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Timing
A number
of StarIQ readers have asked for more information about the current Jupiter-Neptune
opposition. The first of these three aspects occurred on September 11
and repeats on February 16 and June 2, 2003. Jupiter and Neptune are wide;
their effects stretch out over time, making them harder to measure. Events
tend to occur when faster moving planets, including the Moon and Sun,
trigger the slower ones, like Jupiter and Neptune.
It's useful
to think about the opposition as a process, one that belongs to the 13-year
Jupiter-Neptune cycle. Conjunctions begin each cycle; they are the "seeds"
of what's to come. The opposition is the halfway point when the Earth is between the two planets. It is the Full Moon phase of maximum brightness,
the most overtly expressive point; the most polarized. The opposition
is as far apart as two planets can be. It is the maximum point of openness,
yet it can also be madness. Maximum information. Too much information?
The
Symbolism
Jupiter and
Neptune share the rulership of Pisces and represent expansion. Jupiter
is more worldly, it's associated with success on the material plane. Yet
it also aspires to something more, as shown in its other home sign, Sagittarius.
The Archer's arrow is aimed upward, a symbol for adventures of the body
and the mind that take us beyond familiar territory. Neptune lives where
Jupiter aims to go. It is the planet of the ethers, the all-encompassing
world of spirit that contains matter. Neptune has neither aim nor direction.
It expands everywhere, dissolving boundaries and barriers of body, mind
and soul.
Jupiter is
religion and Neptune is spirituality. The former has judgment, while the
latter does not. Together they can represent religion run amok, or any
belief system that perceives itself to be above (or beyond) the law. Faith
is a beautiful thing when it is wedded to compassion, but Jupiter can
be consumed in the flame of its own truth and become indifferent to the
suffering of non-believers.
Jupiter is
now in Leo, a sign of personal will and expression. Neptune is in the
collectivist sign of Aquarius where the group is valued more than the
individual. Leo is the hub (Leo) and Aquarius the spokes. Leo is the heart,
Aquarius is the circulatory system. Leo is the star, Aquarius is the constellation.
A negative
expression of Jupiter in Leo is an inflated ego that sets itself apart
from the larger environment in which it lives. The need to be right (a
Jupiterian flaw) cuts off input from the rest of the organism, leading
to blanket judgments based on limited information. Aquarius, too, can
get caught in its own notion of what's best for everyone, but with cool
detachment rather than Leo's drama. Neptune can either sensitize or anesthetize,
with compassion holding the balance.
There's something
extreme about Jupiter-Neptune that can build a case based on false information.
Neither planet wants to be bothered with details; both seek absolute solutions.
We can skip past meaningful dialogue or analysis on the road to a higher
truth, a grand crusade. Unless Neptune is finely attuned to the existence
of others, it's possible to become drunk with the power of one's own righteousness.
Yet, as always, with compassion real wisdom is possible.
Recent
Jupiter-Neptune Oppositions
Since 1900
there have been eight series of Jupiter-Neptune oppositions prior to the
present one. The first was in January 1901. The second was in January
1914 with Jupiter in Capricorn and Neptune in Cancer, five months prior
to the assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand that led to World War I.
The third, with Jupiter in Aquarius and Neptune in Leo, occurred between
April 1926 and January 1927. In March 1926 Robert Goddard launched the
first liquid (Neptune) fueled rocked (Jupiter). On May 1926 and January
1927 U.S. Marines were sent to "restore order" in Nicaragua. In March
1927 U.S. Marines joined an international peacekeeping team in Shanghai,
China.
The fourth
opposition had Jupiter in Pisces opposite Neptune in Virgo in April 1939.
In March 1939 Germany invaded Czechoslovakia. Later that year Germany
invaded Poland, which started World War II. The fifth opposition was in
March 1952, with Jupiter in Aries and Neptune in Libra, during the latter
period of the Korean War. The sixth opposition was from June 1964 to February
1965. In August 1964 a supposed attack on a U.S. vessel in the Gulf of
Tonkin led Lyndon Johnson to request war powers that were given him by
the Congress in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. This was the legal foundation
for an expanded American presence in Vietnam that lasted until the end
of the war. The Voting Rights Act, an important piece of Civil Rights
legislation, was passed in early 1965.
The seventh
opposition was in June 1977. The Alaska Pipeline opened that month. Jupiter
was in Gemini and Neptune was in Sagittarius. In 1977 Oliver North cohort
Ed Wilson sold 20 tons of C-4 explosive to Libya's
Moammar Quadaffi. The profits were used to fund the Contras in Nicaragua.
The eighth opposition was from late September 1989 to June 1990, with
Jupiter in Cancer and Neptune in Capricorn. In August 1990 Iraq invaded
Kuwait. Interestingly, a quick look at the conjunctions between Jupiter
and Neptune during this period of time shows little of the military activity
of the oppositions. Of course, we can only hope that the present one does
not fall into this category either.
Jupiter in
Leo can represent the powerful leader driven by the desire to dominate
others. Neptune in Aquarius might be the madness of crowds, drugged by
the media and our own delusions. Yet it is not the planets who live our
lives. We chose to think and act and talk and be who we are. We find ourselves
on a beautiful planet with lots of angry and frightened people. Perhaps,
if we can stand back from being who we think we are, we may find answers
that really matter. With Jupiter in Leo, meaning comes from individual hearts connected to minds through the Neptune in Aquarius network. We have many resources...and much hope.
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