In Vedic astrology, the 2nd and 7th houses are referred to as killer houses or houses of death, and the ruling planets of the zodiac signs that belong to those houses are referred to as the killer planets or Maraka Graha.
Maraka Sthana (2nd house) > Maraka Sthana (7th house), so the power of the 2nd house is more in this regard.
Now, Maraka Grahas may either be benefic planets such as Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter, or they may be malefic planets such as Mars, Saturn, Rahu (North Node), and Ketu (South Node).
Note that benefic planets like Jupiter, Venus, Moon, Mercury, etc. do not actively kill the person even if they are Maraka Grahas. However, they may result in inducing harmful habits in the person slowly due to which their eventual result is the death of the person. For example, if Moon is a Maraka Graha, the person will end up overthinking and being too critical, therefore losing their sleep and affecting their health overall. Later, this may turn into more serious diseases.
If there is a malefic planet in the 2nd house or 7th house, he will be a prime killer when its dasha is activated. The same, however, cannot be said for a benefic.
The 2nd house is the most powerful maraka sthana (house of death), followed by the 7th house. If the lord of the 2nd house is a malefic planet, such as Saturn or Mars, then the chances of the person losing their life during the Mahadasha (period) or Antardasha (sub-period) are considerable.
However, the Dasha or Mahadasha of a malefic planet whilst the Antardasha (sub-period) of a benefic is activated will not kill the native. But the Dasha of a malefic may cause death to the native when a malefic planet’s Antardasha (sub-period) is also running.
Also note that malefic planets related to the 2nd house, 3rd house, 7th house, and 8th house have a higher possibility of causing death.
There is a particularly hierarchy to be followed when understanding the strength of Maraka Grahas and Maraka Sthanas:
- Lords (ruling planets) of 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 8th, and 12th houses – most powerful Maraka Grahas
- Lords (ruling planets) of 6th and 11th houses – second most powerful Maraka Grahas
- Lords (ruling planets) of 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 10th houses – least powerful Maraka Grahas
The ruling planet of the 12th house of the ascendant chart is also a Maraka or Maraka Graha, but if they are aspected by a benefic planet, then they are believed to no longer exhibit Maraka properties.
It is also believed by some scholars that any planets that aspect the 2nd and 7th house may exhibit Maraka Graha qualities, which means that the native may lose their life during the Mahadashas or Antardashas of such planets which are aspecting the Maraka Sthanas, but this statement is disputed, as benefic planets aspecting the Maraka Sthanas may not necessarily end the life of the native.
If the ruling planets of the 3rd house and 8th house are not in their own signs, or exaltation signs, or not related meaning either conjunct or being aspected by a benefic, then they turn into Maraka Grahas. If the ruling planets of the 3rd and 8th house are malefic planets, then they will surely turn into Maraka Grahas.
Similarly, Sun and Moon will not become Maraka Grahas even if they are the lords of the 8th house except for if they are exalted.
Saturn is the most powerful Maraka Graha; therefore, in a chart, if its position is ill-disposed (in an enemy sign, debilitated, conjunct Rahu or Ketu or even an enemy planet like Sun, for example), the chances of the person dying as a result of the Maraka Graha effects are much higher.
Consider an example (image below) – if Venus is positioned in the Cancer Ascendant (first house), Jupiter is in Pisces, and Saturn is in Scorpio then Saturn would become a Maraka. This is because even though Jupiter’s 5th aspect is attempting to protect Venus, the 7th house lord, which is Saturn (since Capricorn is ruled by Saturn) is positioned in Scorpio, which is a sign ruled by Mars, its enemy, so this turns Saturn into a Maraka planet as its ill-disposed.
Additionally, according to Maharishi Jaimini, the 8th house is a Maraka house and the lord or ruling planet of the 8th house is a Maraka planet.
Rahu (North Node) and Ketu (South Node) can also be Marakas or Maraka Grahas, but that will be discussed in another post.