Pluto Turns Direct as the Sun Moves to Libra, September 22nd – “A Planetary MacGuffin”

#11, Justice is tarot's card for Libra
this depiction from Ciro Marchetti's
stunning, "Legacy of the Divine Tarot" ©

Fiction writers use three hints, commonly referred to as beats, to introduce a plot device and explain what makes it significant to the protagonist of a story.  Alfred Hitchcock referred to this plot device as the ‘MacGuffin.’ The MacGuffin’s sole reason for existing is to motivate the hero and get the story moving. While the first beat, or hint is seemingly innocuous, the second and third beats are designed to snag the reader’s attention, giving them clues to the developing plot.  Catching these beats gives the reader a big payoff once the complete plot line is revealed. We all love to say, “Aha! I knew it,” don’t we? 

On September 22nd we will witness the first two of three significant beats for a planetary MacGuffin.  The MacGuffin for September is balance. It’s been a recurring theme of late. Libra is the Zodiac’s sign of balance. It is also the only sign depicted, not by a creature from mythology, but by an actual device. In this case the device is a set of scales. The Sun enters Libra on September 22nd. The first beat.  When we add up the numbers for the date September 22, 2014 we get eleven. Tarot’s #11 is Justice which is also tarot’s card for the sign, Libra. The second beat. So, where’s that third beat? Wait for it.

Pluto, the planet of transformation leaves retrograde (See

blog: "Pluto Retrograde April 14th to Sept. 23rd" ) and turns direct on September 22nd as well. The third beat, you ask?  No, but it is definitely a plot twist. Pluto rules Scorpio and the 8th house of the Zodiac where we store our joint resources, our sexuality, our powers of transformation and our indebtedness (Yikes!). Pluto, a generational planet, (See Blog: "Typecasting" ) is presently in the sign of Capricorn.  The last time Pluto was in Capricorn a group of malcontents hammered out something we call, “The Declaration of Independence.”

The key to Pluto’s power lies in its ability to simultaneously destroy and create. The planet of the underworld delights in bringing hidden things to light so they can be examined and either redesigned, or tossed aside.  Pluto’s transformative power may effect entire generations, but we can also tap into this massive energy to create positive changes in our own lives.  For all its high octane dramatics, Pluto likes positive outcomes.  

Pluto direct in Capricorn says out with the old and in with the new, particularly when it comes to financial and political systems. This transit demands fairness and a reckoning from those who don’t play well with others. Tarot’s #11, Justice, also stands for karma and karma always returns home. Let your eyes open a little wider as you view the world around you. Ask questions.  Pluto remains in Capricorn until 2023. During this transit we have the chance to notice, not the differences that we have from one another, but rather the common ground we share, the similarities in our day to day existence.  Pluto’s tarot card is #22, Judgment.  Remember, that does not mean being judgmental, but rather making decisions. Pluto hands us the opportunity to make new decisions – informed ones, better ones that benefit the whole instead of a select few. This transit is our chance to stand as one, past borders, past personal ideology and adopt basic principles of fairness and decency for all humanity. #22, Judgment also means rebirth.

Capricorn, the goat hosts Pluto until 2023

Have you figured out the third beat for our universal plot line yet?  September 23rd, the Autumnal Equinox – the equal balance between darkness and the very light that gives our planet life.  We are often besieged by rhetoric designed for emotional impact but which rarely conveys useable information, engages our intellect, or our sense of fair play.  As we take the turn into Autumn, consider the meaning of the concept ‘to balance.’  It’s a phrase we commonly use, though its universal relevance is something we frequently overlook. 

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