Pluto, the Moon’s Nodes, and Your Soul: an Esoteric Perspective

When reading Soul Astrology it’s always important to note that there are different schools of astrology that have different approaches to the Soul. The Soul Astrology of which I speak originates in the esoteric work of Alice Bailey and has been carried forward by Soul Astrologers such as Alan Oken and Errol Weiner. This is significant because there are subtle but significant distinctions between the interpretations of Esoteric Astrology and those taught by other astrological schools of thought.

In Esoteric Astrology, the Soul’s journey is described as a developmental path through all twelve signs starting at Aries and progressing through to Pisces, spending up to eight lifetimes in each sign. One’s current “stage” on this journey is determined by the ascendant (Rising Sign). The ascendant changes approximately every 2.5 hours throughout the day, so it is highly individual. Even individuals born on the same day, can have different ascendants.

The ascendant is the sign that was rising on the horizon at the time of your birth and, is highly significant as the dawn of your life! On the day you were born the ascending sign opened a brief vibrational portal through which your Soul could incarnate, because it was a matching frequency. You might say you “beamed in” on this matching ray of light! This is why I often refer to the ascendant, or Rising Sign, as your Soul Sign.

Yet there are schools of astrology that use the Moon’s Nodes and/or Pluto to explore the Soul. So if the Soul’s development is indicated by the ascendant, then what role do the Moon’s Nodes or Pluto play from an esoteric perspective? What follows are some thoughts on the topic…

The Moon’s Nodes

The Moon’s nodes are not even mentioned in Esoteric Astrology, but it is something I’m often asked about because there are schools of astrology that use the Moon’s Nodes (the lunar nodal axis) to determine the Soul.

Until relatively recently, the lunar nodes didn’t feature too highly in Western Astrology at all. They had been used for many years in Vedic (Indian) Astrology as “Rahu” and “Ketu”, the ‘dragon’s head and tail’. In Vedic Astrology they have a specific meaning, and it is unwise to take an interpretation out of context from one astrological system and try to transplant it into another, where it is likely to become distorted.

The Moon’s nodes aren’t physical, tangible, things. The lunar nodes are astrological points: points in space where the Moon’s path crosses the path of the ecliptic (the apparent path of the Sun across the sky) so there is the first clue as to how we might approach their interpretation: perhaps they indicate a ‘path’ or direction (in contrast to planets, which indicate embodied energy).

The Moon’s nodes stay in each sign for approximately 18 months. So, as with the slow moving planets, this suggests to me they have more of a collective, rather than an individual significance.

According to Soul Astrologer Alan Oken, the nodal axis says something about our relationship with the society into which you were born, while the North Node is indicating how you may be of specific service to humanity, and something about your “dharma” or spiritual purpose in this lifetime. Your nodal axis is therefore a reminder that, although you can act independently, you cannot act in isolation – your actions have a ripple effect throughout the consciousness of humanity.

A Spiritual Prescription

It seems to me then, that the Moon’s nodes are not actually representing the nature of the Soul, but rather are pointing us towards a path that we can take to further our journey of spiritual awakening. They are not the nature of the Soul itself, but can lead us there is we follow their direction.

The nodal axis seems to be what society is asking from you: what the society is calling forth from you, in terms of what role you are required to play.

The South Node is sometimes called the path of least resistance. This is the familiar and well-worn path (role) that you may have played for many lifetimes. There is nothing wrong with the South Node in itself, and if you continue to follow that path you may still make a valid and valuable contribution to the world, but would you grow? Because it indicates an area of life that you are somewhat complete with, it is thought that there are few lessons left for you to learn there.

So following the path of the South Node could, in a sense, keep you stuck in your own past, like a virtuoso violinist who just keeps playing the same old familiar piece – you could do it quite easily, of course, but you would not be pushing your own growth edge.

The North Node is often called the path of resistance. If you choose this path it won’t be easy, simply because it is unfamiliar territory and you don’t yet have the necessary skills. Yet it may also be exactly where your Soul wants you to go. It is thought that if you do choose this path, if you do accept the challenge of your North Node, then you will be sent spiritual teachers and guides to show you the way.

This is the path that could bring you new experiences, deep insights, and awareness that awakens you even more to your Soul’s presence. The North Node is like your spiritual prescription indicating the best medicine to support your healing, growth, and Soul Awareness. Your North Node is not your Soul’s essence, but rather a spiritual path of choice.

The Pluto Connection

Some schools of astrology teach that Pluto represents the Soul. The prefix eso means “inner”, and esoteric astrology is the astrology of our inner world. So in esoteric Soul Astrology, if we are using the ascendant as the main significator of the inner nature of our Soul itself, then what role does Pluto play?

Pluto: The Power of Transformation

Pluto is a planet of major transformation. He is associated with death and re-birth and is possibly associated with transformation more than any other planet. Pluto embodies the power of destruction and re-generation. In her pioneering and informative book Chiron and The Healing Journey Astrologer Melanie Reinhart suggests a higher vibrational keyword for Pluto is “emptiness”.

In many Buddhist traditions the highest wisdom possible is considered to be the wisdom realizing emptiness. This reminds us that: everything is one ongoing dance of interrelated energy; that nothing is permanent; and that nothing exists independently from everything else.

As we go deeper into our journey of spiritual awakening, Pluto can appear to “destroy” everything we cling to: leaving nothing but light. This is teaching us the valuable lesson that nothing is permanent, yet through it all our inner light is what remains: it is the only thing that is truly indestructible.

Indicators of Karma

In discussing the Moon’s Nodes and Pluto, some contemporary astrologers have noted that they are indicators of karmic patterns and conclude that because of this they must therefore be pointing to our Soul Path.

For clarification, from a Soul Astrology perspective based on the Tibetan tradition and the teachings of the Tibetan through Alice Bailey, we could perhaps agree that the lunar nodes are indeed significant indicators of our karmic patterns, but our karmic patterns are not our Soul’s true nature because they are not of the nature of clear light.

From the esoteric perspective (and the perspective of Tibetan Buddhism) our karmic patterns are the result of the accumulation of habits and beliefs accumulated over many lifetimes. These karmic patterns form what we call our ego-personality (in the spiritual sense of the word ego, which is our sense of a separate self). While they do play a significant role in our lives, they are not our true (Divine) nature but are in the nature of conditioning, or learned behavior over time. From this perspective, it is our karma (our acquired habits and beliefs) that actually blocks our view of our true nature (our Soul).

Indeed, if the Moon’s Nodes and Pluto are indicators of our karmic conditioning then (from a Tibetan viewpoint) they would be revealing aspects of our ego-personality. They are therefore revealing the obstacles that distract us from our Soul’s true nature! So from a Soul Astrology perspective it might be better to say that the Moon’s Nodes and Pluto indicate past-life patterns that we are here to heal and release so our pure Soul light can shine through.

Western astrologers are currently doing some very important work in clarifying the meaning of the lunar nodes and Pluto, and once we are clear about the distinction between our true nature (Ascendant), and karmic patterns (Moon’s Nodes, Pluto, and other planets), we may then use this growing body of knowledge about the Lunar Nodes and Pluto to bring us into a deeper understanding of our karmic conditioning, relative to the society we were born into, and how we can release these patterns to gain a clearer view of our Soul’s path and purpose.