Transformation
and the Power of Pluto and Uranus
April 29, 2005 (with chart)
http://cainer.com/ericfrancis/apr29.html
Hi Eric Francis,
Thank you for sharing with us some of your
hard-earned wisdom. My question is rather straightforward, although I'm not
sure whether it's of general relevance and therefore worthy of taking up your
time.
Is there a way of explaining why, since
June 2000, I seem to have been caught up in a maelstrom of change? Is it
coincidence, or a severe attack of synchronicity that after a pretty uneventful
life all the mainstays of my existence seem to have been swept away all of a
sudden? My family life erupted, my father got ill and died, I changed careers
branching out in a totally unexpected new field, I moved twice.
I am a different person, both inside and
out -- even my physical appearance has changed of its own volition. What's
worrying me is that things don't look like they are slowing down and it's
getting to be a bit exhausting coping with all the challenges. Is there any
chance that this crazy merry-go-round will stop in the near future?
Well, it's ironic that until a few years
ago I would never have dreamed of writing to an astrology column...
Thank you
Francesca
Born in Milano (
Dear Francesca:
Actually, many people have been going
through this kind of process. It's a really excellent astrology question, and
I've addressed the subject in many private sessions. The answer to your
question in one word is 'transits', which means that planets moving through the
sky are making aspects to planets in your natal chart. However, the planets in
question in your case are not the garden variety squash, but rather Uranus and
Pluto -- high octane squash. And when Uranus and Pluto get going, that means
big changes that can last a long time and which we can't exactly come back
from. And not that we would want to.
There are certain kinds of people who are
accustomed to living a life of constant motion. Some have agreed to embark on a
spiritual path of some kind; some have taken unusual paths in life and must
face major challenges at every turn; others are not attached to stability.
However, if you want your life to have any semblance of 'normalcy' (a strange
word, isn't it?), then the time for that is not generally when you have Uranus
and Pluto active in your chart.
Or, looked at another way, this is a time
when the only constant is change, when a measure of turmoil is normal, and when
you must go with the flow. And while this process began many years ago, it's
likely to continue well into the future, though if you look carefully, you will
notice subtle changes in the themes and the experiences of the growth you're
experiencing. It's not just one relentless zing. The feeling, the subject, the
experiences, the pace of change, all differ from season to season and year to
year.
Here is a brief overview of your
astrological situation. In your birth chart, you have a lot of planets in Virgo
and Pisces. These include Uranus, Pluto (in Virgo at the time of your birth),
as well as Jupiter and Chiron (in Pisces at the time of your birth), as well as
three important asteroids in Virgo (Ceres, Vesta and Juno). These planets are
all placed in 'high energy' houses -- the 4th and the 10th, what are called
'angular houses'.
That is the setup. It will be similar for
anyone with a strong mutable quality to their chart -- Gemini, Virgo,
Sagittarius or Pisces.
Beginning around 1996, Pluto, moving
through in Sagittarius, began making 90-degree aspects to this series of
planets. This went on for years -- well into 2001. Then you got a little break,
if you noticed it, since the effects of Pluto transits can hang around for a
while. And there were other transits that could work with similar intensity.
Pluto transits can and will change
anything and everything about you that needs to be changed. Pluto is the planet
of 'enforced growth'. It works slowly, thank God. If it worked fast, a lot of
people would be popped out of their bodies. Its changes are gradual, over time,
and can include every aspect of a person, particularly the deeper ones. Pluto
tends to work from the core of a person outward. Sometimes its effects are
subtle, but they are undeniable.
Next, in early 2003, Uranus went into
Pisces. This began a series of conjunctions to your two Pisces planets, and
oppositions to your series of five Virgo planets and asteroids. This is not yet
complete -- it will go on for at least another year.
Last, mixed in with this series of events
were two 'key life transits' -- Pluto square Pluto around 2001, and Uranus
opposite Uranus last year. This is astro talk for saying that Pluto reached the
90-degree mark to your natal Pluto; and Uranus reached the 180-degree mark to
your natal Uranus at these times.
Even without all the extra stuff you have
clustered in Virgo and Pisces, these two transits are the ones that completely
rearrange the lives of many, many people, and they are some of the most routine
astrology projects that my colleagues and I work with in our clients. Of the
two, Uranus transits can be all the more energized and even forceful, and can
at times hit like lightening. That lightening can and often does wake us up.
When I am fortunate enough to see these
things coming in advance, I will explain to the client that they can expect to
be a different person living a different life on the other side of the transit.
This is not always welcome news -- many people cling to stability. However,
others welcome the opportunity to make real progress and to grow in a way that
nothing is going to stop them.
So at this point, we need to reframe your
question. Yes, your life has been a whirlwind of changes for many years. But
what, exactly, is the sequence of events? What changed? What about you has
changed? Was any of this on your agenda?
What was your life like in 1996, and what
is it like today? Would you go back?
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