Mars, Pluto, Which Planet Rules Scorpio, Anyway?

In further celebration of the astrological month of Scorpio, I'd like to clear the air re: its true ruling planet.

Since Pluto (chosen in the modern era to replace Mars as the governing planet of Scorpio) got demoted to "dwarf planet" status a little over a year ago, a little bit of debate and a whole lof of confusion has arisen regarding which heavenly body truly rules Scorpio. As a concession to its former role, many traditional astrologers still consider Mars the co-ruler of Scorpio, although Pluto has been "officially" on the books as its primary guardian for decades. The thing is, since no one really likes the thought of powerful Scorpio being ruled by a suddenly second-rate planet (apparently Pluto was originally assumed to be much larger than it actually is, thus the cut-back in status), there's been an re-emergence of astrology articles focusing exclusively on Mars as Scorpio's native ruler. So who's right?

The Scorpios are, of course.

Since scientists are still debating about Pluto and its categorization (many profesional astronomers are still holding out for an entirely new definition for it), it's up to those born under the sign of the Scorpion to choose which planet they like best, and then tell the rest of us. Astrology is very subjective, and never truly answers to a single governing body, etc., so if you're a Scorpio, decide for yourself. You know you like to make the rules, anyway. We'll eventually do as you wish, like always.

xo,

Sybilla


PS Personally, I consider Scorpios totally anomalous-- they rule the 8th house of death, so, like the many different realms of the dead (heaven, hell, purgatory or categorcally-amorphous Buddhist Nirvana), the other-worldly land of Scorpio is truly a province unto itself. Planets may beam their influence upon those of us who dwell on the surface of the earth, but the true domain of Scorpio is far underground-- somewhere between the deepest, darkest part of the ocean and the fiery, molten core of the earth.