Pluto, the planet of transformation, ruler of inexorable and seismic changes, a wrecking ball and a reconstructor, is now firmly into Aquarius to stay for two decades.
On an individual chart it will have an effect depending on the chart house which it moves through and which planets it aspects. Transiting Pluto through a chart house makes the strongest impact at the start of a house transit so for the moment it will be worth paying attention where a house cusp is in early degrees.
Not for nothing is the phoenix the symbol for Pluto. It arises out of the ashes of the past. First a rendering to dust and then a rebuild.
Pluto through:
1st – most useful transit of them all since it brings deeper self-knowledge and an understanding of where the individual fits into their environment. Though it won’t come without some pain. It often starts with an urge to over control, which is the anti-Pluto resistance to change. Letting go and opening up to new attitudes and accepting that a total image makeover is overdue will make life run more smoothly.
2nd – personal finances can start with a breakdown phase before building up financial security in the years ahead. Requires a new attitude to handling cash.
3rd – deep thinking and intense where everyday communications are concerned with a tendency to take every encounter and word spoken as deeply significant. Can be dogmatic leading to stalemate in discussions. Need to lighten up at times. Relationships with workmates, neighbours, siblings can get conflicted.
4th – changes at home and the family, sometimes starting with an older relative passing on, or with domestic problems of cracking infrastructure as Pluto gets to undermining what is outworn and needs replaced. Pulling away from childhood past is also part of it. Troubled family relationships may split initially but can come back together from a more mature standpoint later on.
5th – creative, attention-seeking, wanting to be accepted as a person of substance. Can become possessive where loved ones and children are concerned.
6th – need to regenerate the body and fitness, get ailments seen to and improve old damaging lifestyle habits. Work relationships can become tense since there will be a drive to put changes in place and be in control.
7th – change on close relationships will be inevitable but one or other partner may fight for control, to hang onto the old status quo. Can be a time of break ups though not necessarily. At best can lead to more depth in the connection.
8th – the chart area of transformation, rebirth and joint finances. Can start with the passing of an older relative or friend. Having to dig deeper for answers to fundamental matters, reaching out beyond the rational world for solutions and insights. Can feel like purgatory. Not a time to owe money or be obligated since will feel trapped.
9th – chart area of beliefs, the higher mind and travel. Slow, gradual shearing away of old opinions and attitudes to find a new outlook on life. Tendency to be dogmatic or self-righteous ending up in intense discussions.
10th – change of career and reputation. Pluto can bring a dead- halt and need-to-rethink-direction phase. In certain cases can damage public image and career status with a need to rebuild on the far side. Often begins a longish period of seeking and searching until a meaningful direction is found.
11th – change in future plans and goals as old ambitions and indeed friendships fade away. Intense connections with groups that want to make a difference in society. Team and group activities take foreground. Cooperation not always easy with Pluto setting up tensions and tugs of war for control.
12th – an inward-looking phase of exploring the unconscious and trying to understand why certain actions are self-defeating.
Pluto in Aquarius will also affect the sign in which the Sun as marker of identity sits. It will be most noticeable immediately where the Sun falls in early degrees and on the cusp.
The greatest effect will be felt by the Fixed signs – Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius.
For Taurus, it falls in the Solar 10th house of career and life direction, bringing a long phase of seeking and searching for meaning and purpose at work and in life. The ultimate aim is to find a true vocation. But it may be a question of try, try, try again before you succeed. Along the way there may be power struggles with authority figures.
Leo will be prompted to alter their approach to close relationships. Pluto can throw up tensions as one or both partners resist letting go the old ways and fight for control. It can be scary to open up to deeper connections with intense emotional reactions surfacing. But the end result will be to forge stronger bonds if the problems can be overcome and trust established.
Scorpio will sense the winds of change blowing through their home life, family relationships and altering their attitude to their roots and origins. Pulling away from old emotional foundations can bring a sense of loss but the gift is the prospect of reattaching in future to more mature connections as childish patterns are eliminated. It can also be a time of rebuilding literally at home as the domestic shell shows signs of requiring renovations.
Aquarius could regard this as a transformational phase comparable to caterpillar, chrysalis into butterfly. Though another analogy might be the crustacean – like a lobster or shrimp. They are armour-coated which protects them but what fends off danger also stops them growing. When they need to evolve to a larger size they go through a vulnerable phase when they cast off the old shell. At that point they hide under a rock for safety. Grown in size, they put on a suitably enlarged overcoat and sally back into the fray. Pluto’s change always requires a step backwards into an exposed or defenceless stage before an empowered move forward. Aquarius will emerge renewed and regenerated along the way.
The other Air signs – Gemini and Libra – will benefit from Pluto in Aquarius.
Gemini has been labouring since 2008 with Pluto moving through its Solar 8th house, which is a financial and emotional drag. Some have used Pluto’s subtle manipulation of power and influence astutely but it hasn’t been easy. Pluto moving ahead through their Solar 9th will find them opinionated and wrestling to a degree with sorting out their beliefs and philosophy of life but they won’t be as tied down.
Libra has been sorting out home, family and domestic matters for the past fifteen years and is now ready to step out into a longish phase of Pluto moving through their Solar 5th house. This will help them make their mark creatively and be an influential presence on the social scene. Less helpfully it can make them more possessive and controlling about children and loved ones. Resisting that temptation and turning their attention to building up their self-confidence and getting their achievements out on display will make more sense.
The fire signs – Aries and Sagittarius – will be less burdened moving ahead with Pluto moving out of materialistic, earthy Capricorn into airy Aquarius. A mix of Fire and Air can be hot-air-balloon time, exciting but not always realistic or practical. But will appeal to their adventurous spirit.
Aries will throw their energy into activist movements with Pluto moving through their Solar 11th house, wanting to make a difference. Friendships will become more intense and mixing with influential types out in society will be more frequent.
Sagittarius can now turn their attention away from Pluto in Capricorn’s obsession with money to considering how to reorganize their everyday schedule and routines at work and in the neighbourhood. Altering their way of communication will be key to Pluto in Aquarius. Everyday encounters may take on a significant tone, though too much may be read into small glitches. Becoming opinionated, dogmatic or negative are risks but real insight into the core of situations and problems will be the gift.
Cancer is still moving through a challenging phase of revisioning close relationships. Pluto in Capricorn has been a longish time of adjusting to a different balance in interchanges with one-to-one partners. Pluto moving into the Solar 8th house can bring a sense of restriction either financial or emotional, but in rethinking attitudes to influence, power and control, there can be a surprisingly positive outcome. For sure, best results will come from altering ways of sharing, caring and relating and being firstly more adaptable and secondly accepting of what can’t be changed.
Pisces will adapt to Pluto moving through Aquarius, the sign before theirs, by disappearing into a private space to ponder. For some, they will drift and daydream through a time where they feel marginally hemmed in. For others they will rise to the challenge of understanding what is going on deep within themselves. They will explore their unconscious or their past for clues to how to change the pattern of their lives.
Virgo facing Pluto moving into their 6th house of health and work will be unperturbed at the prospect of exploring better ways of upgrading and regenerating their fitness and physical well-being. Being hypochondriacs at heart, they will relish the thought of researching new diets, exercise plans and supplements to keep them on peak form. There may be tensions in the work place since their determination they know best about new methods and approaches may not meet with universal agreement.
Capricorn likewise won’t be unduly unnerved by the prospect of Pluto moving into its chart area of personal finances, since money and materialistic matters fall within its comfort zone. Though they may not appreciate Pluto’s tendency to start with a breakdown phase as an old financial base or methods are deconstructed before the reconstruction begins. Staying in control of cash and security will be key to their peace of mind.
These are the rule of thumb Solar effects of Pluto in Aquarius – which will equally make sense when applied to the rising (Ascendant) sign. Not to be regarded as tablets of stone since other planetary influences will also be in play. But helpful as an overview.
The post Pluto in Aquarius – through houses and signs first appeared on Astroinform with Marjorie Orr – Star4cast.
