Facing What Scares You: Venus and the Uranus/Pluto Square

Transverse of a ledge in a Canadian/Polish attempt to climb Khunyang Chhish, Pakistan; photo by Raphael Slawinski, June 2006.

On Feb 5 through 6, the planet Venus, accompanied by the Moon, will pass through the slowly fading wake of the Pluto/Uranus square. The 90 degrees aspect between Uranus and Pluto is still active in the collective psyche, slowly dissipating, but still within approximately one degree of separation. Look back at the past several years since this cycle began. Uranus and Pluto came into exact contact in 2012, but the energy was building a year or so before then. To gain some perspective of what happens collectively when Uranus and Pluto come together, reflect upon the late 1960’s and the dynamic cultural and political reformation that was birthed from these powerful outer planets aligning in conjunction.

Uranus seeks to liberate and accentuate authentic, individual expression. Pluto seeks to accentuate the shadowy chasm of the collective psyche, bringing to consciousness suppressed, psychological elements to ultimately transform the personal self and collective identity. We could say that Pluto seeks to annihilate/transform the very ego Uranus seeks to bring to apotheosis. In other words, in times such as these, we each undergo deep personal transformation which is mirrored in the outer world as a rapid cultural and societal restructuring.

Pluto reveals the content that has been subjugated and ignored by our society (or the personal self/ego), and Uranus seeks to integrate those elements to ultimately reform the current, established order, but both planets work on each other.We could say that what Uranus seeks to innovate or liberate, Pluto attempts to provide with a greater purpose and application beyond the personal self. What that might feel like on an individual level, given the nature of the square, is the call to bring your individuality to some greater service beyond your own self- interests through hard work and the overcoming of immense obstacles.

And Pluto always demands deep, inner work. It demands, often, a dark night of the soul. Needless to say, this has been a tumultuous period of time, especially for those of us with significant planets in Aries, Cancer, Libra, or Capricorn. On Feb 5, the planet Venus will conjoin Pluto in Capricorn. With the Moon, Mercury, Venus and Pluto clustering in Capricorn, you may find yourself feeling a bit more determined, focused, disciplined, and self-reflective. This is a brief moment in time where you have an opportunity to align your priorities and to transcend those habits or behaviors you may feel are holding you back from some greater purpose or mission.

But remember that you have free will. That means that you can always stay where you are. But if you do that, you’re likely to experience Pluto’s often frightening and uncomfortable dark night of the soul. You’re likely to feel, perhaps, a fleeting moment of meaninglessness and depression. Such feelings arise from within the body as a message from the soul: “You are capable of more than what you currently perceive yourself to be.” Venus, on one end, is a “social” impulse. It seeks to extend outward to build bridges of social exchange. On another end, Venus symbolizes what we project value upon. Either way, Venus is about projection.

As Venus conjoins with Pluto, you may find that over the next few days you have an opportunity to see deeper into your projections. What lies at the root of your current desires? Is what you desire really for your greater good? Will it lead to liberation, change, and transformation, or are you projecting value upon something unaware of what you’re actually after? But, here’s the trick. Pluto will always get you. No matter what you go after, you can’t avoid the shadowy void of the unconscious. Whether in your dreams/nightmares, what have you, these next few days will lead you to a potential realization of your bigger purpose, mission, or destiny, if only a glimpse. Maybe you learn that the easy way, by willingly facing what scares you.

Or maybe you learn the hard way, choosing to ignore uncomfortable truths, but finding it anyway through external conflict or fleeting existential angst. In Capricorn, it’s time to get serious and choose to consciously liberate yourself from suppressive circumstances. That may not require direct action. It may merely require your willingness to look deeper at what impulses you right now and what you’re trying to avoid. Look soberly into your frustration. It’s trying to tell you something. It’s trying to bring awareness to those issues that have been ignored. And when you do that, when you bring light to the darkness, you’ll have a clearer strategy and a readiness to charge ahead.