spank or yell at him and I never did. He now, at 19 y/o, does not believe in spanking or yelling himself. He is as gentle as a person can be. I’m proud that I broke that cycle.
However, on second thought, my mother was carrying the sins of her father, and her mother was carrying the sins of her father, so perhaps it’s intertwined, the father/mother dynamic, and I think that’s reflected in my Sun/Moon conjunction in the 8th.
My maternal line has a string of Capricorn Moons, until me, Pisces Moon. My mother, my grandmother (her mother) and my great grandmother all have Capricorn Moons, and who knows how far it goes back. I don’t have my great-great grandmothers birthday. I have Saturn/Pluto on the IC opposite Venus. Saturn on the IC is akin to Capricorn Moon but theres a transformative element to it with my Saturn being in Scorpio and conjunct Pluto to boot.
My 8th house is PACKED and mostly in Cancer.
Moon (that one’s right at the end of Gemini, tight-tight with Venus in Cancer). Then a lot of “fruit salad” – Vertex tight con Node, prenatal solar eclipse. Completely unaspected Saturn and my beloved boyfriend’s name asteroid.
The damage came from my mother, an ice-cold and bitter Libran who changed my surname so that my father couldn’t find me. I never saw him again after their divorce. At the same time, she tormented me with “your father didn’t want you” till I married someone completely unsuitable at 19 to get away from her.
I’ve gone out of my way to make utterly certain that my son is adored and knows it