Jupiter

Jupiter is located between the Asteroids and Saturn. It has always been considered the “greater benefic”. Saturn has been considered the father figure, the taskmaster, the disciplinarian. But Jupiter is masculine while Saturn is feminine. In terms of its relationship to the Asteroids, Jupiter makes more sense. Jupiter has also been known as the organizer and the administrator – always giving freely. Saturn may rule the boundaries of the ancient solar system but Jupiter presides over the organization and function of everything within those boundaries. Common humanity falls squarely within those boundaries. Jupiter is associated with power through wealth. It is known for extravagance as well as generosity. When Jupiter presides over a chart, the individual enjoys an abundance of material things, although those material things may not bring satisfaction in terms of psychological well-being, health and the enjoyment of the good things of life. But with Jupiter, optimism is evident even when everything goes to pieces.

Jupiter has kept humanity divided into segments by promises of wealth at the end of the rainbow, represented by the fragmented nature of the Asteroid belt. It is Saturn that makes us aware that the pot of gold is nothing but an illusion and that wealth is something we have to work for. In turn, we hate Saturn for his realism and love Jupiter for the illusions he offers. In reality, all of Jupiter’s gifts come from Saturn. Jupiter will encourage you to believe that you can get away with murder and then allow you to be convicted for something you did not even do.

If general humanity were not so blinded by the desire to get something for nothing, we would not be fooled by what Jupiter promises. Perhaps with the use of the Asteroids now available to Astrologers, we are literally being born to a new awareness which may free us to discover the greater promises of Jupiter which function in harmony with the laws of Saturn.

Prior to the use of the Asteroids, Jupiter and Mars spoke for common folks by default, without consent. Common humanity was not asked and rarely heard. We followed the rules of society and expected to be punished when we did not. Those who found favor were rewarded by Jupiter.

Both Mars and Jupiter, along with the Sun, rule fire signs – the signs of life and vitality. Mars’ aggressive energy on one side was matched by Jupiter’s playful energy on the other. This undoubtedly kindled fire in the Asteroids, rulers of Virgo and common people. If we consider Mars in terms of militarization and Jupiter in terms of expansive corporatization, we can consider their interaction in terms of the Military-Industrial Complex – and the Asteroid Belt as the representative of common people trapped in the middle between these two powerful planets.

Jupiter also has to do with religion and religion has often been used to enslave as well as to teach. Individuals have often chosen to identify with the dregs rather than recognize the real value in spiritual wealth. Jupiter has always made available the essential truth and value of the spirit but humanity often chooses to be bribed rather than educated. We have chosen the easy way rather than accept the responsibility of seeing for ourselves. Jupiter rules Sagittarius, the natural ninth house of religion, philosophy, higher education, understanding (I See), as well as long distance travel and material abundance. Humanity truly has sold its soul for material poison rather than learn the truth inherent in the universe under the laws of Saturn. But we cannot blame Jupiter for this. We all have choices, whether we recognize them or not. We suffer for making the wrong choices as well as refusing to recognize any choice at all. Jupiter’s greatest gifts are intangible but when properly understood, result in tangible benefits. The mystery behind, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you” is to be found in a proper understanding of Jupiter.

Jupiter encourages us not to worry about what we should eat and what we should wear. “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They toil not, neither do they spin and yet Solomon in all his/her glory was not arrayed like one of these.” But we find it easy to also forget what it is that we should be doing. We should be about our Father’s business, which we have not bothered to learn. We, the prodigal sons, have demanded our inheritance and set about to squander it. In my opinion, we are about at the place in the story of the Prodigal Son where we may be realizing that “even the dogs are better fed in my Father’s house” than we have been able to provide for ourselves by raping the earth and trying to compete with nature to remedy our sins by material means. Intellectual arrogance and false pride are the sins of Jupiter. Jupiter is wasteful and extravagant in his/her generosity. But he also believes everyone has their price and can be bought in the market place.

People with Jupiter strong in the chart often have a reputation for irresponsibility. Jupiter needs to be balanced with Saturn, for they are partners. Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions occur every twenty years, and have been associated with economic cycles occurring ten years after the conjunction when they are in opposition. The years between the opposition and the next conjunction have been plagued by economic depression and recession. Jupiter’s generosity is checked by the presentation of Saturn’s bill for past infractions of the law. This represents more than the tight-money philosophy usually associated with Saturn. We must adopt an entirely new philosophy about the free flow of money as a medium of exchange rather than a commodity before we find relief from the enslavement which the common people have been subjected to.

The symbol for Jupiter consists of the crescent moon of material supply elevated above the cross of matter, leading one to expect more than can be delivered.