Wheel of Light Astrology by Rio Olesky - December 2019
Jupiter changes signs each year. This month Jupiter will leave Sagittarius and enter Capricorn. This is significant for several reasons. First, the energy of Jupiter is aligned with the nature of Sagittarius and is referred to as its “ruler”. When a planet is the sign it rules, its essential nature can be expressed in pure ways. Jupiter and Sagittarius are oriented toward the expansive, the joyful and the generous. They prioritize adventure and any activity through which learning and consciousness development can occur. The downside of this planet-sign combination is that there may tend to be excessive idealism, unrealistic expectations and over abundant benevolence. We may have been uplifted by the positivity of Jupiter in Sagittarius but we also need to guard against the impracticality.
The second reason that the Jupiter ingress into Capricorn is significant is that Jupiter tends to be particularly weak in Capricorn. That is, its inherent joy and enthusiasm can be limited by the naturally reserved practicality of Capricorn. Moreover, Jupiter may overly expand the Capricornian tendency to be responsible so that we feel more the need to produce and achieve rather than focus on ways of learning and expanding our awareness.
The third important point about this transit is that Capricorn is already overflowing with transiting energy from the North Node, Venus (which leaves Capricorn on the 19th), Saturn and Pluto. The new Moon will be eclipsed in Capricorn on the 26th. The world is about to experience a major tutorial in the nature of Capricorn and Jupiter entering Capricorn will expand the lessons that these transits offer at this time.
The alignment of Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto is the most profound transit that will be operative throughout 2020. I will provide a detailed discussion of this transit and how it could affect human experience politically, economically and in terms of personal growth in my annual Perspectives talk which will be held on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 starting at 7 PM at the Luther Burbank Center in Santa Rosa. For now, however, let’s look at the possibilities and complications that could transpire as a result of this particular combination of energetic influences coming together.
In the mundane sense, Capricorn can represent large, often monolithic power structures. These could be governments, banks or international corporations. Saturn, Pluto and Capricorn all like dominance and control. It would seem as if the alignment of these planets would lead to the continued increase of right wing prominence, both politically and economically. One of the lower octave qualities of Capricorn is fear. When we are in fear we can either give our power away to those we want to protect us, or to try to usurp power from others as a way to prevent them from controlling us. Economically, greed can be a way of forestalling the fears of not having enough. Growth of the conservative and traditional would seemingly be highlighted. The presence of Jupiter, however, can alter that equation.
Jupiter and Saturn have a natural antipathy in their expression. Saturn tends toward the reserved; Jupiter to the adventurous. Saturn focuses on personal responsibility; we earn what we work for and accomplish. Jupiter is oriented to the expansive and the generous. Jupiter is more idealistic than Saturn. If we have a clearly defined value system, including morals and ethics, our mundane reality should strive to integrate those philosophical precepts into our institutions and personal behavior. Into an alignment of influences that tend to be hierarchical (Saturn and Capricorn) comes an energy that is far more progressive in its thinking and strategy (Jupiter).
On the personal level, this transiting conjunction provides us with a multitude of possibilities. The key word is responsibility. Saturn is the lord of karma, It teaches us that our reality today is a compilation of all the thoughts, words and actions from our past. Our future will be decided by our thoughts, feelings and actions of the present. Jupiter can help us to add a liberal and more open minded perspective. We can avoid the rigidity and authoritarian tendencies of Capricorn by being open to strategies that combine practicality with philanthropy. This energetic combination allows us to understand what our intentions are and to seek to manifest them by conforming to the inclinations of our higher self. This transit can reveal to us that the ends justify the means only if the means are in alignment with our understanding of right and wrong. Jupiter brings a spiritual quality to the Capricorn conjunction this year. It can teach us that if we only look out for ourselves, we may be alone when we need help the most. If, however, we act in accordance with what we understand to be the greatest good for the greatest number, we create endless allies.
