This is a "stated time" chart for the beginning of the meeting. Obviously, we will understand this chart better after the results are in (which by now may have already hit the news wire) but this chart seems to be about the beginning of a discussion, not the end of one. I say this because it's right after the New Moon, so we have the beginning of a lunar cycle dominating the energy.
Also, as this chart develops, there is a lunar eclipse in two weeks and a solar eclipse two weeks after that. I really doubt that anything decided here is going to stick. This is a developing story.
What is interesting is that we have a Scorpio rising chart (Pluto rules Scorpio) and Mars, the other ruler of Scorpio, is in Virgo. Mars (which really represents Pluto in this chart, because Pluto is the subject of the discussion, and Mars is the first ruler of Scorpio) is about to square Pluto and cross the South Node. So the two rulers of Scorpio, both planets representing Pluto, meet in a square, and the square involves the South Node. Does that say anything to you? At minimum, a "profound transformation" (Pluto) and "letting go of the past" (South Node) based on "intense technicalities" (lots and lots of Virgo).
One striking thing about this chart is how dominated it is by both Leo (passion) and Virgo (technicality). Both are abundantly present. All the Leo stuff happens to be in the 1st house of the Pluto discovery chart. So Pluto has a lot of charisma right now, popular appeal and so on. But is that going to win the day?
I would not be surprised if Pluto is voted out of its planetary status. This won't make a bit of difference to astrologers -- we respect Pluto perhaps more than anyone. But it would be reflective of a gradual but definite trend in society toward wide-scale denial of what Pluto is about, in terms of its theme.
Pluto is what Pluto represents. It is not just a planet; it's an archetype, and one that is extremely active in the human story. When you check history going back 2,000 years, you see the Pluto cycles like you see the New York City skyline landing at JFK. That archetype inherently represents that which we tend to deny the most and what we need the most for both individual growth and evolution as a culture. But we seem to be in even deeper denial than usual these days, which is largely due to fear, and also that we're being confronted with so much change so fast, and so much manipulation.
Denying Pluto would be saying, in effect, that "it's okay to not deal with this stuff." We could, of course, find it in ourselves to be more outraged about war and torture, and the lying and conniving of our "leaders" that got us there. Instead, we tend to revel in images of war on television. Then in the United States, ever increasingly, like many places dominated by religion, we teach our children "abstinence" instead of teaching them about their feelings and their bodies. Hate and prejudice are open season; discussion of love and erotic subjects are still often felt to be taboo, scary and wicked, something not done in polite company. And we wonder why everything is so weird.
We also live in a time when the general trend is toward simplifying our perception of life rather than actually embracing the complexity of existence. Hence, many would like to have a nice, simple solar system with a nice even number of planets that would probably not expand for centuries, until something bigger than Mercury is discovered. All the rest would be put next to the door, on a cultural level. Many people think we need a solar system that's simple enough for the marketing department to handle. We can't have things called 2003 UB 313.
The very good news is that astrology has benefited greatly from the discussion of these other bodies orbiting the Sun (I call them planets, whatever anyone in Prague thinks). In attempting to deny certain archetypes of astronomical bodies their due, they have pushed them further into awareness. The debate itself is part of history. The discussion will be recorded in books, articles and on the internet, as permanently as these things are.
And if Pluto is a minor planet, well then, we had better look at some of the others. Xena and Sedna definitely mean something, and hey, Chiron, closely associated with Pluto, really needs a much closer look.
It would be so healthy to have 100 or more things honored as planets -- to accept the incredible diversity of the solar system. It would be just as great if we could endorse and affirm all things Plutonian encourage one another to keep an open discussion of sex going in the world. We could be better people for honest discussion of death. It would be very healthy for us to address all the material that Pluto offers, as individuals and as a culture -- and also that of the other planets, which describe many similar things as Pluto but each with its own feeling. It would be so excellent not to pretend we're something other than human, with all our feelings, needs and fears. Every planet deserves a home -- within us.
