Pandemic Astrology part two; Descent and Return, house by house

Few would dispute that we are going through a collective descent into the Underworld this year, with a global health crisis leading to widespread lockdown and restrictions on our movement and activities. Saturn and Pluto met in Capricorn in January and we've been feeling the reverberations ever since, an intense process of transformation as the old is revealed as outdated or stagnant and life is stripped back to basics. The dynamic of Saturn and Pluto speaks of the destruction of the old, power transformed by a new generation and boundaries not just crossed but completely erased.

Following that initial conjunction, there have been various trigger points through the year, especially the meeting of Jupiter and Pluto who connect for a final time on November 12th. I wrote about the previous passes of this conjunction earlier in the year as the astrology of lockdown and here we are in lockdown again, at least here in the UK. I've been talking over and over about this year as a crucible, a restricted space in which change is intensified and imbalances are shown up in their most stark forms. This whole year has been and continues to be, a descent into the underworld, a collective katabasis which calls us all to face our fears, to accept our mortality, to let go of anything we might have taken for granted. It's a difficult time for sure but also a powerful time, a time when many are discovering buried powers of resilience, determination, creativity. Descending into the dark is a potent journey, reconnecting us with the source of our being, of our creative power. This year is a rite of passage, following the time honoured path of separation, ordeal and return. Perhaps we thought we had reached the beginning of the return but it's not clear cut and we are still in the ordeal phase. But this is the last pass of Jupiter over Pluto before both Jupiter and Saturn move on into radical Aquarius, meeting in a powerful conjunction on the Winter Solstice. Perhaps this is the deepest part of this liminal time before we begin a genuine return. I know I'm not alone in feeling this week that maybe there's some light at the end of the tunnel, finally - and that there's work to do before we get there.

Astrology is most useful when it's personalised to us, so I've taken a look at how these conjunctions might manifest for you depending on which house of the natal chart they fall in. If you don't already have your natal chart, you can get a free one at astro.com or drop me a message and I'll send it to you. Because the conjunctions have all taken place in Capricorn, you're likely to have them in the same house or the house either side, so read both to get the full picture. 

First house

This one goes especially deep and has likely brought us face to face with who we really are as well as who we want to be. The first house is about sense of self and identity so that we might feel utterly transformed by these powerful conjunctions happening in so personal a house. We might have changed our appearance or even our way of life. The way we express ourselves in the world is likely to have changed and we might be interacting with the world in a new way. Saturn Pluto and/or Jupiter Pluto here is likely to reveal hidden parts of ourselves, the places we've held back through fear, as well as bringing a strong sense of resilience and even self mastery.

Second house

This is the realm of resources and abundance, both inner and outer. Perhaps your work and your ability to feel useful as well as earning money and building security have been affected by these powerful conjunctions. On a deeper level, outer planet transits through the second house ask us what we value the most, what security means to us, what is abundance? These questions are likely to be especially important with this placement. Ultimately, the second house is about self worth and we might be feeling stronger, having discovered our ability to weather the storm, or more anxious and in need of support.

Third house

This is the house of education, ideas and communication, all of which might have been disrupted by lockdown, by illness, by general stress. But there's also great potential here for consolidating and transforming our knowledge, for realising that we know more than we ever, well, knew. And of course, in many communities, the pandemic has transformed our connections with our neighbours and our local area. We are connecting more deeply, offering support and of course for many, simply spending more time in the place we call home. Not to mention all those who've used lockdown to learn a new skill or revisit an old one.

Fourth house

Here we are the realm of the home and the family, somewhere that many of us have spent more time than usual this year. With Saturn Pluto and/or Jupiter Pluto here, we might have had an especially strong reaction to the call to retreat, the need to stay home. This house can be where we belong, where we long to belong and also where we may feel held back or isolated. Our roots may have been strengthened or revealed as too shallow with this placement. Our roots may have become insecure for many reasons - a struggle to pay the rent, an inability to visit the comforts of our childhood home. Not to mention the emotional patterns we can no longer hide from once we can't distract ourselves out in the world.

Fifth house

With this placement, our ability to express ourselves, to be spontaneous, to seek fun and adventure is curtailed. We are called to find new ways to express our creative selves, forced to work within limits when we are used to expanding. The gifts of the placement are the discipline and lack of distractions which allow us to develop our creative talents, to get back into a fitness routine or to pick up a long neglected hobby and allow it to transform us. Once again we have an opportunity for self mastery, for expressing our true selves and building authentic connections with others.

Sixth house

With Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto affecting our sixth house, we are called to pay attention to our well being. Whether our health is directly affected by the virus or not, many of us have been struggling with wellness on some level. Lockdown and restricted movements can affect our mental health, increased anxiety affects our emotional health. Our daily rhythms may have been disrupted, not least by working from home instead of going to an office, or have become a rut which is hard to climb out of. It's always about small steps with this house and as many have found, just a few minutes of exercise or getting outside if you can makes all the difference. I've found spiritual cleansing practices especially helpful for transforming the heavy Pluto energy.

Seventh house

Halfway around the chart now and we encounter the other for the first time in the house of partnerships and one to one interactions. Once again, the powerful ability of these planets to force us to face what we've buried, in this case in our close relationships, is hard to avoid. We may have found ourselves taking responsibility for projections, taking back our power and even embracing our shadow self. This house often shows up the dynamics of the shadow, the parts of ourselves we find in others because we've hidden it in ourselves. This doesn't just mean the "negative", it can also be the talents and gifts of the bright shadow. 

Eighth house

This is a house that goes deep, into our most intimate selves and relationships. With Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto here, we might have gained an awareness of how an emotional inheritance or ancestral legacy affects us personally, especially in our closest relationships. Sex and death and the deep emotional self are here, so powerful hidden energies are likely to be revealed and activated. And this is another house of resources so that with this placement we might have found deep reserves of resilience and creative power, even an ability to transform our insecurities and aspects of our shadow.

Ninth house

With Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto here, our beliefs and worldview may have been shaken to their very foundations this year. The horizons may have closed in, with plans to travel or study thwarted or simply the chaos and craziness of the world making us question our established beliefs. In lockdown when our physical movements are restricted, the inner journey takes centre stage and by now we may be aware of just how this year has tempered our vision and shifted our perspective, opening up whole new worlds within ourselves.

Tenth house

Once again we are in the realm of work, career and vocation. Perhaps we've been held back from achieving a goal or found many more barriers in our way than there would normally be. Perhaps we were on the frontline, looking after those who were suffering or keeping society running. Either way, with this placement all our powers of resilience and our ability to overcome obstacles were likely to be called on. Dealing with authority issues is especially important with this house and we may have been challenged to find our own inner authority.

Eleventh house

Here is the realm of our wider connections, and with this placement, we may have struggled more than most with not seeing friends or being cut off from our usual community. But we might also have been finding new ways to contribute to the collective, to feel a part of something, creating tangible change by joining a mutual support group or taking on a volunteer role. This placement might also find us adjusting our life goals, reconsidering plans which had been put on the back burner or adjusting our sense of purpose and what gives life meaning.

Twelfth house

The final house is subtle, containing that which is hidden or not yet fully conscious. Having Saturn Pluto and/or Jupiter Pluto in this house may have kept us in retreat at home even more than most, or feeling especially isolated, whether that isolation was a challenge to be endured or a retreat to be welcomed. On a deeper level, this house brings unconscious shifts, a letting go of old patterns. There might be a phase of release before all of these planets move into the first house in the coming months or years, initiating a new phase or chapter.