Pluto in Aquarius Across the Generations
How the Coming Pluto in Aquarius Era Will Affect the Generational Cohorts
It’s been awhile since I wrote about Pluto, since wrapping up my Pluto Generations series last year.
Yet, as most astrologers would agree, it’s never wise to sleep on Pluto.
This is particularly true as we near Pluto’s historic ingress into Aquarius, on March 23rd. Because Pluto takes approximately 250 years to cycle through all twelve signs, this will mark the first time Pluto has traversed the sign of the water bearer since 1778-1798.
That’s right: the last time Pluto was in Aquarius encompassed the first part of the so-called Age of Revolution, the era of the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions, among other uprisings.
There are so many things to say about how the coming 20+ years of Pluto in Aquarius may play out, both on individual and societal levels.
What I want to touch on here is the impact of Pluto in Aquarius on each Pluto generation cohort alive now, as seen through Pluto’s macro perspective.
And keep in mind I’m emphasizing the macro part. The generational patterns I describe below are what we might see when we zoom out and look at whole cohorts, not individuals, who will have their own unique Pluto stories.
One thing to look for in relation to Pluto in Aquarius in an individual chart: if you have planets or important chart points in Aquarius (or Leo, Taurus, or Scorpio) you’ll likely experience this Pluto transit more strongly.
Want to talk specifics about how the coming Pluto era may affect you?
Plutonian Lessons
As I discussed in my Pluto Generations series, Pluto magnifies, distorts, and highlights generational qualities and tendencies, showing areas where each generation shines and potentially falters.
Keep in mind that the degree of your natal Pluto matters a lot in terms of when, exactly, you will experience the Pluto transit your generation is going through as a whole. Those born at the beginning or end of a Pluto cohort will experience these transits across signs.
(See: Prince Harry and his Pluto at 0° Scorpio, who has been gearing up for his Pluto square for some time now, which will go exact this March. Fun!)
Also remember: Pluto changes signs slowly, over several years, often retrograding back into the previous sign multiple times. Thus, the birth year ranges given below overlap. If you were born around the time Pluto changed signs, you may want to double check its position in your natal chart.
Pluto in Cancer (born 1914-1939)
The last time I checked in with this cohort, those still with us were in the twilight of their Pluto opposition, with Pluto in the late degrees of Capricorn, opposite their natal Pluto.
Queen Elizabeth, Pluto in Cancer, had had a health scare. Since then, of course, she’s passed away, reminding us of the squeeze of this mortal coil that the Pluto opposition brings.
However, with Pluto entering Aquarius, the opposition will be over and Pluto will be in aversion to their natal Pluto. An aversion means literally out of sight, an apt metaphor for a cohort of folks whose youngsters are around 84. The pressure if off, in one sense.
But in another sense they’re being forgotten, as happens, sadly, to our oldest. It’s a reminder not to forget about our elders. The plutonian zeitgeist won’t be shining its light on them, and most, if not all, will pass on before Pluto enters Pisces in 2043.
If you know elders in this cohort, seek them out and hear (and record) their stories, before it’s too late.
Pluto in Leo (1937-1958)
The mortal coil of the Pluto opposition is coming, with Pluto in Aquarius, for the Baby Boomers. Unfortunately, you can’t be Forever Young forever.
The Pluto opposition presents an existential challenge as the culture at large, as represented by transiting Pluto, comes into direct opposition to this generation’s expressive, spotlight-loving ethos.
Pluto in Aquarius is about the organized group, the hive mind, the network behind the systems. It’s cool, cerebral, dispassionate style is in direct confrontation to Pluto in Leo’s dramatic focus on the self, individual expression, and youth.
The opposition, it’s helpful to remember, is of the nature of Saturn; it limits, restricts, and teaches hard lessons.
To put it another way, how can you still be the renegade youngster when everyone else sees you as The Man that you once challenged? It’s a conundrum, to be sure.
This cohort has rode the societal, economic, and political waves to their advantage for much of their lifespans, leaving them (as seen through the wide lens of generations) well-prepared for the stress of the opposition.
One wrinkle for this generation: many had children when Pluto was in Scorpio (Millennials), a cohort that will be going through a stressful Pluto square during Pluto in Aquarius. This means that there could be families where both generations are undergoing plutonian stress testing simultaneously.
Be gentle with each other, if this is the case in your family. Family relationships can be fragile, and we only (usually) have one.
Boomers (including Presidents Biden, Trump, and Putin!): it’s better to exit the stage gracefully of your own volition instead of any of the alternatives.
Pluto in Virgo (1956-1972)
During the Pluto in Capricorn years, since 2008, this cohort, which overlaps well with the recently identified Generation Jones, has experienced their Pluto trine, the easygoing aspect that hits after the pressure-cooker Pluto square sometime around midlife. During Pluto in Capricorn this group was in their “prime” years, roughly their late 30s-60s (think: President Obama and his two terms).
Pluto in Aquarius will be in aversion to their natal Pluto in Virgo, putting them out of the line of sight of this transit. This could be thought of as the invisibility that comes with the early years of old age, often when people begin retirement (or begin to think about it).
The next twenty years look like a respite from the spotlight for this generation, as they ease into their later years. However, there can be frustration with feeling invisible, or perhaps not relevant, to the cultural discourse.
Yet, this is an adaptable and clever group, adept at creating new projects for themselves. Keeping busy with mercurial things will help this group stay busy and engaged.
Pluto in Libra (1971-1984)
This generation is almost through the intense Pluto square that hit this cohort beginning in 2008, with Pluto in Capricorn. The Pluto square can feel like a pressure cooker, when the stresses of younger adult life — career, finances, family, etc. — feel overwhelming.
Fortunately for this cohort, Pluto in Aquarius ushers them out of the pressure cooker and into the more easygoing years of middle age as transiting Pluto trines their natal Pluto. The trine, after all, is of the nature of Jupiter, supporting and uplifting, in this case across two compatible air signs.
Pluto in Libra folks will be coming into the peak of their generational impact over the next two decades. Keep your eye on leaders of this generation, such as Emmanuel Macron, Prince William, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as they potentially come into their own.
Pluto in Scorpio (1983-1995)
Sorry, Millennials, but the years since 2008, when Pluto has been in Capricorn, were supposed to be your fun young adulthood, when transiting Pluto formed an energizing sextile to this generation’s natal Pluto.
Unfortunately, the Pluto in Capricorn era has been. . . rough, I think we can all agree, with themes of boom and bust economics, vast inequality, and a worldwide pandemic.
With Pluto in Aquarius, this group, like Prince Harry, will be experiencing the Pluto square, the pressure cooker aspect that falls around mid-adulthood. Similar to the Pluto opposition that the Baby Boomers will experience, this Pluto transit tests each generation that goes through it. The square aspect is of the nature of Mars, which confronts and challenges.
As noted above, many in this cohort have parents with Pluto in Leo (again, like Prince Harry and King Charles1), hence the double-whammy nature of this Pluto transit for these two cohorts.
My advice to this group: take it easy and don’t take on too much. Also watch out for the scorpionic tendency to turn every challenge into a battle. Not everything is worth fighting for (or about). Pick your battles.
Pluto in Sagittarius (1995-2008)
Rambunctious young centaurs: the energized years of your young adulthood are here, with Pluto forming a fun sextile between two active diurnal signs.
No longer in the shadows of their youth, when Pluto in Capricorn was in aversion to this cohort’s natal Pluto, the coming two decades plus will likely be the time this group remembers later on as their formative years.
This is a good time to lean into the positive energy of the sextile aspect, which is of the nature of Venus. Gen Z: what can you do, in the coming years, to develop yourself? Go for it now, before your Pluto square hits in midlife when Pluto enters Pisces in 2043 and you face your existential challenge.
Pluto in Capricorn (2008-2024)
Hey kids: your pandemic-dominated childhood/toddlerhood/babyhood is in the rearview; the Pluto-averse years of the rest of your childhood/youth await.
This generation had it rough in their formative years, with a once-in-a-generation plague signature (Pluto conjunct Saturn) that transformed their early years into a screen-dominated dystopia where everyone was masked.
Now, thankfully, Pluto is moving on and leaving them in peace to just be kids (or babies or young teens, as the case may be). Pluto in Aquarius doesn’t have its eye on them anymore. With any luck, most won’t remember much of this weird spell of their childhoods.
Do not get me started on the astrology of the royal family. We will literally be here for the entire Pluto in Aquarius transit.