Astro-insight: Mercury trine Pluto – the power of words and symbols

With five planets (Sun, Venus, Mars, Chiron, Uranus) in the last decan of their sign – it is hard to escape the idea of incentive to move. It’s like when you start to get fed up – and your eye starts to wander and take in other things. Movement hangs in the air this week – not quick and sudden – but controlled.

 As the week begins Mercury slows down and stations. Mercury trines Pluto on Wednesday, goes direct on Thursday, before trining Pluto again on Friday. The first Mercury/Pluto trine was on August 11th then on August 30th, in the last minutes of Virgo, Mercury turned retrograde. What happened in the in-between time?

What did you forget ? What did I forget?
What didn’t I know then – that I do now?
What skills have I picked up, what knowledge did I gain, what inner pathways did I travel along ?

It has been a strange landscape for sure – bordering both a Mercury ruled solar eclipse (Sept. 1) and a lunar eclipse (Sept. 16). There has certainly been a lot of focus on communication (Mercury). Donald Trump’s use of language has been under scrutiny: does he incite violence? Hilary Clinton’s emails during her period at the State Department raised some eyebrows and a lot of questions… Then there has been her lack of communication with regard to her health. Not to mention the symbolic message by quarterback Colin Kaepernick,  to stand for the national anthem.
In the Netherlands, Dutch MP’s vote for a change in legislation that will make everyone automatically an organ donor unless they specifically ask to be taken off the list. This took place amid complaints over the information on the government website which suggests that patients are actually dead (as opposed to clinically declared brain dead) when organs are removed.

What we are really learning about and witnessing is the power (Pluto) that words (Mercury) and symbols (Mercury) have to move things. This is magic. Thought is powerful stuff – and we should be mindful of this as we move into the the last two Mercury/Pluto trines on Wednesday and on Friday. What are you focusing on? What is moving you to action? Can your motives stand up to scrutiny?

Neatly on Thursday, like a sandwich filler between two trines, the Sun discretely enters Libra. Then on Friday, post Mercury/Pluto trine, the Sun’s new ruler, Venus, strides into Scorpio. What a game changer this is. The energy shift is magnetic and the horoscope for the Venus/Scorpio ingress best exemplifies the new planetary picture. Mars is set to enter Capricorn (27 Sept) – and the shift from mutable towards cardinal/autumn energy begins to take place.  Cardinal is decisive and though Libra is known to oscillate, once it has made it up its mind it is surprisingly resolute. Big decisions – that could well have a long term effect – can be taken this week. Interestingly, in the UK, Gemini Jeremy Corbyn’s bid for the leadership of the Labour Party concludes on Saturday 24th.
Mars remains OOB – and continues to encourage reckless behaviour and risk taking. Planets OOB are a law unto themselves and do not submit to the authority of the Sun. The Sun/Jupiter conjunction is coloured by Venus in passionate, intuitive, darkly knowledgeable Scorpio. All secrets will be revealed and this Venus can be revengeful if the object of her desires gives her cause to doubt. With the Sun about to join Jupiter (ruler of the US Sibly ascendant) and the presidential election now a matter of weeks away, there is everything to play for and the stakes are at their highest. This can be a dangerous game. Hilary Clinton is herself a Scorpio – and if nothing else – Venus entering her sign will add to her charisma. Venus in Scorpio is not conventionally attractive – but her powerful presence compensates for that.
All in all a week of subtle shifts in perception: the experience of inner and outer reality meet.

Liz Hathway is a Welsh astrologer currently based in Amsterdam. For information on Skype readings, email to: hathway77@gmail.com

Liz studied astrology at the Kosmos in Amsterdam, at the Faculty of Astrological Studies in London and with well known horary astrology John Frawley. Liz also holds an MA (with distinction) in Cultural Astronomy and Astrology, from the University of Wales, in Lampeter, and was short-listed for the 2016 Alumni Association MA CAA Dissertation Prize.