Jupiter in Cancer - Do You Feel Lucky?

Jupiter enters Cancer, the sign of its exaltation, on June 26th at 01:41am GMT. So, the planet of good luck and gambling is at its best in the conservative sign of emotional security. The planet of travel exalts in the sign of the home - what is this all about?

A little exploration gives a fuller insight why this is so. Jupiter is 300 times the size of Earth and larger than all the other planets in our solar system combined, more a failed star than a planet. It has a mass of moons a 'second prize solar system' of which the Galillean Io, Gannyemede, Europa and Callisto are the best known. It is like the Cancerian patriarch surrounded by his extended family, or harem if you will, and taking great pride in being the breadwinner. 

Like a star, Jupiter also reflects back 2.5 times the amount of light it receives from the Sun. This symbolizes his generosity and ability to create goodwill. Jupiter also plays a protective Cancerian role in shielding Earth from comets and asteroids. Charity begins at home and generosity towards our family is the noblest form of giving. Jupiter is a benevolent parent who rewards patience and faith.

Jupiter represents your imperious Inner God(dess), and many mythological traditions have this thunderbolt-wielding archetype: Zeus, Indra, Thor. Jupiter took it upon himself to usurp his father Chronos, who ate all of his children to prevent them from overthrowing him. Wrong move! The essence of my book Saturn, Fatal Attraction is that the strategies we take to prevent our fears being realized are often the very things that manifest them. So Jupiter is a righteous, justice-dealing force. 

Despite his image as a future-oriented gambler, there is something quaint and old-world about Jupiter's qualities, as Stephen Arroyo has pointed out*. We don't set much store by a personal philosophy these days, nor by trusting in providence, where the modern credo of success is cutthroat-cunning and relentless networking. Insurance and actuarial tables tell us to play the percentages and cover the downside. Despite every other person you know becoming a yoga teacher or 'life coach', the notion of the Guru is still widely distrusted. This shows how debased our culture has become. 

Nicholas DeVore's Dictionary of Astrology lists Jupiter as the 'black sheep of the family', which at first seems at odds with his lucky, popular image. But Jupiter has the courage and confidence to keep any company and doesn't feel the need to kowtow. He'll go against convention if it suits him, set a trend, and have everybody following him. Sometimes it's riskier not to take a risk.

What will Jupiter do for me?
Jupiter spends approximately a year in each sign, during which it grants you a spiritual pay hike. This spell is long enough to be subtly life-changing, but short enough to see in context. Every twelve years, at the Jupiter Return, The King comes back to his original place and spells double-bubble good luck - depending of course on how well he sits in your chart. Even if you don't go out in a rainstorm and have money fall on you, you should feel good and start looking forwards again. Jupiter is a booster and healer. 

Any planet in your chart getting a direct hit from Jupiter will expand and be protected. Even if you don't have Sun or any other planets in Cancer, that sign is represented in your chart somewhere. Exalted Jupiter should perform well in this area, especially if this house is angular - 1st, 4th, 7th, or 10th house. Jupiter hitting your rising is a particular stand-out, where you find new friends, study, travel, money, and at least break a stalemate in your life.

Still, plenty of people complain that Jupiter's supposed good fortune doesn't measure up. Inflated expectations of lottery wins, undying love, Nobel Prizes dropping into your lap, are invariably exaggerated. Clients protest "But you said my Jupiter return would be lucky, and nothing happened". Luck is an attitude and if you always complain that you are unlucky, it doesn't encourage the good stuff to happen. What have you done to promote your good fortune? Truly jupiterian individuals are glasses half-full, and celebrate the miracle of simply being alive.

Is there a downside to Jupiter? Sure. Bombastic and self-righteous, some Jupiter individuals are not so much kings, as Gods in their own mind, with their own divine prerogative.  There are also few things more exasperating than breezy, wasteful 'promisers' who assure you that everything is wonderful, when it really isn't. Trusting in providence is touching, but it has to be based on something at least vaguely real. 

Sometimes a difficult Jupiter in a chart will veer from fearful calculation to reckless, overconfident gambling and wonder why their efforts have the reverse Midas touch. Hope was the last thing left in Pandora's mythical box and many people still regard this quality with suspicion. Jupiter traditionally sits uncomfortably in calculating Capricorn (opposite Cancer), and also in analytic Virgo and Gemini. Much better to go with the flow, expand and believe. 

World events
Jupiter will add intensity to the Uranus-Pluto square series, even though the three planets do not make it to an exact t-square. Much of the political debate will hinge on Pluto issues - natural resources and naked power. There is always potential for misuse with such volatile energy, but Jupiter's wisdom and benevolence in his exaltation may also be critical for big negotiations. 

There will also be three trines with Saturn in Scorpio: mid-July 2013, mid-December 2013, and mid-May 2014. This is the waning trine of the Grand Cycle that began in 1999. The Jupiter-Saturn synodic opposition occurred in 2010, the height of the world economic crash. The trine stage is traditionally a sign of economic recovery - be it very slow - before the next conjunction in 2020. We may not feel much better off, but at least things will stop getting worse. This cycle has been particularly hard-hitting, to clear the decks for Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions occuring in the Air element for the next two centuries!

July 16th 2013 is a date for everyone's diary, with Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune forming a water grand trine. If not for a pesky Mercury retrograde, this would be a rare and perfect day to inaugurate a landmark new enterprise.

Naturally, Jupiter will affect the United States, with its stellium in Cancer. For the better, one would think, except the last Jupiter in Cancer was in 2001, specifically including 11th September. This was clearly disastrous for the USA and its Cancerian president, but it could have been so much different. There was an initial outpouring of sympathy and solidarity for the country, the victims and their families. All the best kinds of emotional patriotism was displayed. This reserve of worldwide goodwill, arguably, was squandered and instead the country used the attack as a pretext for a modern Crusade. 

The United Kingdom's 1801 chart has Moon in Cancer, which is reflected in the world's first Welfare State, a national insurance safety net. Expect more debate over the level of public spending and whether the country can afford a heath service.

Other traditionally Cancerian nations like Scotland (think, the Clan system), may also receive a boost before the Independence referendum in September 2014. Jupiter will be in Leo by this point, but the patriot card will be played for all it is worth. The Scottish National Party's leader, Alex Salmond, happens to have natal Jupiter rising in Cancer, opposite his Sun at 9 Capricorn - the same degree as the UK's Sun. The omens look good for Mr Salmond.

Though if we forget misty-eyed patriotism for a moment, people generally vote with their wallets. The fate of the Union may depend on how prosperous the country feels, and Jupiter-Pluto issues such as revenues from North Sea Oil will be pivotal. If tentative talk of a financial recovery continues, the Scots may be readier to take a chance on going it alone. 

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*Stephen Arroyo, Exploring Jupiter