We’re now finishing Pluto’s long stay in Capricorn. It danced at the edge of Sagittarius and Capricorn in 2008 before finally entering Capricorn for its non-stop occupancy of that sign until March of this year, when it made its initial entry into Aquarius. It now retrogrades back into Capricorn through late January 2024 when it again re-enters Aquarius.

Pluto's exit from Aquarius and re-entry into Capricorn on June 11 again shifts the lens of the spiritual ruler of Aries and Scorpio into the energy field we’ve known since 2008. During its retrograde between now and early October, we’re being given a look back at the final 3 degrees of the individual spiritual level of “Group Performance.” The Cosmic Purifier has now moved back out of the Fixed Air of Aquarius back into the Cardinal Earth of Capricorn.

This is the next to the last time we will experience Pluto in Capricorn, since it enters Aquarius in January and stays there through August 2024 when it retrogrades back into the last degree of Capricorn, where it remains from September through late November. After that it again moves into Aquarius and stays there through January 2044. Given that 2025 moves us into the "Spring" of the 21st century, it seems that Pluto in Capricorn marks the transition between the radical transformations in Capricorn which have already begun to awaken seeds of the next Era.

15 years ago I published an article titled “Pluto in Capricorn - A Hard Look At Core Realities” which I have never reprinted since. Today I’ve rewritten a lot of it and offer it for your renewed consideration.

Pluto is the ultimate transformer which purifies all it touches to its core pattern, the "seed quality" in all things which allows it to replicate in the future. A seed contains the inherent pattern of its future form. If Pluto rules seeds and the power of self-replication inherent in all seeds, then we can learn a lot about archetypal patterns by studying how Pluto works.

In order to understand the difference between natal Pluto and transiting Pluto, let’s take a brief look at how Astrology works. The natal chart shows our basic “Pattern of Life,” what we came in with as a blueprint to learn and evolve into a greater awareness through life experience. That basic tone represented by our natal chart positions also evolves as shown by our progressions. While we are still our natal tendencies, these are modified by the inner changes indicated by the progressions.

Transits show the gestalt of the moment, the individual forces and collective patterns within which we live, breathe, and have our Being. They are “time triggers” which as they move through our chart and make various aspects to our planets indicate those times when we must respond the best we can.

Different transiting planets symbolize different areas in our growth process. The inner planets, (the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus and Mars), show us our personal Light/Life, personality, how we coordinate, what we like, and what moves us to action. The outer planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto show more the expansion and contraction process as we interact with society, finding our highest purpose as we grow spiritually. Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto represent the invisible Spiritual Field as it moves and influences us all. Transiting Pluto are the on-going seeds of the future, planted in the houses it transits. And of course, it’s a global influence, so each responds to those seeds in their own way.

While transits impact our chart in countless individual ways in the outer world of doing and the inner world of Being, there’s a difference between transit to natal aspects and transit to transit aspects. The transit to transit aspects show a larger field of energies within which we must learn to be proactive so that we are not the "victims of circumstance," while transits to our natal and progressed Pluto show us our particular and personal purification challenges.

A Look Back at the Pluto in Sagittarius Era

(This is what I wrote in 2008, with a few modifications)

Pluto has now left Sagittarius, which looking back was an era of religious and philosophical turmoil, conflict, and the exposing of the seeds of these things. All religions and forms of higher "Truth" or ideology are ruled by Sagittarius, and it is easy to see how the past 13 years have featured great conflicts of ideologies in the economic, political, social, and religious realms that took us to the core patterns of what these are truly about.

Transiting Pluto in Sagittarius (1995-2008) challenged us individually to purify and transform any inner or outer response symbolized by planets we may have in Gemini, Virgo, Pisces, or Sagittarius. Even as it precipitated these radical breakdowns, breakthroughs, and breakouts in our lives, it also was precipitating these in our world as a whole.

To mention just a few examples, the three religions that dominate our world were all exposed down to their most destructive seed patterns for all of us to behold. The philosophical polarization that allowed a few reactionaries to block scientific consensus on global warming being a concrete planetary threat was exposed for the bought-and-sold political theater is was.

In the US, the seed patterns of both the Democratic and Republican party philosophies were exposed as shams of the wealthy to hold power among the few, and mainstream media was exposed as the poseur it is. There was philosophical extremism, as well as the over-reaching and consequent bankruptcies of many hate groups. And don't forget the widespread reporting of crop circles and other seeds of contact with space beings (Sag) that were reported globally.

The philosophies of business went to their extreme forms, self-inflated by "vain imaginings," another Sagittarius trait. How businesses are structured and managed, in terms of financing and market assumptions, held up until Pluto left this sign. Signs of deflation appeared, with an acceleration in the breakdown process happening now that Pluto has entered Capricorn. An example of this is the current (2008) global financial meltdown which affects us all regardless of whether some are in better individual financial circumstances than others.

Capricorn is a pragmatic Earth sign, so we can expect to see the beginnings of the breakdown of old authorities and structures exposing seeds of practical realities. For instance, to mention one global phenomenon, the philosophy (or religion!) of free market economies and infallibility of the banking system is now exposed as needing major restructuring of assumptions and forms. We're no longer able to binge (Sagittarius) but now must "plan responsibly how to manage" (Capricorn) the seeds (Pluto) of what we're awakening to.

This period, lasting through 2024, will purify everything about the basic structure of authorities across all human realms. Forms of governance and power will be purified. How we structure society will transform, with new seed-forms sprouting. Capricorn is how the Sagittarian ideals will be substantiated, and is the predecessor for the Pluto in Aquarius era to come.

The last time Pluto was in Capricorn was 1762-1778, a time of major ferment globally. Empires were established and challenged. Divine Right of Kings gave way to "All men are created equal." (Yes, I know it took a while to amend that to include the other 53% of the population, but it did start there in the modern era.) While I don't want to turn this into an extensive and boring history lesson, I'll just note that some of the very economic philosophies and structural assumptions and forms put into play then are the ones crumbling and transforming now.

That Was Then, This is Now

Transiting Pluto in Capricorn (2008-2024) has challenged us individually to purify and transform any inner or outer response symbolized by planets we may have in Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn. As with its transit of any sign, we’ve had some radical breakdowns, breakthroughs, and breakouts in our lives wherever Pluto has transited.

It affected each of us with planets in those signs these past 15 years. From 2008-2013, it purified planets in the first decan of the Cardinal signs; from 2013-2018 it purified planets in the second decan of those signs; and from 2018 to now it transformed planets in the third decan of those signs. In in 2023 it’s specifically and profoundly affecting those with planets in the last 3 degrees of Aries, Cancer, Libra, or Capricorn, just as it put pressure on those with planets in the first two degrees of Aquarius, Taurus, Leo, and Scorpio from March through now. That will resume in early 2024.

I'll leave you with the thought that as we embrace Pluto's energies proactively we learn to dance with the energies of "radical breakdowns, breakthroughs, and breakouts." While these can seem awesome in their intensity and daunting in terms of what we face in potential annihilations of entire areas of our life, we can become a living “seed carrier,” purified of dross, and able to move through transformations while living our true core integrity.

Pluto is how we confront the seeds of what is and could be, and learn the willingness to do what it takes to get to the core patterns so that a better seed can sprout in our lives. If we consciously embrace a determined focus utilizing Pluto's power of "Economy of Energy" we can find our greatest realizations of who we are, who we could be, and how we could become a "sprouter of Divine Seeds" in the lives of all we touch.

Pluto in Capricorn has led us through transformations of all the structures of our existence, and exposed the corrupt ruthlessness of those with even the slightest bit of power. Pluto in Capricorn has brought some obsessive-compulsive extremists into power around the world, and we now enter the penultimate chapter of that era while watching the seeds of the coming era also sprouting. We have now radically reorganized our lives since 2008 and have become seed carriers of transformational power and know how to reorganize what we need to.

Pluto in Aquarius has given us the first look at transforming the Aquarian expressions of our lives, and many of us have glimpsed the seeds of a more ideal way based in how well we’ve managed the power to take responsibility and embrace new disciplines. We have learned Capricorn ways of claiming Divine power based in deep spiritual Truths, and now take one of our final looks at the secret Pluto has held for us these past 15 years.

Reprinted on crystalwind.ca with written permission from Robert Wilkinson. Copying this article to other blogs is strictly prohibited. It is copyright protected. 

© Copyright 2023 Robert Wilkinson

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