Pluto Ascendant Aspect: Becoming A Different Person

Pluto is the god of underworld. As the governor of hidden depth in all things,
Pluto represents hidden potentials, extreme passions (which are often repressed
by society), and a perception that penetrates the darkness in all things – solving
mysteries and unlocking new powers (think psychology and molecular physics).

Ascendant is your persona – the mask your wear and show to the world.
Your nameand all that it represents to you. Because it always opposes the
Descendant (the 7th house cusp), Ascendant represents what others (your
partner, friends, the public) will see and identify as your unique personality.

Transit or Natal Pluto conjunct, square or opposite Ascendant can suggest the
need for the mask to break at one point, so that a different identity can emerge,
perhaps one that reflects more of your inner truth.

Pluto conjunct, square or opposite Ascendant: Emergence

of the Hidden Self

Natal Pluto in aspect with Ascendant can suggest hidden depth within your
personality. At a certain point in life, you might startle everyone by going against
the flow to become someone almost unrecognizable from your former self. In
relation to the Pluto archetype, such change is often
called transformation orempowerment of the personality.

Natal Pluto-Ascendant Aspect: Potential for Prominence

The transformational potential of Natal Pluto conjunct, square or opposite
Ascendant can manifest as a rise to prominence and fame, as well as a dramatic
change of socioeconomic level. Examples include:
 Sir Richard Branson (Natal Pluto conjunct Ascendant) is famously known
for being dyslexic and a high school drop out, but he ended up founding the
Virgin Group, became a billionaire and even got knighted by Queen Elizabeth
II.
 Kurt Cobain (Natal Pluto conjunct Ascendant), the lead singer of Nirvana
known for his rise to fame and tragic death – he had extreme difficulty
coping with his fame and public image (a new ‘mask’ thrust upon him by the
public).
 Christopher Reeve (Natal Pluto conjunct Ascendant), rose to fame through
his performance in Superman films. After the fateful accident that made him
quadriplegic, he founded Christopher Reeve Foundation and contributed to
finding treatments and cures for paralysis.

Transit Pluto conjunct, square or opposite Ascendant:

Empowerment of Identity
Similar to natal Pluto-Ascendant aspect, transiting Pluto in hard aspect with the
Ascendant might suggest a time when your identity goes through an empowering
transformation, in effect making you a different person. Examples include:

 Tony Blair: In May 1997, Tony Blair won a landslide victory to become the
youngest Prime Minister of UK – receiving 97% public approval rating by
September of 1997. Transit Pluto was opposing his Ascendant throughout
1997, marking a time of extraordinary empowerment.
 Monica Lewinsky: In her TED talk given in March 2015, Monica Lewinsky
reemerged into the public eye, but this time as an empowered woman
speaking up against cyber bullying. Her TED talk has gone viral, and it’s clear
she reclaimed her identity after years of silence. Transiting Pluto was exactly
opposing her Ascendant.

Conclusion: Pluto-Ascendant Aspect and Potential for Identity

Transformation
All of these examples involve dramatic changes of identity. Even in a ‘normal’
person’s horoscope, natal or transit Pluto-Ascendant aspect can suggest
important potentials for radical changes of personality in one’s lifetime.

While not everyone with natal or transit Pluto-Ascendant aspect will be famous,
this aspect still carries much potential for rise in social status, and/or a
significant deepening of character through powerful life experiences.