Jupiter

Jupiter is the planet which represents the symbolic world, and intuits it’s meaning. The function of Jupiter is to enlarge, make fruitful, and bestow a feeling of being protected with a spirit of hope and optimism. Psychologically it is from this archetype of paternal benevolence that we derive self confidence, our ability to extend our horizons, to take life as it comes, and our urge to grow physically, mentally, and spiritually. It enlarges all that it touches and, as a result, it can lead to exaggeration; either the tendency to take risks because of an overdeveloped sense of optimism, or the depletion of resources because of over expansion.

The influence of Jupiter can also lead to an over inflated idea of our own importance and a desire to “play god”. When we lose our connection with Jupiter, we may experience feelings of inadequacy, negativity, skepticism, sluggishness or pessimism. Our Jupiter position by sign, house and aspect will describe where we seek to grow, to expand to find meaning in life. Where we seek to be expansive and do things in a Big Way and the areas which we need quite a bit of space in order to do so. Above all else Jupiter, represents our ability to grasp meaning.

Jupiter urges us to look beyond the immediate facts and the current situation, and see a deeper meaning and significance and purpose. In holding any kind of beliefs, religious, political, philosophical we are having to do this. When Jupiter contacts a planet in the chart we tend to philosophize about the things represented by that planet, we ask what that planetary principle actually means, we want to spread our wings in that area, take as much as possible on board, travel tremendous distances with it.

The house where Jupiter is placed is often an area where we are lucky, where we can get away with things. Our Jupiter placement usually describes an area where we can enjoy a certain measure of protection. Jupiter pushes out our boundaries, away from the personal and immediate to wider horizons. It represents setting out to explore our destiny and make our fortune. The influence of this planet takes us away from the preoccupations of the self and makes us much more aware of the larger whole. Our knowledge is therefore expanded and we are able to intuit future possibilities.

Jupiter is associated with wisdom to be wise we have to have knowledge and information, but also the capacity for understanding these in the right light of the greater whole. Jupiter represents the function which enables us to see the grand scheme of things, the wider implications, and in seeing the whole picture we are better able to make judgments. Being hampered limits one capacity to grow. Jupiter rules the zodiac sign Sagittarius and, in common with that sign, the Jupiterian impulse prompts a dislike of responsibilities and a dislike of limits of all kinds, in Jupiterian mode we like to be at liberty.

Our beliefs dictate the extent to which we may be visionaries. The overly Jupiterian individual believes anything is possible. Without either self-belief or belief in some kind of higher power, basically without the notion of positive thinking, nothing is possible. Our Jupiter, together with planets in the 9th house and planets in Sagittarius, will have much to say about our search for meaning. Life becomes much more joyous if we believe it has some kind of larger significance, without a sense of meaning and purpose, life can feel very bleak indeed.