Planets in astrology

 The word "planet" comes from the Greek πλανήτης (planētēs) — meaning "wanderer" or "one who roams." A celestial body that orbits a star, drawn by its gravitational pull.

When we look up at the night sky, we see countless bright points of light. Most of them are stars and appear almost fixed on the celestial dome, moving only very slowly. But a few move noticeably faster — they seem to wander from star to star, as if searching for shelter in the endless universe.

That’s why the ancient Greeks called these bodies planets — wanderers — and named them after their gods. Later, when the Romans became masters of the ancient world, they left their mark on the sky too, and today the planets bear the names of Roman gods.

In astrology — regardless of astronomical definitions — all celestial bodies are called planets. The exceptions are the Sun and Moon, which are sometimes referred to as luminaries (from Latin luminarium — "that which gives light") or simply "lights."

For simplicity, we’ll use the term "planet" from now on. If it feels strange or you resist it at first, think of it as professional terminology. Every field has its own words and labels — astrology is no different. By now we’ve already learned several of them.

So, in astrology we work with a total of 10 planets: Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. Each carries its own meaning and symbolism, drawn from Greek and Roman mythology. Every planet also has its own glyph/symbol — just like each zodiac sign — which we’ll explore in upcoming posts.

Recently, modern astronomy decided Pluto is no longer a planet — they reclassified it as a dwarf planet or planetoid because it’s "too small."

Astrology, however, has not abandoned Pluto — and for good reason, at least two:

Knowing Pluto’s nature and role — you don’t mess with Pluto!

Astrology never judges solely by physical size or material form. It understands that everything has its place and purpose, and planets carry symbolism and significance far beyond their apparent dimensions.

My personal take? This is just Pluto playing his game. As the god of the underworld, he has temporarily withdrawn into his realm — but when the time comes, he will re-emerge. Before that, he’ll announce his return with deep, transformative changes in society.

Every discovery of a new planet reflects a shift in humanity’s collective consciousness — not just better telescopes. Uranus, for example, was occasionally visible to the naked eye for centuries before its official discovery in 1781 — yet it remained hidden from our conscious awareness.