Jupiter and Pluto square off today, one of three contacts that began in November and will end in August. If Jupiter is the planet that connects us with faith, belief, education, and other cultures, then Pluto holds a mirror. In it we see the shadow of our faith, our belief.
Every planet serves as a stand in for an element of life, from the mundane to the more abstract. When I was learning astrology, Jupiter seemed elusive. Too often I read, Jupiter is the planet of growth and expansion. Huh? When I dug further I realized that Jupiter helps connect us to these bigger concepts than the self. Jupiter is the faith that there something out there to discover in the world. It’s the quest, an archetypical thread that runs through many of humanity’s most resonate stories.
People who have a strong Jupiter in their chart, when expressed positively, are always traveling, always learning. They soak up wisdom and naturally share what they know. Jupiter is knowledge, taking all the facts and information of Mercury, its polarity, and forming an educated viewpoint or worldview. For that Jupiter is philosophy, religion, law, and higher education, something we experience through the sign of Sagittarius, one of signs Jupiter rules. Jupiter is the guru, the teacher, the lawyer, the traveler, and the priest as well.
So, Jupiter is the planet of growth, but in a very abstract way — growth through exploration, growth through education. It helps us to find richness in the world.
But what of Jupiter’s — and by extension, Sagittarius’s — shadow? Today’s exact Pluto square, which taps into this deeper Saturn in Sagittarius journey we’ve been on since 2015, makes us look at the darker side of Jupiter — self righteousness, fundamentalism, judgement, and a closed view of the world. What gain could we possibly have by looking at the shadow of an energy? Because when we witness something, even if its ugly and confrontational about ourselves, we have to make a choice. Are we going to continue to cast judgement? Be the guru or teacher that disempowers? Belive that our way of seeing the world is the only way?
Pluto helps us transmute energy. If things feel really intense right now, especially if you’re a Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, or Pisces, it’s because a major part of your life has to transform. And, at bare minimum, how you see the world has to transform. But, first, the transformation has to happen within.