Pluto retrograde is asking us to internalize wisdom and make it part of our individual character. It also works on national and social levels: it will bring down an Institution just as easily as a government. It's almost like a time-out from the relentless pressure building up that releases an earthquake. Pluto direct (especially by transit) shows us how to move ahead and evolve from the lessons we have learned and should bring forward to build character in our soul and life awareness.
Pluto retrograde teaches us to keep our chin up during crisis because it shows us how to handle Transformation, Change, Power Struggles, and The Inevitable. It's deep Phoenix-Powered Energy: to rebuild from within. (Fixed signs ESPECIALLY don't like this--but it's their greatest strength of character.) This is about "staying with the Focus"). Souls born with Pluto retrograde usually want to keep inner upheavals private; there is SOME measure of secrecy and brooding over "not being Important again." This usually indicates a soul who was famous or important in some way during a previous life--but has chosen to be overlooked in this one. This decision brings constant frustration and yearning for "the fame that used to be."
Pluto is the planet of complete transformation, upheaval, reversals, and bad beginnings. It spends on average, five months out of the year in retrograde. This is a time of destruction and rebuilding when intense situations and outside forces intervene. Be willing to go to extremes and prepared to cut away the useless in those areas of life represented by the house your Pluto is in, releasing what no longer serves you in order to regenerate your life.
Pluto retrograde in your natal chart indicates that you are here to learn karmic lessons about intensity, control, and struggles for dominance. While you are wrestling with your own inner conflicts, outside forces are likely to upset your life. You are likely to find public opinion can be fickle, giving you little outward reason for blind trust in others. The people who make up your world may revere you one moment and revile you the next.
Part of your lesson is to refuse to get locked in a battle of egos. Penetrate to the essence of the situation uncovering hidden truth. Trust your instincts being completely honest with yourself. Forgive yourself and others, but do not forget the lessons as you learn that you are the final authority. You may not always be able to control what you face nor what is done, but you are in sole control of how you choose to respond or react.
