Follow the Sun
Aligning to Purpose
by Jef Bartow
I think is fitting that Pluto is the smallest planet within our solar system, contrary to science’s degradation of Pluto to a planetoid. Being so far away from humanity here on earth, its positive expression seems remote to our normal consciousness. What we are aware of is the destructive nature of Pluto, for wherever it resides astrologically will be an area of death and regeneration.Uranus brings us insights like lightning bolts. Neptune erodes and washes away that which inhibits our growth. Whatever remains as inhibitors to our growth will not survive Pluto. It either brings positive transformation, or destruction of antiquated and crystallized attitudes and life circumstances. There is no negotiation with Pluto, or avoidance. We either suffer through or embrace the willful purposeful change that it brings.Until we make Pluto a conscious tool in our life, it represents our unconscious compulsion for change and transformation. It also provides the impetus for integration and rebirth. As Michael R. Meyer put it in A Handbook for the Humanistic Astrologer, the function of Pluto is refocalization; the process comes through re-examination for the purpose of reformulation. The end result is the establishment of new forms out of the ashes and reclaimed energy of our old forms.Until we make Pluto part of our conscious awareness, a good term for its affect is drastic regenerating power. When we have integrated Pluto within our consciousness, it becomes our internal spiritual will which transforms and perfects our entire soul and personality. It further represents the highest aspect of our spiritual nature which expresses as our purpose and will-to-be.Our articles are available for reproduction for all members. Please give credit to the author.
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Pluto's natural home is Scorpio and the eighth house. This is fitting of course, in that the eighth house represents death, regeneration, transformation, overcoming ego-desires and how we gain self-mastery. Keywords that describe Scorpio are powerful, intense, regenerative, secretive and controlling. So, the thing to remember is that not only eighth house activities will be up for death and transformation in this life, so will the areas of life with Scorpio on the cusp and where Pluto resides at birth. Frankly, we can't avoid transformation in these areas. And remember, we set it up that way on purpose.For most of you reading this article, Pluto resides natally in either Leo, Virgo, Libra (X-geners) or Scorpio (Y-geners). This is fitting in that a lot of the baby boomers with Pluto in fixed Leo are raising the fixed Scorpio Y generation. For both generations, change comes easily or very difficultly. With the X generation involving the mutability of Virgo or the cardinal of Libra, transformation is less obvious or more natural.As an example, let's use an X- gener with Pluto in Libra in the fourth house. This most often means the individual will have a Cancer ascendant and Aquarius on the eighth house cusp. Let's also put the Sun in Scorpio for good measure. First of all, we can realize that family, home life and emotional structures created growing up (all fourth house activities) will be up for transformation and/or regeneration in this life. The purpose of which is to help the individual develop a personality and sense of Self with a foundation of meaning (goal the fourth house).Images provided by NASA
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With Pluto in Libra natally, Venus can be of great help in this direction. If Venus is in Sagittarius in the birth chart, it also puts it in the sixth house. This Venus indicates that the individual’s emotional nature, urge for balance, harmony and the esthetic nature (functions of Venus) will naturally tend to be enthusiastic, inspiring, impulsive, outgoing and future oriented (tendencies of fire). Developing an adaptable, versatile, responsive and sociable (qualities of mutable) orientation at work, in day-to day routines and serving others (six house activities) will contribute greatly in building a solid foundation and sense of meaning within the individual. It will also contribute to the natural regeneration that needs to take place within the home and family life.For myself with Scorpio on the ascendant, Cancer on the eighth house cusp and Pluto in Leo in the ninth house, my entire self-image (ascendant) philosophy in life (ninth house) and something regarding family and home life (Cancer) were to all go through death, transformation and regeneration in some way. I was raised in highly conservative Orange County, California focused on getting good grades, playing golf and living the materialistic dream. For me, religion seemed antiquated and a waste of time.If you haven't been reading past articles in this series, then you might not realize that my future would be pretty much the opposite of my growing up attitude and orientation. My biological family became my friends while my family of rebirth (Cancer in the eighth house) was my spiritual living environment in a parsonage for almost 20 years. As an ordained spiritual counselor, my philosophy for life has become consistent spiritual transformation and living my ideals and spiritual principles in everyday life.Although I have been successful in the outer world, I long ago gave up the materialistic pursuit of money, wealth and possessions. These are now spiritual tools I use in expressing the characteristics of Spirit within my home life and day-to-day activities. It should be easy to see how this is such a far cry from my adolescence. Simply, this is Pluto in action over decades of applying consistent, methodical, determined and reliable spiritual principles throughout my life (fixed qualities dominate my chart).Today, I truly embrace Pluto to bring me my next phase of purpose and destiny in life. Not surprisingly, finding and fulfilling my destiny continues to require a constant orientation to change and transformation. But rather than cowering at the next set of changes to come, I'm able to easily embrace them in helping me fulfill my service in life. This is how Pluto can 
With Aquarius on the eighth house cusp, the individual will naturally be original, inventive, individualistic and self-sufficient concerning the activities that the eighth house represents (described above). The key is not to express the natural air tendencies of Aquarius, but to develop the fixed qualities of Aquarius. This equates to being determined, reliable, patient, consistent and methodical (fixed qualities) in overcoming ego-desires, gaining self-mastery and all things regarding death, regeneration and transformation in life (eight house activities). By doing so, positive transformation of this individual’s family, home life and emotional foundation will come more easily and naturally.And finally, Scorpio on the fifth house cusp indicates that this individual's creativity, involvement with children, and romantic/leisure activities (all fifth house areas of life) would be positively enhanced by approaching them with the fixed qualities of Scorpio including stability, dependability, determined, reliable, consistency and methodicalness. This individual will also expect that these areas of life will also go through some sort of transformation or rebirth during life.
