Venus conjuncts Pluto in Capricorn

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Tears and fears and feeling proud to say “i love you” right out loud,
Dreams and schemes and circus crowds, i’ve looked at life that way.
But now old friends are acting strange, they shake their heads, they say
I’ve changed.
Something’s lost but something’s gained in living every day.

— Joni Mitchell, Both Sides Now

This article was written under exact Venus-Pluto aspect on Feb. 9, 2011

Chiron entered Pisces yesterday and is currently in a sextile to the North Node, asking us to keep awareness as we steer the course of our destiny.

As I write this, in about 20 minutes Venus conjuncts Pluto in Capricorn at 8:48 PM EDT on Feb. 9, 2010. The last time these planets were in conjunction was at the end of December 2009.

We are starting a new financial and emotional cycle, but before every beginning, there must be an end. Venus-Pluto aspects are generally intensely passionate, sexual, sensual, seductive and alchemically potent energy.

But in Capricorn there is a flavor of serious business and no fooling around, although worked with correctly, this can be very tangibly profitable.

Relationships are a prime focus – financial, business and personal. And in truth, right now it may be hard to separate the two. There is a sense of crossing boundaries that we dare not cross.

It’s true: there’s no going back from here, and Pluto asks that we ‘change or die.’ Not literally of course, but something must evolve and transform from its current form in order for it to survive.

Whether we like it or not, transformation is certain. But the more we cling to the past or resist, the harder or more painful it will be. Done consciously, we could profit from this, financially as well as emotionally, and make great progress.

Let go of the dark stuff, of emotional baggage and the things that weigh you down. With Venus-Pluto there can be shades of obsession, jealousy, possessiveness, manipulative tendencies and toxic patterns that we need to let go of.

Pluto points to our deepest unconscious psychological imprints. Go to the root of an issue or fear in order to uproot debilitating fears and patterns. Where you find yourself resisting is exactly where you need to let go of expectations and conditions and to dig deep to find what is valuable and worth preserving.

Get to the root of your insecurity or fear of failure, which likely has to do with the way that you were brought up, perhaps even specifically with one’s father or a father-figure who represents your relationship to authority or to what or whom you feel has power over you.

When it comes to love, whose rules are you going to live by: your parents’, society’s? Where does your model for sex and intimacy come from? Is it what you’ve seen in movies, your cultural upbringing, or through life and love experiences from your past? Break through old patterns and conditioning to lay the groundwork and rules based on what is real and present.

This Venus-Pluto aspect is marking a new cycle, so get your priorities straight. Who do you love and desire? And why? What are the defenses, barriers, baggage you need to tear down if you are to acknowledge a precious reality?

Of course, this aspect is playing out heavily in personal and business situations, as well. Avoid being greedy, manipulative, cold and or calculating, although it’s more than likely that you will run into plenty of these folks right now.

Avoid clinging to the material stuff. Money comes as long as we learn to respect it. In India, Lakshmi (an aspect of Venus) is the Goddess of wealth and beauty. Her highest manifestation is MahaLakshmi (Maha = great/superior/higher) or what I would liken to the energy of Venus in Capricorn – the highest manifestation of earthly feminine energy in material or human form.

MahaLakshmi is the Goddess of Knowledge, and as this aspect clearly represents, knowledge is the true source of wealth and power. True knowledge (not the kind we read in books) comes from becoming a vessel for the Divine and for higher awareness.

There are those who abuse this power (knowledge) for personal gain and those who use it constructively to create a better world even in the wake of destruction.

Eventually, integrity wins. How do we use our resources for the greatest good – individually and globally, as an intrinsic part of the human race? Poverty need not exist. It exists because it benefits those in power.

There are those who gain when others suffer – pretty much all and any kind of ‘institutions.’ Pluto in Capricorn suggests a need for awareness of corruption, not just in politics, but also in the politics of your life.

But none of this need make you paranoid; rather, the Moon in Taurus suggests that there is solidity and groundedness to emotions, and you can trust your instincts and feelings about love, money and creativity.

There is abundance in this Universe to sustain all that exists within it. The individual choices within our personal lives that are made by each and every one of us are what ripple out to a greater collective. Our choices change the whole, consciously or unconsciously, for better or worse (which again is a matter of perspective), right from the basics of how we control our population by making conscious, personal choices about sex and birth control so that people can live a better quality of life. What ultimately matters at the core and root of it all is one’s intention.

Define what ‘success’ means to you while deconstructing what it meant for your parents or what it means to the rest of the world. With the Sun and Mars in Aquarius, avoid mob mentality of the next latest, greatest and bestest fad and ticket to success.

Don’t settle for less than the best, nor do you need to prove yourself to anyone in order to gain approval. In any case, just watch your own stuff rather than trying to control others’ or a situation. Also, remember that you don’t need to please anyone; just be true to yourself, starting with your need to connect.

This aspect will linger over the next few days, and as much as I hate mentioning it, it’s definitely coloring this years Valentine’s Day that is around the corner. (Thankfully I’ll be in the sky, flying above the madness through it all.) I say ‘hate’ simply because it is such a commercialized day for something so gentle and ever-present as love.

And don’t get me wrong; I love romance. But what is romantic to one may not be so to another. But perhaps the aspect in Capricorn will push us to go beyond our ideas and ‘ideals’ of romance (with Pluto, it’s willingly or unwillingly) in order to experience and understand the value of the real thing. Taking the trash out could be a romantic gesture. And if you take out emotional garbage, then you can bet that your love life could improve.

It’s time to lay new ground rules that satisfy the needs of both parties. If we can prioritize mutual respect, cooperation and a common goal, then this can only get better with time, like fine wine. Quality matters, not quantity, and the quality of a relationship can be defined only as much as it meets the needs of both people involved.

You could be staring at a diamond in the rough. It doesn’t matter if you wine and dine another, or are yourself wined and dined. The true test is whether you can pass through the ring of fire, evolve through time and still come out on top stronger for it. Relationships don’t end; they transform and evolve. And if you’ve survived this one, then you’ve seen proof of it.

We’re making a clean sweep. Let go of what you don’t need so that you can make space for true prosperity to take seed. I would compare it to a wildfire that burns deadwood, making the soil fertile and rich for the next generation of trees.

Wherever it feels like a chapter is ending, or a part of you is dying, this is only burning off impurities to leave behind something purely golden.

— Priya Kale, NYC

I am available for Personal Astrology Consultations. Please email me to schedule an appointment at priya@priyakale.com