Tag: Tales From The Darkside

Knowing Your Own (Astrological) Kind

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ 2 Comments

Every now and again, I like to play a little game that’s kind of like the astrological version of “Name That Tune” – with as minimal a series of clues as possible, I try to figure out somebody’s Sun sign or another dominant astrological signature in their chart.

Case in point: I recently attended a viewing of the new Star Wars movie, and while I though the rest of the main cast did a perfectly satisfactory job in their roles, the standout performer for me was Adam Driver as the evil Kylo Ren. Which is not all that surprising, as I am fairly Plutonic so like a good villain now and again and do tend to have a pretty good radar for spotting the energy of the Dark Side in others.

It wasn’t until I was waiting in line with another fellow moviegoer to exit the theater and chatting casually with her that I caught the actor’s name since I wasn’t familiar with his body of work, and it was also at this juncture she informed me offhand that he was a former Marine.

Hmmm…played an über villain AND was a Marine IRL, you say? I sense some Plutonic energy there…sounds like Scorpio to me, I thought. I pulled out my phone in order to either confirmKyloRen or refute my initial suspicion when a cursory search of the intewebz revealed that Mr. Driver is indeed Plutonic; a Scorpio Sun ruled by an extra-powerful Pluto in Scorpio and with Pluto loosely conjunct career-making Saturn!

Yup, I can smell the Dark Side from about a mile away, apparently…I can Name That Sign in just two clues, LOL!

Laughingly, I thought to myself with THAT astrological signature, the dear boy will certainly have to watch out for the possibility of being typecast, as the “Plutonian as Villain” shtick would indeed tend to be a natural fit for him – looks like we have a professional villain on our hands, folks! But perhaps in his next big role, he’ll decide to take on more of an anti-hero role…who knows?

All that aside, I’m thinking the trait of being able to suss out others’ (astrological) energies like this could well be the work of a sharpened Venus/Pluto influence. Plutonic peeps are by nature investigative and energy-responsive anyway, but when I contemplate the quality of Venus added to this I can’t help but think that – on an inner level – we may be particularly able to sense energetic “sameness” in others….what say you?

**Walks away humming “You’re one of my kind…”**

01/06/2016

Pluto Has A Heart….

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ 5 Comments
Pluto's Heart
Proof that Pluto does indeed have a heart! Image comes courtesy of the New Horizons Spacecraft @ NASA, which made a close approach to Pluto on 7/14/2015.

Well this news certainly comes as no surprise to any Venus/Pluto native, LOL!

The high-functioning Venus/Pluto heart beats powerfully – its love goes deeper than even the most yawning of subterranean chasms. For it has been consecrated many times over by offerings made upon on a funeral pyre; these dying rites serving to transform the love nature into a truly supernatural force.  The Venusian Phoenix has made multiple journeys within to illuminate and vanquish its relationship demons, these acts serving to consecrate a heart that may have previously resided in the shadow of ignorance, or that might have even committed a multitude of sins.  Venus/Pluto love swallows you whole with its intensity – it will drag you through the territory of obsession and compulsion, force you to get “down in it”, suck you into the undertow of dysfunction…until you arrive at the threshold where decide you’ve had enough loss and strip it all away to look at the darkness found reflected back to you in the mirror of Another.  It is there that you will unearth a treasure trove of insight about the very nature of love itself that will lead you out The Other Side; what it is, what it isn’t, and also how it can be damaged, renewed, or uncovered.

(Hint: it is always found within!)

I have also found, through my own journeys with Venus/Pluto, there is something to the concept of a graceful exit; being able to let go kindly when the time has come. To be fair and loving when you know in your soul that a relationship has hit a point of no return so you both might let go and find love again.  Many times when a relationship meets an end, instead of blessing and releasing it can be all too easy to blight.  We cannot truly let go if we still hold onto things like anger, bitterness, resentment, or other sundry negative emotion, and I believe the prominent heart-shaped stamp on Pluto’s face can serve as a reminder that even in death it is all about love.

07/16/2014

Life With Venus/Pluto

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment

A half-humorous, quick-and-dirty way of determining whether or not you have this energy signature present in your chart – how many of these themes can YOU resonate with, huh?

  • You have at least one ex-friend/ex-partner who turned stalker on you at some point. Double bonus points awarded if you can claim both, LOL.
  • The words “It’s complicated” could probably best sum up your love life at any given point in time.
  • You describe yourself as a staunchly loyal ally – if you manage to make an enemy out of the loved one of someone with Venus/Pluto, for all intents and purposes you should probably consider yourself dead to the Venus/Pluto individual as well.
  • You’ve had at least one significant relationship that you would classify as “pretty screwed up”. On the plus side, though, going through relationship hell can give a deep level of insight that heals dysfunctional patterns of relating – especially as it relates to self-worth.
  • Affinity and animosity do seem intrinsically tied to one another with this pairing, and sometimes the line between the two is very thin. Some who initially found themselves put-off by your energy (for whatever reason) may one day turn around and become your closest allies, while those you once held an alliance with may at some point come to develop enmity for you. Love can easily turn to hate or vice versa with this pairing – whether this is within the context of close personal friendships, romantic unions, or a business partnership – and people may seem polarized as to whether they adore or detest you.YouHadMeAt
  • You’ve ever bonded with someone else over your mutual dislike for another person, LOL.
  • You’re inclined to intimidate would-be suitors who might be inclined to describe you as “pretty, but a little bitchy”.
  • Intimacy is a must for you in your closest associations – cut the superficial B.S., cause we’re goin’ in DEEP!  For you, loving someone means you can bare it all – the good, the bad, and the ugly – and trust them to keep your secrets.
  • Each major relationship has in some way significantly transformed how you love.

So how did you do? Are any of these past or current themes in your life? If so, you just might have some Venus/Pluto in you! 😉

06/22/2015

Planets As Superheroes (Or Supervillains…)

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment
Image credit: Rodney C Jacobsen
Image credit: Rodney C Jacobsen

I’m always entertained whenever Art imitates Astrology – case in point: Magneto of Marvel Comics fame! This world-class supervillain shares many characteristics of the archetypal Pluto, though he does range toward the darker expression of this planet’s energy overall. Magneto is known as the Master of Magnetism, and as any astrology 101 book will tell you, Pluto’s energy works on this very same metaphorical principle – the invisible power to draw, pull, compel, or fascinate. Plutonic energy exerts dense gravitational force much like a magnet – it enthralls and captivates; almost as if a spell or tractor beam were placed upon us. Now Magneto may exemplify the more literal side of Pluto energy with his supernatural power over magnetism, but there are plenty of other ways their characteristics appear strikingly similar.

In most storylines, Magneto is depicted as being bent on power and destruction – both qualities that resonate with the Lo-Fi expression of Pluto. Beyond surface appearances, though, his story is far more complex as befits his alignment with this planet. His underlying motivations in seeking power and repeated attempts to destroy humanity are to – in his point of view – save the mutant race from the prospect of extinction at the hands of mankind.

Why is this so? Check this shit out: His background includes …Read more…

A (Final?) Saturn In Scorpio Message

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment

As Mercury – the messenger of the gods – joins with Saturn in the last degrees of Scorpio this evening, I thought it would be a perfect time to put out a possibly final Saturn in Scorpio memorandum. It deals with personal accountability (a Saturn fave) and why it’s especially important to own our shadows as Saturn prepares to weigh anchor and leave for Sagittarius in less than a month’s time. Scorpio deals with our so-called “shadow sides”; the dark, dysfunctional parts of our makeup that – once conquered – can serve as potent fertilizer for claiming our personal power. With Saturn in Scorpio since late 2012, we have all been collectively faced with repeated tests dealing with our ability to control the qualities, traits, and characteristics that may otherwise have the ability to enslave us to our lowest natures. The tests of power and resultant struggle to master the darkness within represents a true journey of self-mastery from the very cores of our beings. We won’t get many more chances to get these kinds of life lessons right, so tonight I want to reflect upon a subject that often surfaces when we talk about Plutonic energy (which is a catch-all umbrella term for planets found in the sign of Scorpio, located in the 8th House of a chart, or in contact with Pluto).

You may recall from a previous newsletter I did on the topic of Saturn in Scorpio, that one major keynote of this energy has involved being nuclear conscious of what we’re taking from vs. what we are contributing to the collective (read: others’) energy pool. And that a failure to do so during Saturn in Scorpio inevitably leads one to be deemed a “drain”, “leech”, or “energy sink” – in this situation, others are (rightfully) inclined to retract their investment in us, which makes sense because why keep the tap running when we’re being bled out? The self-protective inclination to conserve our energy – whether this be in the form of physical, emotional, or energetic resources – is extremely strong when this planet traverses Scorpio.

Now some on the receiving end of this treatment during the last 2+ years have no doubt cried foul over being cut off like this – and it’s precisely this phenomenon that I want to address tonight. Plutonic individuals – that is, those with a preponderance of Scorpio planets, an abundance of planets located in the 8th House of their chart, and/or contacts from Pluto to key planets in their nativities – are prone to having a reputation for cutting people off. While it’s true that a prevalence of these kinds of energies means we’re Read More….

Energy Cleansing, The Pluto Way!

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment

Let me begin this tale by stating that Pluto thrives on renewal – its energy IS symbolic of The Phoenix after all; that mythical fire bird that was consumed in the flames of its old and dying self only to rise up from its ashes anew.  Pluto eliminates what’s stagnant or dead and vaporizes that stale energy in our life in order to make room for something vibrant and vital to take hold in that vacant space.  I was therefore tickled when – under a recent Pluto transit to my Venus (Venus being symbolic of money and earned income, of course) – I found myself burning old paycheck stubs from a former and unhappy profession as if they had been letters from an ex-lover.  There was no bitterness or resentment; just the recognition this was a part of my life that was (thankfully) over and incinerating the evidence was merely a symbolic gesture to The Universe that I had indeed moved on and cut ties.  I was quite surprised to find that I still had them – I found myself cleaning out a file cabinet when I unexpectedly came upon a file of years-old pay stubs that represented a time in my life where I felt disempowered and at the mercy of…well…assholes, LOL.  There really is no other way to say it, and besides, Pluto would frown upon any attempts to put a pretty face over it anyway.  😉   I’m sure many reading here can relate when I say there have been more than a few times during the course of my existence where I endured some screwy employment situations because I “needed the paycheck”.   Adding to this was the fact that, in this particular industry, sexism – if not outright misogyny – is the norm, so having a strong sense of self-worth made you somewhat of a liability if you were a woman, LOL. In retrospect, from the very beginning this was never quite a recipe for a “happy marriage”…

From the Robin Wood tarot - note the strong Pluto symbolism!
From the Robin Wood tarot – note the strong Pluto symbolism!

Needless to say, upon being faced with a tangible reminder of this period in my life, I was unable to shake the feeling that stack of paper probably had some pretty bad juju attached to it.  It was immediately after this realization that I was seized by a random impetus to burn the pile of check stubs, though not reactively so as there wasn’t really much emotion attached to the thought at all.  It was more along the lines of an immediate recognition that the burning would represent an energy cleansing of sorts – all the negativity attached to that time in my life would literally go *up in smoke*, and it wasn’t until I watched the hungry flames licking the papers’ edges and the printed numbers fading into blackness that it struck me this was indeed a *very* literal manifestation of the Pluto transit to my Venus!  I felt not only a palpable sense of closure at this symbolic act, but a sense of confidence in choosing to burn an energetic bridge that had led down a trail of financial enslavement; I would never again allow myself to be in a disadvantaged position like this where someone had financial leverage over me.  The warmth of the fire washing over me on such a chilly autumn night was comforting – I took a few deep breaths, inviting the heated air into my nasal passage and down my throat into my lungs to fully envelop me from within as well.  I smiled as the blaze cooled and the embers slowly died to ash, pausing to pick up a few pinches of the soot to scatter over my next deposit slip to the bank.  If it’s one thing about Pluto transits, it’s that the literal and figurative ash left in its wake makes one hell of a potent fertilizer for the seeds we plant with conscious intention.

For anyone else reading and who is dealing with a Pluto transit to their Venus, I highly recommend a ritual energetic cleanse similar to this if you’re looking to purge negativity and clear any funky or stagnant vibes that may still be lingering in the wake of this period.  If we’ve been through any situation where we’ve been “a slave to the money” or through relationship hell of one kind of another (because Venus represents love as well as cash), first we do well to invest lots of time & energy unraveling the layers of how this came to be the case.  We must go deep; be willing to look at any underlying dysfunction, address anything that affects our sense of self-worth, and fully investigate the “Hows” and “Whys” of what got us sucked into this undertow in the first place.  Then once we feel like we’ve hit the root of it (and I mean ALL of the various, spreading tendrils that tend to come attached to the complex situations symbolized by Pluto), it’s time to distill it down and level with ourselves so we can take our power back.  We may then consider a symbolic act of burning; an offering to The Universe that affirms we have indeed come out The Other Side of this energy. Most importantly, before doing so we must wait until we’re no longer raw about the situation anymore.  Emotions like resentment or bitterness have no place at such a ritual, as we cannot truly “let go” if we’re still holding on inside.  If it’s a bad relationship we’ve come through, maybe we burn photos, gifts, or love letters associated with that partnership.  If it’s a period of financial enslavement we’ve gotten out of instead, perhaps we burn old credit cards, past due notices, pay stubs, or anything else we no longer need to hold onto after this major transformation.  Clearing out the dead, negative energy in this manner can help to raise our own vibrations, and the void subsequently created by such an act allows us to hold space for the inevitable renewal that’s sure to follow ❤

11/21/2014

Pluto As The Anti-Hero

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment

We often hear about Plutonians (those with Pluto, the 8th house, or the sign of Scorpio dominantly emphasized in the chart) cast in the role of “villain” by their detractors. It’s not a new story and the whole “Plutonian as evil-doer” astro-aphorism certainly is a tired old trope that could benefit from a revamping of sorts. While it’s true that Plutonians do look good in black, I’d like to put a slightly different spin on this energy and talk instead about the Plutonian as The Anti-Hero.

My perspective on this topic was spawned from once hearing someone utter the words “Be a hero”, as if it were a call to arms meant to inspire us toward superhuman feats of goodness & purity. Now any Plutonian reading here is probably having some sort of bile-inducing reaction to this proposal right about now, LOL, as this is probably about the worst thing you could say to one of this ilk. You see, Plutonians are not the sort to portray the image of the gleaming White Knight – their version of the best possible lead is usually much more reminiscent of an anti-hero than any of that Sir Galahad business! The Plutonic star is considerably darker, possessing strength of character as well as considerable depth & complexity but often a certain moral ambiguity that make them richer and more compelling as protagonists. Now it’s possible these character traits may stem from some sort of trauma or they may not, but for those who don’t see the world entirely in black & white and who appreciate grayscale and nuance, the Plutonian anti-hero provides something to really sink your teeth into. We might consider the original Dark Knight himself, Batman, as a muse of sorts – particularly as portrayed in the recent Christian Bale -era reboot of this series. Or perhaps if the whole “fighting crime” thing still lands him a bit too far in the “goody-two-shoes” category for your personal liking, consider some of these other fictional characters that also resonate strongly with this archetype:

Captain Jack Sparrow, Jason Bourne,“V” in V for Vendetta, Tony Soprano, The Bride in the Kill Bill series, John Constantine, or – from TV – Don Draper, Cullen Bohannon, or Gregory House, M.D. just to name a few.

Now one could argue these characters are villains in their own right, as we have liars and thieves, vigilantes, killers, and those looking to sate a burning vengeance among this cast of characters. But such an attempt to boil it all down to a common denominator amounts to painting with a very broad – and very black – brush that completely disregards how popular the anti-hero archetype has become and why it’s so resonant to our collective consciousness. Many find a bona fide “hero” challenging to relate to, and although we may still cheer when we see one, the squeaky-clean persona this entails often denies the reality that life is messy and that it’s real easy to get your hands dirty somewhere along the way. The anti-hero seems more relatable, as they make no bones about their shadow – they own it and it is precisely this kind of self-possessed authenticity that makes this archetype so appealing. Few are willing to gaze at their own grimy underbelly, and as a viewer/reader it’s particularly intriguing to watch when an anti-hero struggles against their darkness or wrestles with scenarios where they have to make the ends justify the means….

06/12/2014

The Beauty Of A Void: Dealing w/ Pluto/Scorpio/8th House Energies

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ 8 Comments
Image credit: Ute Kraus via Wikimedia Commons, Physics education group Kraus, Universität Hildesheim, Space Time Travel, (background image of the milky way: Axel Mellinger)
Image credit: Physics education group Kraus, Universität Hildesheim, Space Time Travel (background image of the milky way: Axel Mellinger)

I’ve found the subject of “voids” tends to evoke a certain amount of discomfiture in the general populace when contemplated or discussed. Sometimes the response is one of fear, other times outright loathing, as many equate the word “void” with a loss. While that’s certainly true to a degree when you boil it all down, I think it’s a far more rich & complex issue worth exploring. Such a simplistic viewpoint seems rather shortsighted to me, as it fails to take into account the deeper layers of what’s really at work when we’re dealing with this kind of negative space, which is – essentially – just an energetic vacuum of sorts.

A void is like a giant energetic “VACANCY” sign flashing out into the ethers. It has a way of attracting people/things into its orbit in order to fill that empty space, much along the vein of Aristotle’s postulation that “nature abhors a vacuum”. Whether a void forms by chance or by design, it’s natural that we initially focus on what’s *not* there any longer as we process ….Read more…