PLUTO POWER
By now you've heard the news: Pluto, whose small size, makeup, and erratic orbit has puzzled astronomers since its discovery in 1930, has been "demoted" from "planet" to "dwarf planet" status by the International Astronomical Union. Perhaps, in light of the recent discoveries of many, many small chunks of matter Out There, flying around our Sun at Pluto's distance and even beyond, astronomers felt the need of some tighter parameters. Whatever their reasons, they've set down a new model for classifying solar system bodies, and Pluto's in the doghouse.
Tell you what, though: Pluto doesn't care. Vilified by some, ignored by others, Pluto has always been secure in its considerable power as the Transformer. This little, distant body, whatever we even littler humans choose to call it, goes right on making big waves in our lives, putting us through initiatory journeys that demand penetrating perception, ruthless honesty, trust, and readiness to let go of people, things, and ideas that we're holding onto for (false) security.
Needless to say, astrologers over the years have learned to take Pluto very, very seriously. Those of us who follow Pluto's trajectory through chart after chart and observe its often dramatic effects are not about to "demote" it, whether we continue to call it a "planet" or not.
This whole scenario, in fact, is beautifully appropriate for the celestial object that has long been assigned to the rulership of Scorpio. After all, it was probably a Scorpio who first declared: "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names can never harm me." The transformative process of Pluto teaches us, among other things, resilience. It speaks to the something within each of us that defies classification. It reminds us of one of the most important steps on the path to power: turning a deaf ear to the critics and naysayers and listening to your own inner voice.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WHAT'S GOING AROUND
September 2006
The little, distant chunk of ice we call Pluto is retrograde 5 months out of every year. This year it turned retro on March 29th. For five months we've been dealing with the fallout of transformations that have occurred over the past year. Key to this process is the ability to let go of things in your life that don't belong anymore, people and objects and habits to which you've been consciously or unconsciously, but unnecessarily, feeding your valuable energy. Pluto Retrograde is a time of psychic retreat, a time to take out the mental and emotional trash, process and integrate major changes into your being. On September 4th, Pluto turned direct again. Now we return to the fray, ready to face the Next Big Thing.
And speaking of Big Things... eclipses spell crisis, upheaval and revelations. Things come to light that you were unaware of, or just plain denying, and the pressure is on to Do Something About It. There's a feeling of "something's gotta give". Change will happen at these times, whether you participate in the process or not.
So you know what I'm going to say next, right? Right: this is not a moment to crawl under the bed and hope it goes away. Your best shot at coming out on top of an eclipse is to be proactive. That way, you have a chance to influence events to your own liking. In fact, especially when you take into account the energy shift at the Equinox, this is an ideal moment to shift your own energy in whatever area of your life needs shifting.
News flash for those of you with important placements at the dead center or the tail end of Virgo or Pisces: TAG, YOU'RE IT! Of course, we'll all have opportunities to make changes wherever Virgo and Pisces show up in our natal charts, but if you have a planet or other major point on one of the hot spots, it's your turn to feel those flames licking your toes.
The Virgo-Pisces balance teeter-totters between chaos and order, between the magical and the practical, between the discriminating and the inclusive. In other words, if the mess in your office (or on your computer) is keeping you from doing your best work, or you're suffering from "too many projects" paralysis, or bad habits have precipitated a health crisis, that's a wake-up call to get a little more Virgo organization going, balanced with a light sprinkling of Piscean fairy dust. Your life cannot move forward now unless you make -- or accept -- major changes. See the resource section below for help.
For me, the energy has manifested as a teeming "to do" list coupled with a complete inability to focus -- not a good combination. I'm finally beginning to see that I can't do it all, and something is going to have to drop off my plate, probably several things. I have to learn to say "no" occasionally. Paradoxically, taking time off to do magical work (Pisces) has given me energy, focus and inspiration to dispatch the mundane tasks more efficiently (Virgo).
Yet another Fixed Cross manifestation this month: Jupiter squares Neptune again. This is the final pass for this aspect, which has been on-again, off-again all year. Loosely translated, it means don't let your high hopes get in the way of your intuition. Now, this doesn't mean that your hopes aren't justified -- of course they are. It just means that, if you're not paying close attention, the boisterous enthusiasm of following a dream can ride roughshod over the tender, subtle inner life and cause you to miss some important messages from your deepest being. So if you have a daily practice of looking within, now's a good time to ramp it up a bit. And if you don't, there's no time like the present to start.
