Neither, on its own. 98 reduces to 8, a house that rewards patience and exposes shortcuts, on Saturn's timetable. It reads strongest for Mulank 4, 6, 8 and 5, and is most testing for Mulank 2, 1 and 9.
9 + 8 = 17 -> 8, so the root is 8. In Chaldean practice the compound — the number as written, before it is reduced — is read first, and the root is read second. Both are given below, because they do not always agree, and the disagreement is usually the most useful thing on the page.
The root 8 is governed by Saturn. At root level, 98 is a house that rewards patience and exposes shortcuts, on Saturn's timetable.
Cheiro's compound table runs to 52, so 98 is read through 17, which the table calls "The Star of the Magi".
A highly spiritual number, read as rising above trials and difficulties earlier in life. One of the more favourable compounds.
The compound reading and the root reading point the same way, which is the straightforward case: what 98 says as written and what it says reduced do not contradict each other.
98 is written 9 (Mars) over 8 (Saturn). One number does share those digits: 89, the same pair in the other order. 98 and 89 reach the same sum, the same root 8 and the same compound 17, so every reading below applies to both. The single distinction the tradition draws is which graha leads — Mars for 98, 8 (Saturn) for 89 — and that is a difference of emphasis, not of verdict.
This is stated as composition, not prophecy. No source we are willing to quote assigns a settled reading to "the digits of 98" the way the compound table assigns one to 17, so the planets are named and the reader is left to weigh them.
Your Mulank is the day of the month you were born, reduced to a single digit — born on the 23rd, your Mulank is 5. The scores below are from the same compatibility table this site publishes on /methodology and uses for marriage matching; they are not a separate list written for this page.
| Your Mulank | Score | How it reads |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 92 | Strong |
| 6 | 85 | Strong |
| 8 | 84 | Strong |
| 5 | 70 | Strong |
| 7 | 58 | Workable |
| 3 | 55 | Workable |
| 2 | 54 | Testing |
| 1 | 45 | Testing |
| 9 | 42 | Testing |
A house number is arithmetic on an address. It cannot tell you whether you will be happy, prosperous or safe in a home, and nobody can derive that from a number. We will not tell you to reject a house, and we will not sell you a remedy for one. What the number gives you is a reading of temperament — whether the place suits how you already live — and that is worth knowing before you sign, alongside the things that actually decide it: light, water, ventilation, noise, commute and cost.
Neither, on its own. 98 reduces to 8, a house that rewards patience and exposes shortcuts, on Saturn's timetable. It reads strongest for Mulank 4, 6, 8 and 5, and is most testing for Mulank 2, 1 and 9.
9 + 8 = 17 -> 8, so the root is 8. The root 8 is governed by Saturn.
It reads strongest for Mulank 4, 6, 8 and 5 on the published compatibility table, and most testing for Mulank 2, 1 and 9. A testing score is not a reason to reject a house; it means the place will ask for habits that do not come naturally to you.
The Star of the Magi. A highly spiritual number, read as rising above trials and difficulties earlier in life. One of the more favourable compounds.