Pluto turns retrograde April 10th

I don’t know where this image came from but I found it here. Having just completed a retrograde turn of Mercury, and just coming out of the retrograde period of Mars, you may not be overjoyed to learn that now Pluto will turn retrograde. However, like everything else astrological, retrograde Pluto serves a higher purpose. The outer planets travel retrograde for about six months every year, and for the last 30 years or so they have been retrograde in the summer (northern hemisphere). When a planet changes direction it is like a car that makes a U-turn, it’s motion appears to slow down and it becomes what we call “stationary” in the sky. Pluto has only moved two degrees since January and it will remain between 7 and 9 degrees Capricorn until the end of the year. No planet is better at completing old patterns and clearing away the leftover detritus than Pluto, and when Pluto is retrograde, as it is for about half the year, we are forced to look backwards at our successes, our mistakes, our plans, our relationships – anything in our lives that has unfinished business will be re-examined during this time and anything that we are carrying around that is no longer needed will be swept away like the pollen after a rain. Pluto is the planet of destruction and regeneration, and it also deals with issues of power and its uses. Its not surprising that now, with Pluto having been stationary in the sky (from our perspective here on earth) for the past few weeks as it prepared to change direction, things have been so intense for so many of us. When a planet is stationary it shines a laser-like beam of energy that reflects the energy of the planetary symbolism, and Pluto is all about intensity and getting to the root of the matter. In addition, the challenging square between Uranus (revolution) and Pluto (destruction) culminates this summer at 8 degrees Capricorn. This phase of the cycle will be particularly challenging for those of us with planets between 5 and 15 degrees of the cardinal signs (Aries, Libra, Cancer and Capricorn) as we are forced to let go of the old (Pluto in Capricorn) and allow ourselves to be infused with the new energetic force (Uranus in Aries) that is bursting through at this time. We will most easily manage this time if we stop holding onto the past and learn to trust the future. The Universe strives for balance, and as we let go of the aspects of our life that are decaying we will find a fresh new beauty in our lives.

[related_posts limit=”5″ image=”50″]