Pluto

In Greco-Roman mythology, Pluto was the god of the underworld. When the gods divvied up the realms to preside over, Pluto’s agreement for presiding over the underworld, where souls go to get transformed, was that he could never emerge from that realm. Thus the astrological archetype of Pluto is associate with that which is hidden and transformative, and also powerful.

If we look at the surface of the Earth, it may seem like a placid plain. Yet, if we see a release of the power that is inherent beneath it, we see a volcanic eruption transforming the entire landscape. This elemental power inherent in something, that allows it to transform, is reflected in the astrological archetype of Pluto. We all have, inherent in our psyches, a Plutonic principle, that allows us to transform.

One myth about Pluto that describes the astrological archetype of Pluto well is the myth of the abduction of Persephone. Persephone was the beautiful immortal woman that Pluto fell in love with. Via the mouth of a subterranean cave Pluto abducted her into the underworld to be his bride. Persephone’s mother searched the universe over looking for her and finally located her in the underworld. There are different versions of the myth, but essentially Persephone’s mother, Demeter, succeeded in getting Persephone to live above ground for half the year. The other half of the year she lived with her husband, Pluto, in the underworld. This represents the seasons. When Persephone is above ground, the leaves and flowers have their color and beauty. When she descends into the underworld, all of the beauty drains away and the leaves fall and the crops rot, all for the sake of creating the compost that allows life and beauty to rise again from the decay as the cycle starts over in the Spring. This myth, as well as the metaphor of a volcano, illustrates that Pluto is associated with things dying away via various processes, such as through decay or burning up in flames, all for the sake of the birth of something new. For this reason Pluto is also associated with the iconography of the phoenix, who burns up and is reborn from its own ashes.

When we go through transits of Pluto, this decay and dying away for the sake of rebirth can be quite dramatic. Often times equally dramatic is the placement of Pluto in our natal charts. The alignments of other planets to Pluto that we are born with often time illustrate how the archetype of the other planet is the vehicle through which the death/rebirth principle of Pluto will show up in our lives. To understand this better, let’s get acquainted with some other characteristics of Pluto. Just as Pluto abducted Persephone into the underworld, so Pluto abducts into the underworld the astrological archetype of any other planet it is aligned with in your birth chart. And what is the underworld? The underworld is the place in which resides the unaccepted parts, the parts that are cast into the shadows, the hidden taboo parts. In society we see Pluto reflected in the outskirts and the literal underworld, where reside the parts of society that are marginalized and shunned. These alignments, or “aspects,” to Pluto in your natal chart reflect where your personal underworld resides. And it is through facing this underworld that you have to potential of being transformed into a deeper, more authentic version of yourself. And just as beneath the placid Earth lies all the elemental power of the volcano, so also in your personal underworld lies a store of immense power waiting for you to tap into it. If we surrender ourselves to the process of transformation inherent within us, then accessing this power actually ends up being the process of accessing the power of the evolutionary Will of the universe, for which we end up being a vehicle.