PLUTO RETROGRADE

This post is a follow-up to my PLUTO & THE AGE OF AQUARIUS post

Pluto Retrograde
May 2 – October 11, 2024

On the social stage, for most of this retrograde phase Pluto will remain in Aquarius, reviewing the changes needed in society as a whole and how to best go about it.  However, in the last 41 days of the retrograde phase, Pluto will move back into Capricorn where he will tidy up loose ends before stationing direct (October 11) and moving into Aquarius (November 19) where he will stay for the next 20 years.

What is Retrograde?
Simply put, when a planet is said to be “retrograde” it means that, from the perspective of Earth, a planet appears to be moving backwards.  It is not actually moving backwards (of course) but at least once a year the Earth passes the slower moving planets – or is passed by the faster moving planets – which creates the sensation of backward motion.  Because the Sun is at the centre and the Moon orbits Earth, neither is ever in retrograde. The retrograde phenomenon highlights a key principle in astrology – everything is relative to Earth (the individual).  The objective science clearly supports Copernicus and the heliocentric model, but astrology is concerned with the subjective and how things relate to each other – specifically, how the cosmos relates to us. 

What is the Effect of Retrograde?
Generally speaking, retrograde motion turns the energies of a traveller inwards.  Depending on the type of energies – and how those energies interact with our natal chart – retrograde phases can be challenging.  We live in a world that overvalues the outer/objective experience and undervalues the inner/subjective experience, so most people are ill-equipped when it comes to inward focusing energies; experiencing them as anywhere from mildly uncomfortable to painful or chaotic.  When a traveller stations retrograde, we are challenged to explore that archetypal energy within ourselves. 

Retrograde phases also offer the opportunity to review (and potential redo) issues involving the archetypal energies of the traveller. However, one should avoid starting anything associated with the traveller energies during its retrograde phase. 

Personal experience of retrograde phases will depend on the strength* of the traveller in the natal chart as well as the current transit**.  Individual experiences wholly depend on the relationship with the traveller in retrograde. 

Note here, as counterintuitive as it may see, in astrology the “individual” can refer to a nation or the world as a whole… especially when it comes to the social and transpersonal travellers. 

*Traveller strength is determined by placement and/or interaction with other travellers or points in the natal chart
**Transiting traveller refers to the relationship between a traveller’s current position and the travellers/points in the natal chart

PLUTO RETROGRADE

Pluto Archetypes
Occultist, Alchemist, Sorcerer

Pluto Keywords
personal unconscious, psychoanalysis, depth psychology, transformation
death, darkness, mysteries, occult
power, wealth, control, magnetism, manipulation, mass media

Pluto in retrograde can be intense!  As the traveller who governs the depths of the psyche, his retrograde phase is about deep introspection, facing the Shadow(s), acknowledging self-destructive patterns, releasing what no longer serves, and transmuting the rest.  Pluto retrograde is an alchemical process which can reveal unresolved, traumatic, or repressed issues.  However, it also presents the opportunity to re-examine and release, facilitating transformation and regeneration.  Pluto’s retrograde phase is the longest (this year lasting 162 days), making Pluto in retrograde the archetype of “Retrograde” – rest, review, renew…

Pluto retrograde can also indicate power or control challenges, both internally and externally.  It can be obsessive, manipulative, dangerously magnetic, and outright destructive. 

If all that sounds like just too much, remember that every planet retrogrades at least once a year and individual experiences vary a lot!  Depending on the strength and transit of Pluto in the natal chart, some will have intense experiences and challenges, and some may have none at all. 

Priestess Dawn

As the founder of Theodomy, Dawn combines her training in Gardnerian Witchcraft and her B.A. in psychology with a lifetime commitment to the study of astrology and mythology, to help others find connection with the divine and Self.

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