Mercury – Pluto

(Transit. Mercury → Natal Pluto)

Various sources for the child’s horoscope

Your child likely has a “sharp tongue” and calls things by their real names. Yet they may express their thoughts in a mysterious way to appear enigmatic and incomprehensible. They have an inventive mind, love to get to the root of any phenomenon that interests them, and extract information. However, honest and open exchange of thoughts with parents or friends may be difficult: the child simply does not want to share their ideas. They may be ruthless toward themselves intellectually but get deeply offended if they feel their ideas or thoughts are criticized. For such children, it is absolutely essential to learn how to listen and accept others’ opinions and ideas.

Het Monster. Aspects

They are constantly under tension because they work with secret or dangerous information. Sometimes they are involved in espionage or work as investigators. They get into difficult situations, which may result in death. They express their thoughts sharply and bluntly, and others respond in the same way. They often show excessive curiosity about others, which leads to trouble.

Catherine Aubier. Astrological Dictionary

Opposition, square: aspects of the “trickster-underachiever” who tries to overcome what they dislike. They use their mind to influence people or to uncover secrets about taboo topics, with the sole purpose of shocking others. The unconscious and a penchant for conclusions sometimes contradict each other, and they strive to suppress or overcome the unconscious in order to make categorical judgments. At best, they have a slightly warped sense of humor.

Avesalom Podvodny. Aspects

Mercury opposition: Before you speak, ask yourself: do your words hurt your own thoughts? An opposition to Mercury raises the issue of the relationship between the planet’s principle and rational thinking. Do not assume that a strong Mercury in the chart equates to intelligence—the latter is determined more by the general evolutionary level, while Mercury’s role depends more on its processing than on aspects. At a low level of processing, dominant Mercury suppresses the planet’s principle with mental clichés, profaning and distorting it mercilessly. For example, in a Mercury–Moon opposition, an emphasis on Mercury leads the person to think entirely formally, strictly adhering to social clichés: to be healthy and happy, I should do morning exercises, marry at twenty, have three children, and work without straining myself. Without aligning their fate with this scheme, they cannot even hear the true voice of their own needs, let alone the most basic ones—unless the Moon decisively takes the main emphasis in this opposition, fully subordinating Mercury (or rather, subjecting it to itself), allowing only those thoughts into their mind that align with the Moon’s timing. The person then becomes obsessed with thoughts of food or primitive but sweet sex, sharply lowering their evolutionary behavior or leading to strong frustrations, neuroses, or depression. Here, processing involves clarifying the role of thought in the manifestations of the planet’s principle, which should generally guide it but not control every detail, nor replace it with crude mental schemas. On the other hand, thought can also aid in developing new directions and materializing the planet’s principle, rather than becoming its obedient servant—a lesson the person often learns the hard way when chaos erupts after prolonged dominance of the planet’s principle over Mercury. At a high level, the planet’s principle gains a stable channel into the mental plane, and the person receives thoughts that align with the development of the planet’s principle. This feeling of thought and speech being obedient cannot be mistaken—it provides an absolute sense of confidence in appropriate situations (those around them begin to marvel at the person’s steady and conscious speech, which is processed through this opposition).

Pluto opposition: Good struggles with evil. Generally, a major Pluto aspect karmically aligns the planet with a program of purification, often involving painful but ultimately irreversible losses. At a low level, the opposition pits the planet’s principle against Pluto’s cleansing actions; the person perceives these as destructive aggression aimed at them (in the areas governed by the planet) and tries to resist. In such cases, they clearly emphasize the planet, and Pluto appears as an external force delivering (understandably) devastating blows to the innocent person, always striking the same spot (the planet’s principle or the house where it is located). The person may complain (quietly), protest (loudly), or fight (desperately), but it is better for them to accept and, above all, understand that Pluto’s intention is not to destroy the planet’s principle itself (in a Pluto–Moon opposition, the person may subconsciously feel that fate wants to destroy them along with their family, for no apparent reason—though the octave they find hardest to part with). Sometimes (usually unnoticed by the person), the chart shifts the emphasis in the opposition, transferring the main focus to Pluto, so the person becomes a conduit for the Absolute’s (fate’s) purifying will and does to the planet’s principle in the external world what fate recently did to them. Often, the manifestation of the external planet occurs through certain individuals who fall under the fatal influence of the person, who may not even suspect it (though such suspicions arise over time). Strong black teachers with a Pluto opposition may long maintain the emphasis on Pluto, brutally suppressing and destroying the planet’s principle in their students, but eventually, Pluto’s blow catches up with them as well. Here, processing involves developing humility and eradicating the primitive desire for absolute control over the manifestations of the planet’s principle in the outside world, as well as the urge to reshape others by ruthlessly eliminating everything deemed vile and unworthy (for example, a Pluto–Venus opposition drives a desire for power over people’s minds and movements—not the higher octave of the 9th house, but the mentality of “they shouldn’t dare speak or even think what doesn’t belong to me!”). The person must understand that their planet’s principle can only be constructively used in the external world after undergoing thorough Plutonian purification within themselves, which requires significant external and internal sacrifices. At a high level, the person gains the ability for the highest development of the planet’s principle and participation in major karmic programs.

Frances Sakoian. Aspects

Great mental tension, as they are occupied with secret or dangerous information. Researchers working on classified projects often confide secrets in them. Sometimes they themselves are involved in espionage or work as detectives, getting into difficult situations that may result in death. Their thoughts are expressed sharply and bluntly, and others respond in kind. They may be involved in the natural sciences. They often display excessive curiosity about others, which leads to trouble and poor personal relationships.

S.V. Shestopalov. Aspects of Planets

Increased excitability, a spirit of contradiction, nervousness, irritability, stubbornness, reckless words and actions, a tendency toward deception and fraud, and swindling. Positive traits include persuasive, strong speech, decisive and bold actions, the ability to engage in political struggle, and the talent to conquer and win.