The Magic of the Transpersonal Planets

I’ve written before about astrological magic, which usually focuses on the seven traditional planets. Today I want to consider the transpersonal planets – Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto – in magical and pagan practice. I’ve known pagans say they don’t believe in the outer planets, metaphorically speaking, because there is no established magical tradition for working with them. But astrologers know that they are powerful, and that when they show up for us, we are going through something big. They are the planets of initiation, growth, and change, and have magic all of their own.

The outer planets speak of the slow cycles of collective change. Of the experiences of a generation and of our place in that. Dwarf planet or not, Pluto symbolizes the shadow and the journey through the underworld, the deep powers of the earth. Neptune leads us on a mazy dance, floating and dissolving until we learn to truly go with the flow. Uranus is the great awakener, shocking us out of our complacency and into a more authentic way of being.

New forms of astrological magic

For me, there is an opportunity here, to find the magic in the transpersonal planets.  We can seek personal gnosis, and figure out our own correspondences. An obvious color for Pluto is black, for example, given the associations with the underworld and the cycles of death and rebirth. For Uranus, the less common colors, perhaps turquoise or electric blue. For Neptune, we might think about sea colors, blues and greens and grays and the ways they merge.

Uranus is associated with technology which is likely a powerful association for most of us these days. We might make a talisman on our smartphone, write our Instagram posts as spells. On a deeper level, Uranus is associated with breaking out and breaking through. If we want to break free of a convention or connect or deeply with our authentic self, we can call on Uranus. On a collective level, Uranus symbolises revolution and radical change – and you don’t need  me to tell you how badly that is needed.

Neptune is tricksy, difficult to grasp. Mystical and just out of reach. A great energy to work with if we’re seeking inspiration. Or if we seek to transcend, to move past our everyday self. Neptune is otherworldly, connected with the realms of dream and spirit. Neptune magic dissolves and softens – but is no less powerful for that.

And Pluto – well here is the principle of power, instinct, and raw life force. The shadow, the deep dive. Perfect for working with our own shadow and also the collective shadow – and for developing the courage to do so. Pluto helps us to develop resilience, to purge and ultimately to heal.

Astrological timing with the transpersonal planets

Whilst the tradition of planetary hours doesn’t apply to the outer planets, there are many ways to use them for timing our magical workings. For example, the Moon travels around our natal chart once a month, and meets all of our natal placements along the way. We could choose the day when the Moon meets our Uranus for a spell to find our inner truth. The day that the Moon opposes misty Neptune might be a great time to get an objective view of where we are caught up in illusions. (The opposition brings objectivity as it gives us some distance from what we are looking at).

The Sun, Mercury and Venus all travel around our natal chart in approximately a year, so can also help with timings. When the Sun meets our natal outer planet placements, they are illuminated. Likewise Mercury might allow us to understand or articulate them better. The outer planets move very slowly, making them perfect for long, focused magical workings.

The magic of the transpersonal planets often lies in their difference. They don’t work like the inner or even the social planets, they have their own schedule. Uranus can be super fast, so that we can barely keep up. Neptune is subtle, so you don’t realise how deeply you or the world around you are changing. Until you surface one day and realise that the whole landscape is different. And Pluto carries a deep drive towards change which often shows up as physical energy, demanding to be put to work.

Final thoughts

A note on retrogrades – a lot of fuss is sometimes made on social media about the outer planets going retrograde. I find this slightly frustrating, as the outer planets spend almost half of their time retrograde. It’s just not as powerful, not as much of a shift in awareness, as the retrograde phases of the faster moving planets.

And a final caveat. Of course all of the astrological planets carry mythic and even divine symbolism, but the outer planets work a little differently. They are beyond Saturn, beyond the limits of our day to day reality. When we work with them, we need to be very clear that we are working with forces which are bigger than us. They impact the collective even more than the personal. So we need to be aware, even more than usual, that our magic may have an impact that we can’t imagine or envisage. As with any spirit, divinity or archetype, we need to build a relationship with the transpersonal planets. And to accept their challenges as well as their gifts. Because all too often, the magic of the transpersonal planets lies in the weaving together of both of those.