When:
- March 23rd – June 11th, 2023
- January 20th – September 1st, 2024
- November 19th, 2024 – March 8th, 2043
- August 31st, 2043 – January 19th, 2044
What: Pluto in Aquarius
Takeaway: The planet of secrets, underworld journeys, and transformations plugs once more into the hivemind of Aquarius. The collective is about to reclaim its power.
Understanding the archetype of Pluto
Pluto is a transformer. Its visits change everything. As the planet of wealth, power, secrets, mystery, and shadow journeys, Pluto teaches us that life is an unstoppable force. It unfurls from the fertile decay of the compost heap. Its fungi fans from the rot of a tree. Its lotus flower blooms within a bed of mud. Pluto magic is all about rebirth. Whenever new growth emerges from a dark night of the soul, trust that the CEO of underworld journeys is involved.
Fortunately for us, this slow-moving planet gives us ample time to absorb the profundity of its lessons. When Pluto visits our natal chart, it demands stamina, courage, and ruthless honesty. If we commit to unearthing our potency, the baron of buried treasure will transform the lead of our lives into gold.
When you start working with this planet, you will feel wildly in tune with your innermost self. But it requires that you listen to the subterranean whispers. It asks that you trust the voice deep inside. It urges you to open the doors in your psyche covered in caution tape. Whatever Pluto asks you to leave behind in the underworld, know that it’s clearing space for something even more fulfilling.
Why Pluto in Aquarius is breaking news
We experienced a teaser of Pluto in Aquarius between March and June of 2023. But before that, the transformer planet hadn’t journeyed through Aquarius since the late 1700s. We’re about to board a once-in-several-centuries rollercoaster ride. This is mostly unexplored territory in our lifetime — and many lifetimes before.
When Pluto enters Aquarius, it brings its transformative themes into the realm of information technology, data, science, and systems of power. Aquarius is a sign concerned with the collective. By the end of Pluto’s time here in 2044, we can expect our social norms and ideologies to be radically transformed. Whether we’re focused on the ongoing climate crisis, the rise of extreme political ideologies, or the epidemic of gun violence, Pluto in Aquarius demands our full cooperation in turning major issues around.
The planet of power’s recent travels through Capricorn revealed how stuck we are within cultures of supremacy, where the game is rigged to benefit the one percent. Pluto in Aquarius asks: Well, what about the 99 percent? As we have learned through educational campaigns on social media — as well as through our ability to record and collectively refuse state violence — we have the tools to find each other. To mobilize. To organize. We just need a rallying cry urgent enough to cut through the noise of endless virtual distractions.
When Pluto last changed signs in 2008, the housing bubble burst only months later. Greed, deregulation of the stock market, and cheap credit led to a recession whose shockwaves reverberate to this day. Although the banks were bailed out, it was the working class that shouldered the burden of this financial crisis. And nothing really changed. Today, hedge funds continue to hoard wealth through inside trading — Pluto loves to hide its gold, afterall. Meanwhile housing and grocery prices continue to soar, while so many struggle to cover their basic necessities.
With the capsizing of Silicon Valley Bank — just weeks before Pluto first entered Aquarius in 2023 — it has appeared that history is on the verge of repeating itself. If the powers that be refuse to evolve our financial systems, the planet of wealth may well force the issue. With the collective behind it this time. Though this latest crisis is contained so far within the tech industry, which Aquarius rules, only time will tell if this is the first domino in another recession.
Of course, disruption in the tech industry isn’t limited to its banks. The internet itself is on the verge of a massive transition. We’re noticing this already with the AI renaissance, which is likely to open a Pandora’s box of ethical questions. Quantum computing could prove to be another game-changer, as Pluto in Aquarius pierces the event horizon of our sense of reality itself. We must decide where our ingenuity, creativity, and even the divine, fit within an increasingly automated world. Will our tools and technology empower us, or will the algorithms make us their tools? As we witnessed in 2023 with the attempts to ban TikTok in North America, issues of power and control will transform our virtual connectivity in the decades to come.
Pluto’s last descent through Aquarius
The last time Pluto journeyed through Aquarius, between 1777 and 1798, the world’s balance of power massively shifted. These two decades saw the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. The monarchy was toppled in France, showing that even the world’s most powerful institutions can crumble in the face of Pluto’s wrecking ball.
The Age of Enlightenment also reached a crescendo at this time. Aquarian ideals of reason, rationality, and humanity’s power to steer its own destiny fueled this epoch and laid the groundwork for democratic institutions and human rights.
During this era, the planet Uranus was discovered with the help of cutting-edge technology, the telescope, completely upending our view of the known solar system. The hot air balloon was also invented, which was the first time humans transcended earthly gravity and rose into the heavens. The fixed air sign of Aquarius rules over all aerial happenings, so it’s no coincidence that spy balloons, airborne contamination, and UFOs are suddenly making headlines. Yes, we’re adding “alien invasion” to our Pluto in Aquarius bingo card.
Additionally, Mary Wollstonecraft published A Vindication of the Rights of Woman in 1792, which argued that women should be treated as equal, rational beings, especially regarding education. The struggle for basic human dignity continues into 2023, with more than 300 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced or passed in the USA in 2022 alone, as well as reproductive rights being systemically revoked. We can expect these issues to reach a flashpoint during Pluto’s time in Aquarius.
Seasons of collective upheaval are rarely comfortable, but they also remind us of the resilience and the power of our communities. Wherever our institutions fail us, there’s an opportunity to build something fairer, sturdier, and more sustainable in its place. So gather your screens and invite your friends for a hacktivism party. We’re in this together.
7 ways to work with Pluto in Aquarius
Though it’s impossible to predict what humanity 2.0 will look like on the other side of this transit, our networks, technological advances, and the hive mind itself will be the source of awe-inspiring resources in the years to come. Even in revolutionary times, you can commit to staying grounded. Present. Heart-centered. As waves of rebellion and idealistic fervor sweep the collective, it’s more important than ever to check in with your body, your instincts, and your inner wise one.
Here are 7 tips to help you make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime transit.
1. Gather your networks, your brunch crew, your fellow activists, and your group chat to face these seismic shifts as a unified front. Whether you choose to join an online support group, a spinning class, or a community outreach program, this is definitely not the time to go it alone.
2. Give back to your communities. Though circulating a neighborhood zine, painting a town mural, or delivering groceries to elders may feel like drops in the bucket, under Pluto in Aquarius these acts of support become a mighty wave. If you’re unsure how to help, scour your local cork boards to get a read on where your skillset could change someone’s life.
3. Practice common sense when it comes to the mass movements sweeping our collective. Do your research before joining any bandwagon. Groupthink is a darker side of this transit, so trust your gut.
4. Ground yourself as much as possible to balance the cerebral side of Pluto in this intellectual air sign. Center the practices and rituals that bring you back to your body, the present moment, and your breath.
5. Explore your subconscious fears, blocks, and shadows regarding power, change, group dynamics, and letting go. With Pluto in this visionary sign, your imagination is your superpower. Dreamboard a life of freedom and collective fairness and watch it manifest in real-time.
6. Check your Pluto placement in the CHANI app or via our online chart tool, then read all about it. If you have any other placements in Aquarius, these planets will be part of the story too.
7. Find out if Pluto in Aquarius will impact your natal placements by checking your Transits in the CHANI app starting on January 20th, 2024. These readings update in real-time, so it’s worth checking them every day to avoid missing a beat. You can also read your Current Sky horoscope for Pluto in Aquarius, which outlines how this transit will revolutionize your life based on your rising sign.
Looking for more intel? Read your daily horoscope:
Aries | Taurus | Gemini | Cancer | Leo | Virgo | Libra
Scorpio | Sagittarius | Capricorn | Aquarius | Pisces
Then download the CHANI app on iOS or Android for additional horoscopes, meditations, affirmations, readings for the current Moon phase and sign, and more.
