6 Things You May Not Know about Pluto

©2009 by Donna Cunningham, MSW

 At a conference banquet years ago, Bil Tierney conducted a mini-roast and dubbed me Our Lady of Pluto. Healing Pluto Problems may be my best-selling book of all time. First published in 1986, the hardcopy version remains in print in English and several other languages. People are still writing and calling to say that the insights it gave affected them profoundly and put them on a path to transformation. (It’s available through redwheelweiser.com at 1-800-423-7087.)

 I’m glad the book is still helping people, but I wish I had the stamina to update it and put out a new edition.  It would have much more information about the healing tools I’ve learned in the 23 years since it was published—tools like flower remedies, homeopathy, and lightwork that can accelerate the process of insight and releasing old psychological scars.

 It would give you more of a longitudinal picture of what Plutonian people are capable of as they mature and grow. I’ve learned a great deal more myself over the past 23 years, livin’ la vida Pluto.  Some of what I’ve learned is shared in my ebooks (available at Moon Maven Publications), and to give you a taste of the new insights, here are a few excerpts:

 From a Chapter about Pluto in the career houses (2^nd, 6^th, or 10^th) in The Outer Planets as Vocational Indicators (The Outer Planets and Inner Life, v.1):

 “The house Pluto occupies in the birth chart can represent areas of life where we fail for spite. That is, we may chronically set ourselves up to fail in those areas in ways that are painful, frustrating, and mystifying to us on a conscious level. On the unconscious level, the motive is often to get back at potent childhood figures who considered that area crucial. The behavior is self-destructive, like the scorpion’s sting. For some Plutonians, however, extracting vengeance is more important than doing well.

 “With Pluto in the vocational houses, failing in the career can embarrass the parent or other authority figure, a form of revenge. (“You said I’d never make anything of myself. Well, I’ll show you….”) Parents can’t control whether their offspring succeed or not, and the more parents demand success, the greater the sting when their offspring fail.”

 From a chapter about Venus-Pluto aspects in Outer Planet Aspects to Venus and Mars. (The Outer Planets and Inner Life, v.2)

“In lists of famous people with Venus-Pluto aspects, you find many who married well in order to do some dynasty building. In researching the charts of the wives of presidents and politicians, I was fascinated to see how many of them had Venus in combination with Pluto—so many that I dubbed it the First Lady Aspect.

” Those who have it include Pat Nixon and Betty Ford with the trine and Eleanor Roosevelt, Hillary Clinton, and Maria Shriver—first lady of California—with the square.  Many British Royals share the aspect—Elizabeth II, Charles, Philip, Sarah, Duchess of York, and Prince Edward’s wife, Sophie Rhys-Jones. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has the trine, and by all accounts his wife has been an excellent support in his career.”

“…One superb use of a Venus-Pluto aspect is as a heart healer on a professional level. Self-help guru John Bradshaw, who taught so eloquently of the shame that comes from growing up in an alcoholic household, had Venus and Pluto conjunct in Cancer in the 3^rd house. Psychologist Arthur Janov, who also had the conjunction in Cancer in the 3^rd, the house of communication, developed a technique called The Primal Scream—a quite literal expression of the aspect. Betty Ford’s dedication to helping people recover from addiction can be seen in her close trine between Pluto in Cancer and an exalted Venus in Pisces.

“For all of us, love can be a healing vital force in transforming ourselves, so there are those with Venus-Pluto aspects whose loving hearts help heal those who are fortunate enough to encounter them. That possibility is realized when love heals rather than rescues—empowers rather than enslaves. People who are able to do that are the Venus-Pluto folks who love you and then let you go—it is those who love and then take hostages that represent the more troubled side of these aspects.”

 From Aspects between the Outer Planets: (The Outer Planets and Inner Life, v.3):

 “The generation born with Pluto in Libra during parts of 1971-84 was the first to experience widespread fragmentation of the family. As they grew up, divorce statistics gradually reached as high as 50% in some areas of the U.S. With Libra as a keynote, many of those with Pluto prominent labored to keep peace between their warring parents. They were often caught in the middle in a bitter aftermath, suffering through stressful situations such as dual custody, their parents’ serial marriages, multiple step-parents, and fathers who moved away and lost contact following the divorce.

“Even if their own families remained intact, they had friends, classmates, and cousins who suffered such losses and who struggled to adjust to a divided family. Their expectations about commitment were shaped by this climate. Those with the Saturn-Pluto conjunction were among the youngest and thus could have been affected at an earlier stage of development stage by a family breakup, Many of them were grief-stricken, and, as a result, fearful of getting involved in adult partnerships.

“For the Pluto in Libra generation, attractiveness, even physical perfection, is a talisman against romantic woes. Though this particular talisman works no better than most, these people can be obsessed with looks and with costly, ever-changing fashion. The incidence of anorexia and bulimia continues to rise, and breast implants are a growth industry, even among teens. From childhood on, the media has bombarded them with the message that the only way to find love and social acceptance is to be beautiful. For those who fall short of this ideal, the cost in self-esteem is immense.”

 Though brief, I hope these excerpts have given you some new insights. To order any of these ebooks, visit Moon Maven Publications.

More Posts about Pluto on this Blog: 

• Pluto in the Career Houses–The Power to Manifest or Fail for Spite
• Pluto and Bullying: How to Recognize and Deal with It
• Mars-Pluto Aspects? Use your Manifestation Mojo!
• Pluto in Capricorn: A Laugh and a Half, by John Marchesella
• Healing Tools For Plutonians: Transforming The Self And Others
• Astrological Clues to Resilience—the Houses as Havens after Trauma
• Vocational Angst for the Pluto-Uranus in Virgo Generation
• The Steamy Side of Venus-Pluto Aspects—A Photo Gallery
• High Maintenance–a Venus-Pluto Vignette

More Posts in the “Things You May not Know” Series:

• 10 Things You May not Know about Uranus
• 7 Secrets You May not Know about the 12th House
• 12 Famous People with 12th House Suns

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