Mars will dominate this winter as it moves through Cancer in opposition to Pluto from late October, going retrograde early December and staying within orb of this high-stress opposition till after the USA Inauguration in late January. Mars goes direct late February and picks up the Pluto opposition again mid April to mid May. Not only the USA but everywhere will be under strain.
Mars opposition Pluto tends to feel blocked, frustrating, trapped, powerless and infuriated. On occasion it brings high-risk situations and/or crises. Progress will only come after superhuman efforts, meeting force with force. Mars Pluto can move mountains but it will take courage and unrelenting determination.
From a previous post on the nature of Mars.
Mars, god of war, testosterone-fuelled and so competitive he would kick his father out of the way to get ahead, may have had a heroic image in ye olden times. But he/she is struggling to revision themselves in these non-binary, tree-hugging, #metoo sensitive days.
Broken down into simple words Mars is 1) assertive; 2) argumentative and competitive; 3) bolsters identity in ‘I want’; 4) provides forward gear; 5) is an essential factor in decision-making); 6) necessary for sex drive; 7) generates will-power and the life force. Without Mars there would be no life, no reproduction, no progress.
Mars is usually thought of as angry. But anger is only stored up assertion. When ‘I want’, ‘I intend’, ‘I will do’ – all of them reflecting the core identity of the individual – gets blocked or remains unexpressed Mars slowly starts to boil until it erupts. Synonyms for assertion are – decisive, believing in oneself, self-assured, confident, forceful. All of those can be subtly conveyed – or not – depending on the sign Mars sits in.
Mars in the Fire signs – Aries, Leo and Sagittarius – will be loud, inclined to flare up, outspoken and unselfconscious about demanding their own way. In Aries and Sagittarius squalls never last long and are soon forgotten. In Leo, being ego-centric and Fixed, there can be a prickly defensiveness hanging around after arguments.
Mars in the Earth signs – Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn – can be slow burn and is usually focused on a practical or financial outcome. Mars in Taurus is slow to anger but earth-shaking when the lava erupts. Money will be what motivates them into action. Mars in Virgo, the workaholic, is a perfectionist. In Capricorn is super-ambitious, climbing ever higher up the ladder with steely determination.
Mars in the Water signs – Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces – is more problematic. Fire makes Water boil is quintessentially true of Mars in Cancer, which is volatile and gets over-emotional when provoked. Scorpio, secretive as ever, harbours a grinding resentment which is kept under control until the time is right and then the scorpion sting is let loose. Its plus point is utter-determination. In Pisces, Mars gets flummoxed since Pisces hate confrontations. Where the pair come together most effectively are in artistic ventures especially dance and yoga. Forward march to Pisces means taking the roundabout route.
Mars in the chatty Air signs – Gemini, Libra, Aquarius – pumps fire into thinking and speaking. All good debaters and adept with words. Mars in Aquarius can be ornery, awkwardly stubborn.
How Mars integrates in the chart and which planets it sidles up to or clashes with makes a difference. The essential nature of Mars in its chosen sign gets modulated, watered down or the opposite, depending on which other planetary energy it has to work beside.
Sun conjunct Mars is competitive and courageous; in square and opposition doubly so, headstrong, willful, reckless and noisy.
Moon Mars – comes from the angry mother who blocks the child’s assertion, leaving issues with women/domestic life behind in adult life, quarrelsome. Alcohol tends to lift inhibitions so flare ups follow.
Mercury Mars – quick thinking, fast-talking and sharp-tongued, inclined to argue endlessly and stir up controversies.
Venus Mars – in conjunction can be passionately enthusiastic and, in some, a tendency to promiscuity. In square and opposition it leads to strong ‘romantic’ attractions but not always sensitivity to the other’s needs.
Jupiter Mars – high vitality plus positive thinking = good luck. Helpful for starting new projects.
Saturn Mars – blocked assertion can have positive outcome in self-discipline and promoting a military turn of mind where suppressing personal needs and identity for a specific purpose is helpful. Can be destructive, violent. Tends to be passive-aggressive. Simmers with resentment and then blows a fuse.
Uranus Mars – rebellious and freedom-loving plus fiery zeal can be an explosive and self-willed combination. Good for high-risk ventures, adventure and thrills. Bad for tolerating interference and compromise.
Neptune Mars – can attract publicity and glamour, common in showbusiness types. Has a hint of Mars in Pisces so not always good at full-frontal demands.
Pluto Mars – a challenging combination stemming from a dominating, scary father who at times would feel life threatening. Leaves behind an adult who is good in crisis situations and is do-or-die determined. Some turn ruthless since it was what they knew, others remain suppressed and attract difficulties because they are unsure how to live out the super-charged energy.
Discussing sex nowadays is a minefield. But I recollect years back reading a study by zoologist Konrad Lorenz about ducks and he found the ones lacking aggression/assertion didn’t/couldn’t mate. Aggression gave them propulsion but had to be diverted at the final moment to allow coupling to take place. Which suggests the Mars drive is essential for reproduction but has to be under control. Not that humans are like ducks or other animals – no rape in the animal kingdom. Female lions repel over arduous approaches with a snarl if they are not in the mood; and zebras with a well-aimed kick. The alpha males in rut have Mars in overdrive. But the ladies are in charge. Not sure where humans went wrong as they mutated away from chimps.
In the above examples of people with Mars opp Pluto, using their biographies check
their life events when the opposition Solar Arced to 29 degrees, or when transits
aspected their natal Mars opp natal Pluto.
Mars oppostion Pluto examples…..John Belushi, Gary Coleman, Cindy Crawford and
Warren Harding.
I’ve read that Uranus is the “higher octave” of Mercury. Is Pluto similarly the higher octave of Mars?
If true, or not, how would you define “higher octave”?
Another site was thinking on the same lines as me.
higher octave planets The three outermost planets, which symbolize the higher or spiritual level of expression in contrast to the lower or physical level symbolized by the inner planets with which they are linked. Uranus, the higher octave of Mercury, objective intellectualism. Neptune, linked to Venus, expresses spiritual love; Pluto, the higher octave of Mars, is associated with spiritual evolvement; Mars with physical development.
If one follows the same logic of thinking for Pluto and Mars as for Uranus and Mercury, Pluto is the higher expression of violence, just as Uranus’s rational intellectualism is a higher octave of Mercury’s thinking.
Pluto is long term war, Mars is short term violence, the battle of the moment.
Does this make sense?
I always envision Plutonic energy as a trinity. Basic expression as the Scorpion, who wil seek survival through revenge and power over others. Then comes Snake, who dwells in dark recesses and wants to transform the pain of existence (literally by shedding its skin). Or, in a more Biblical interpretation: using temptation and deception to survive.
The most evolved form of Plutonic energy is the Eagle, or the Phoenix. Eagle soars high and sees all, integrating and transmuting intense experiences into wisdom and compassion.
That is certainly an interpretation I had not come across before.
Thank you for that.
Mars conjunct Pluto here. Might I respectfully add that this position can hint at a domineering, controlling, cruel caregiver, male ór female. I certainly had some life threatening experiences during my life, though not all of them related to my caregivers. Through these experiences I learned about the dark depths of human cruelty. Not a walk in the park. But…older now, I’m able to understand the human psyche in all its forms and I am not afraid to dive into the deep. As a social worker I’m able to level effortlessly with the most deprived souls.
I also have Mars widely conjunct Uranus. I love extreme sports like motorbike racing, off piste skiing and all things related to speed… Furthermore, I have Mars and Pluto in a tight sextile to Neptune. I have a deep love for outsider arts and music. I used to be a techno/psytrance DJ.
Got the sextile with Mars conjunct Moon, Mercury, Neptune in the 3rd and experienced some very bad ‘in loco parentis’ both at my English boarding school from some truly awful and deliberately cruel women who wouldn’t have got away with it today and at my Primary where the headmistress was a violent, angry woman who was eventually sued by a parent when she grabbed the girl by her hair and tore it from her scalp.
I really resonate with Lucy’s post about fear. I was a hyper nervous and frightened little girl. I have Mars in Scorpio.
Thanks, Marjorie
Interesting and useful thumbnail of Mars, it matches my experiences with everyone I know including myself.
I had solar arc Mars on Pluto a few years ago. It worsened in 2017 and lasted about 2.5 – 3 years, but it feels like yesterday, it reverberates. To “blocked, frustrating, trapped, powerless and infuriated” I would add terrified. Circumstances may be such that you feel apprehension, nervousness, overwhelming fear, almost all the time. Like an app running behind all you do and all you think. Progress may not be possible, depending on the natal aspects to Pluto and Mars. Meeting force with force is not always an option, due to character or circumstance. There is a lesson in this long period of agonizing fear, which can be summarized by Frank Herbert’s litany against fear
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.
In the middle of it, and especially in hindsight, you do experience this mind-killer effect. By the end you have learned still yourself somewhat, and allow fear to pass: patience amidst great inner turmoil. So Herbert was wrong about the idea that when fear is gone, there is nothing. There is a huge lesson and transformation of the self in ways that are not outwardly apparent. And there is also a new perspective of the vulnerability of the human mind, plus the feeling that you may not survive this again, and the sense of wonder at the catastrophes many human beings have survived.
The Pluto/Mars oppositions will be falling on the UK 1801 Jupiter at 1 Leo, on Rachel Reeves Jupiter at 1 Leo, square the EU Jupiter and the Maastricht Treaty Jupiter both at 28 Libra. It will also hit Donald Trumps Pluto Saturn midpoint at 1 Leo in January 2025 and the Israel Moon at 4 Leo in April 2025. In fact every chart with planets in the last degrees of Cardinal signs and those with natal planets in the early degrees of fixed signs will be impacted. It looks to be a highly stressed period particularly for those with planets in fixed signs.
“The Pluto/Mars oppositions will be falling on the UK 1801 Jupiter at 1 Leo”
That may explain why I’m so at home I’m the UK, my Jupiter being at 29 Cancer.
My chart’s going to have a whale of a time, with my Jupiter being hit by Pluto-Mars, and I think my Asc-Desc & Mc-IC being hit by the eclipses later this year and early next year. Oh joys.
“Scorpio, secretive as ever, harbours a grinding resentment which is kept under control until the time is right and then the scorpion sting is let loose.”
But is also kind of domiciled there, so there must be plenty of good about it.