Rambling about Pluto in the 2nd House
Pluto is in a Bad Position in the 2nd House
photo via http://incoldmirrors.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d2o6yqz
The 2nd house is the natural home of Taurus and it represents actual tangible possessions-the things we own and take with us. Robert Hand describes it as,
The place where we view the things we own as an extension of ourselves, we let our ego attach itself to these possessions and we let them define us.
Some astrologers equate the 2nd house with values in addition to valuables, but Hand disagrees. The 2nd house is about personal finances, the possessions we can touch and carry with us, and the security that these things bring.
Pluto is the Destroyer
Pluto renders
The complete breakdown of Saturnine reality
Security
How does a person with Pluto (or Scorpio) in the 2nd house achieve a sense of security if there is an urge to destroy that security? Pluto demands that false safety be given up so that profound inner safety can emerge in its place. Accepting that security is an illusion helps you get in touch with innate talents and resources – inner resources rather than outer resources – gaining a sense of safety from within.
Earning Power
Laurence Hillman says that, in this position,
Pluto represents the power of money, that money is the teacher that shows you what your values are
What I buy shows what I value. If I say that I value the American worker then go to WalMart to buy Made in China shoes, then my money is not where my mouth is. My valuables contradict my values. The purchases I make are proof of my values. If I look around my house, my values are everywhere to see.
Money gives the ability to do what I want to do in life
Because of the freedom that money gives, March and McEvers call the 2nd house the,
House of personal liberty.
And I have Pluto in the 5th — my extension is what I create (;
I also like the interpretation of 2nd house as “values” in a broad sense — from material possessions to what generally is meaningful in your life. Modern and traditional associations of Venus and Jupiter with this house seem to support this notion
I’m going to make a new post about this today.
How does Pluto in 5H treat you? That’s where mine is headed next.
Personally, I have a very strong connection between 5H, 8H, Moon and Saturn/Pluto conjunction. 5H helps to resolve issues of my afflicted Moon, but it’s not that easy. Honestly, I haven’t been in touch with my 5H lately, so I’m at loss, but transiting Saturn will enter it soon, so most likely I’ll have more to write then.
That’s interesting. You and Allegra have a similar connection- she has Moon in 5H in partile square with Sun in 8H, obviously it’s not Saturn-Pluto, but still there’s a strong house connection. Did you know that all three of us have our chart ruler in 8H? You- Moon, Allegra-Sun, and me-Mercury.
Yes, I always obsessively look for patterns, so I noticed this one quickly
I’ve spent some time with Allegra mulling over 8H and from our personal experiences, contrary to popular beliefs, people with emphasis on this house don’t want that much to have control and power over others, but rather in relation to others struggle with having control and power over themselves. Do you have similar experiences?
I don’t know. I can’t answer you right away, I have to think about this.
I'm a little dismayed to consider “Pluto is in a bad position in the 2nd house.” My Pluto is in the 7th but someone close has the 2nd house Pluto. Pluto -as Hades – or god of the underworld in known to be wealthy. It would seem that wealth could come from Plutonian themes- such as depth psychology, healing, work with death and rebirth. In the case of my friend who is an artist- it seems that the more they express their Plutonian process and themes in their art- the more wealth comes to them. They are constantly crossing the boundaries of “conventional norm” in their art forms and this seems to work for them – both as a personal healing and creative expession.
There is gold in the underworld, all though not everyone can plummet the depth. The learning of death and rebirth is placed somewhere in everyone's chart. The Pluto journey is razor sharp but somehow many do learn the phoenix from the ashes trick and bring the soul gold back with us.
That quote was actually something I read in a book. This post was inspired by my disgust with reading so many negative interpretations of Pluto in the 2nd house and it was an attempt to sort out some of what I had been reading- in a not very coherent fashion.
I agree with the possibilities you present here. I have Pluto in Libra in the 2nd house and I did go to school for art.
This post was written almost 8 months ago. You might enjoy the newer post I wrote about the 2nd house, The 2nd House: Ensuring Your Own Survival http://astrofix.net/2010/06/29/the-2nd-house-en…
Thank you for reading Maggie.
I’ve got pluto and the moon in scorpio in my 2nd house. It used to be in my 12th house but moved to the 2nd on my last birthday in Hawaii.
Are you talking about your solar return?
In my studies and experiences, the 2nd House is as much about tangible possession as what we Value, as the others said above. I have 2nd House Leo with Moon in it and I value my honor and dignity above just about anything else- and it’s an instinctive valuation- no thought required. Just as naturally I do not value or even acknowledge the “small stuff”, sometimes to my own detriment. Material possessions fall in the category of “small stuff”- yet I have exorbitant tastes and expectations in the realm of “things money can buy”. My Moon and 2ns House is a little unusual though because the Midpoint of Sun/Moon=Ascendant in Cancer. So the Leo and Cancer are blended in ways….But I’ve observed the deeper meaning of Values in others charts, especially when they’re stressed or challenged.
I think another good word for the 2nd house is “priorities” which fits nicely with the idea of survival needs.
I have pluto scorpio 2nd house retrograde. This squares my mars and jupiter which are both in leo. i have always realized that i never got along with people of my generation. and come from a poor family
One of the things that is becoming apparent with my own natal Pluto in the 2nd house is that it’s important to be in control and on top of your personal income and finances.
That is true with me too. And I had to learn these things, no one ever taught me math or accounting. I was an early high school dropout! Problems at home, seem to be a common childhood theme with this Pluto.
I ended up doing accounting for a firm for a while. I hated it except that it gave me such a huge sense of self esteem that I could do it. When I left my husband it was the same way–the sense of esteem I got from handling my own accounts was pretty amazing.
So you have planets in the 8th house too?
I have my sun in Leo, Saturn, Pluto and Mercury all in the 2nd house. I have a rising Cancer. I seem to have instant Karma and the older I get the more pronounced this is. If I screw up it is immediately thrown back at me. I have lost important, valuable objects through my own panic in trying to hide them or save them. This is a constant theme with me. If I worry about objects and money these things elude me. If I lighten up (which is difficult at times) things seem to come to me and people look at it and say, she’s lucky. I just wish I had a nicer house, a nicer car, like I see everyone else having but it’s never that way for me. I’ve struggled all my life. I agree, this placement sucks. On the other hand, I do have that lucky streak.
Love; Money; Power are all existing under one roof–any human being who does not see this, it is unfortunate that they live in the lands of fancy that is bound to cramble to pieces when they wake up:
Power= the ability to do what you want independently of any other force.
Money= gives you the means (Freedom) to do what you want
Love= The passions that derive you (ideals, emotions, romance, meanings, values and etc)
None of these thnings are bad or good in the sense that people use them. But all of these work in combination to bring on this earth what a person wants, wills and does with the choices. But for a well balanced person, you need and want all of this in balance. You cannot have one and not the others. In balance, they give you the ability to live and breathe and do that which is important for you–and also that which you consider important for humanity.