Photo courtesy of Austin Helms, Fire Island, Pines New York, Summer 2013

(Author Disclaimer: This post was authored using Tropical Astrology, and predates the transition to sidereal 13 signs Astrology)

Western Civilization and now global civilization (now that the West has been exported and adopted widely) has been experiencing a cultural revolution since Uranus and Pluto came into square aspect to one another in 2010. Buckle your seat belts because this ride doesn’t end until 2015, and it may get turbulent. This passage will echo the tumult of the 1960’s the last time these two explosive planets made aspect to each other (that was a conjunction).

First the basics so we have a primer on the forces we are operating with. Uranus functions to stimulate innovative breakthroughs and progress. Pluto relates to foundations, legacies, and socio-political power. When these two bodies are in close resonance to one another they will create an ignition switch that shakes and disturbs the foundations of political systems. This creative chaos is generated so that new, appropriate governmental methods and regulatory best practices can emerge. Currently Pluto is in Capricorn the sign of government and cultural institutions and Uranus is in Aries the sign of individual liberties and inalienable rights the world is in for what could be best be described as creativity in motion or if we are being cute (and we are), a sustained chemical reaction, or cultural ballistics. In any case expect some intense rebellion and push and blowback all around.

These planets this time around as last time are forming a hard aspect known as a square; this occurs when the planetary orbits are placed from our vantage point on earth at 90 degrees to one another. The conjunction of the 1960’s would marked by a revolutionary energy that swept up everything in its path and changed the deep structures of our culture inexorably and permanently. The square is marked by confrontation and a need to come to collaboration between cultural institutions on one hand and personal liberties on the other. Whether or not the people represented by the masses of individuals will win out and transform our collective governing body (think the empowerment of world governance and just laws, possibly a world constitution and bill of rights) remains to be seen.

The basics of the confrontation are such: the political powers of the world (as represented by Pluto in Capricorn in an unconscious state) are being confronted by the refusal of individuals (Uranus in Aries) to go along with a program which is beneficial to only the top 1% of society and effectively alienates the rest of us, a great injustice especially under democratic principles which in theory are meant to enshrine fairness. If you are going to design a social contract you need to be clear to make sure it benefits the largest percentage of the people who will have to live with it otherwise you will tear your society apart by people destroying it from the inside out, through completely understandable rebellion.

Pluto-Capricorn is confronted with the fact that the individual as represented by Uranus-Aries in society will not, nay outright refuses to be responsible for the mishandling of collective institutions by the Plutocrats and will demand through fiery rebellion and a vociferous defense of liberties, that Pluto clean up it’s own mess (Pluto’s true function). Uranus-Aries will say to Pluto “the buck stops here, you made the mess and will not pass the externalities on to me.”

Yet the true function of Pluto is to sink to the depths of the problem and purify any decay found by eliminating the waste, this is the higher octave of Pluto. It is us as individuals working in collective arrangements which can be empowered to purge the corruption from the system and create a renewal of true democracy in this cultural state. These are interesting times and they are inherently creative ones and if we play our cards right collectively this tumult could be a new dawn for Global Civilization; a dawn that delivers justice for all and a whole new articulation of human freedom.

Stay Tuned for Part 2- I will discuss how this translates to the Pluto generational cycles.