Jupiter in Leo 2014-2015 – A Year of Dramatic New Creative Self-Expression

by Robert Wilkinson

Today we take an in-depth new look at the qualities of Jupiter in Leo, since we can use them to great benefit during the next 12 months.

Jupiter entered Leo for the first time since Aug 2002-03 on July 16, 3:30 am PDT, 11:30 am Greenwich (BST). Here the planet of expansion and new openings to wider views and greater truths finds expression in all things involving self-expression, creativity, and heart-fire.

Jupiter only gets to 23 Leo before going stationary retrograde on December 8-9. After that it retrogrades back to 13 Leo, where it goes stationary direct in early April 2015. From there Jupiter rockets forward through the entire sign of Leo until it enters Virgo on Aug 11, 2015. So actually Jupiter has a long stay in Leo of slightly over a year (unlike Jupiter in Aries which went less than 3 months during Summer 2010 and 5 months in 2011).

So what’s the big deal about Jupiter entering Leo? First, let's revisit Jupiter's nature. Jupiter rules 2 signs. In other words, Jupiter finds its “home” in two signs, those being Sagittarius and Pisces. Those two signs offer us a glimpse of Jupiter's nature. We can learn a lot by examining how Jupiter functions in those two signs.

Jupiter was in Pisces from January 17-18 through early June 2010, and revisited that sign from early September through mid-January 2011. In Pisces, the water quality is emphasized, just as the fire quality was shown to us back in 2007 when it was in Sag and during the months in 2010 and 2011 when Jupiter was in Aries.

Being a combination of Sagittarius and Pisces, Jupiter rules "the open sky" as well as "the vast depth." Jupiter symbolizes ever-expanding forms of Higher Truth as well as deep feelings we share with all other humans throughout time.

So Jupiter is both Fire and Water, and Mutable by nature. In Fiery Aries, Jupiter was in its element, in a sign that takes the initiative in embracing the new. In Aries the expansive principle flames on in dynamic ways, opening new doors after closing the old ones in Pisces.

With Jupiter in the Fire sign of Leo, it’s again in an element harmonious to its nature. While it no doubt benefited from the Earth practicality when it was in Taurus, and expanded its view in Gemini, while it’s been in Cancer the past year, it again found itself in a familiar element. It continues that natural element expression in Leo, while benefiting from the steadiness of being in a Fixed sign. While Jupiter may get impatient with being in a slow moving groove, it should none the less do well by being tethered to a process of steady heart expression and creative action.

We can understand even more by contemplating that Leo is the 6th sign from Pisces, and the 9th sign from Sagittarius. Thus Jupiter in Leo adjusts and corrects whatever began when Jupiter was in Pisces and was made concrete in Aries, and comes to a steady heart-based sense of truth and higher awareness based in whatever was set into motion when Jupiter was in Sagittarius.

Leo symbolizes the natural expression that comes forth after the initial Fire of Aries starts a process that is secured in Taurus, explored in Gemini, and anchored in personal feelings in Cancer. Leo begins the second set of “4 elements in motion,” this time in signs of interactivity with others.

What begins in Leo finds significant form and function in Virgo, comes to see a greater ideal in Libra, and grounds and focuses the magnetism in Scorpio. In Leo, Jupiter’s naturally expansive expression finds confidence and so can express a greater vision or truth in dramatic ways.

While Jupiter was in Cancer, we learned through sincerity, expressions of caring and sympathy, family and needs. Leo steadies that insecurity and sensitivity, and turns it to more natural and spontaneous expressions. Leo’s steadiness turns the movable energy of Cancer into more playful and creative expression.

This sign likes to stabilize using consistent methods, and brings spontaneity and dramatic excitement to whatever it touches. Leo’s steadiness is the natural reaction to Cancer’s insecure reactivity, and Leo’s ability to hang in there is the antidote to Cancer’s tendency to bail too quickly.

So Jupiter in Leo could bring steadiness to what began with Jupiter in Cancer. This can help us be patient as we enjoy playing with a more natural expression arising from the reorientations and new dedications we flowed into during Jupiter in Cancer.

Jupiter in Leo should bring us confidence in the life areas where we have Leo in our chart. Jupiter in Leo can be very confident and out there, but also gives us the royalty or nobility to express ourselves with aplomb and style. It should be a very active time where we free ourselves from useless halfhearted responses, time wasting actions, and old notions of futures that were never ours to begin with.

Grant Lewi, in his masterwork "Astrology For The Millions," says Jupiter in Leo opens opportunities when they offer us “a chance to exhibit (our) special virtues and abilities.” He says this position refuses obscurity, and will also go for that which “gives more publicity.” Jupiter in Leo loves the stage, and wants to “win approval for the traits that are most important to you.” This position is about ego satisfaction, and is “best satisfied with the effect (it makes) on others.”

Marc Edmund Jones, in his masterwork "Astrology: How and Why It Works," says Jupiter in Leo "indicates the development of a consciousness which is characteristically self-sufficient, and sure in its response to ideas." It is motivated by "its own unimpeachable sincerity in holding to values,” “interested in the meaning of life,” and requires chances to “build up and dramatize some ideal in his own character."

During this year of Jupiter in Leo, we will all learn about Leo things. As it moves through early Leo, it will biseptile Saturn, tredecile Uranus, quincunx Neptune and triseptile Pluto, followed by the triseptile to Neptune and quincunx to Pluto. The triseptiles will activate the Grand Irrationality, marking a huge turning point in our world and its destiny. The quincunxes will help us make adjustments and corrections, and may involve some sacrifices, so that our creative possibilities can come forth.

Those who embrace the energy of Jupiter in Leo will find a steady growth of natural self-expression and playfulness, and many will feel a more child-like energy in the air. On the other hand, Jupiter will also lead some who are stuck in non-productive patterns to embrace a stubborn or prideful inertia, and may even cement unhealthy self-absorption and self-justifying values in those who don't want to grow. These people will see opportunity in not moving, or not expanding, or not learning.

During its stay in Leo, Jupiter, the expansive principle, will be in very favorable trine with Uranus, showing that whatever has been awakened by Uranus in Aries will be stabilized in appropriate ways. Jupiter's relationship to Saturn will be wide and varied, since the biseptile of August comes close to becoming a square as the Autumn progresses, stopping just short when Jupiter goes retrograde and Saturn moves into Sagittarius in December.

By January 2015, Jupiter makes its second biseptile to Saturn, showing another major set of “forks in the road of destiny,” both in the world at large as well as wherever these transit and rule in our charts. By February it again makes another tredecile, an aspect of serendipity, which could be related to the serendipity that’s coming next month in August. After it goes direct in April 2015, it makes a final tredecile and biseptile with Saturn before finally making the waning square in July-August 2015.

Because Jupiter is trine Uranus almost the entire time it’s in Leo, it favors originality, pioneering forms of expression and creativity, and will open many doors of inspired thinking and acting. It doesn’t really make any aspects to Neptune and Pluto in 2014 after the initial ones described above, except for a biquintile to Pluto and quadranovile to Neptune in late September and the first part of Oct 2014.

Once it goes direct in April 2015, it will again make a triseptile, quincunx, and biquintile to Pluto in the Spring of 2015, while also making a triseptile to Neptune during that Spring, again throwing the Grand Irrationality into full effect! We can expect major developments during those times the inner planets move through any of the 7 “hot zones” of this configuration, which I’ll write about as things develop. For now, keep an eye on late August and early September, the first half of November, and the third week of January 2015.

During the times Jupiter make those powerful triseptiles, it indicates the life areas where we have Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto transiting in our charts will hit critical forks in the road where new directions must be taken, or we’ll have to find new forms of self-expression, and see how we’re being called to a life renewal and reorganize some seed forms in our lives.

Because of the span where Jupiter will be retrograde in Leo, September 2014 will introduce us to the themes of March through May 2015, and October 2014 will introduce us to the themes of January-February 2015 and May-June 2015. So we’ll get Jupiter in the first half of Leo in July, August, and September 2014, and the second half of Leo from October 2014 through February 2015. It’s back in the first half of Leo from March through May 2015, after which it finishes its transit of the second half of Leo before slipping into Virgo August 2015.

The square from Jupiter to Saturn that happens in July and early August 2015 challenges all of us to a new form of creative expression and a justification for accomplishing a cherished ideal so that we can hold the line through all possible discouragement. We must all find ways to "make success worth its price," get a broader imagination and/or truth, and find structured ways to make a promise become concrete without letting rules and pessimism be a wet blanket to our dreams and ideals. And because Leo and Scorpio form what is termed a “mundane square,” we may see elements of these themes throughout the year, even though Jupiter won’t exactly square Saturn until this time next year.

Obviously, all the lessons I've discussed so far are playing out in the house(s) that transiting Jupiter is moving through in our charts. This is a time when the deeper feelings and connectedness with All-That-Is that we learned from Jupiter in Cancer can be opened up and secured in ways that are perfect for our expanded authentic self-expression while Jupiter occupies Leo.

By examining the life areas of each house, we can see the progressive lessons Jupiter teaches us on a year-to-year basis. Since it takes about 11-12 years to make an entire circuit through all the signs, we can learn how the expansions and openings that happened when it crossed our Ascendant, Sun, or planets are related to what we learned in subsequent year periods about those life qualities.

It's also a time when the Leo energies can "teach" our natal Jupiter more about natural expression and playfulness, regardless of what sign our natal Jupiter is in. Our natal Jupiter in its sign shows us where we naturally learn and embrace various kinds of "quests." Jupiter transits show us how we relate to our natural openness to a greater truth or future.

Regardless of how we're living the adventure of our life, Jupiter in Leo shows us how that quest or adventure is related to our creativity, love, sense of life as theater, and a more natural way of being to stabilize new life expressions and opportunities. In any case, this transit counsels that it’s time to do our Being with style, playfulness, and a sense of our unique part to play on the stage of Life.

© Copyright 2014 Robert Wilkinson

Comments

[Jo Garceau]

Fabulous article, Robert. Thanks!

[Lady Libra]

I hope your last paragraph comes true for me. Like all Libras. I need it

[Dehi]

i follow the sidereal vedic zodiac so looking up your jupiter in cancer article now!

[Robert]

Hi all - You're welcome.

Hi Dehi - There are two articles on Jupiter in Cancer, one from last Summer, and one from Spring. And of course, no one knows how many degrees to subtract to find the eastern positions, given there are many schools of calculation.

[Dehi]

Thanks a bunch Robert! Read them both wonderful material!

i follow the original vedic classics which give the starting point for Aries as 180 degrees opposite spica under sidereal zodiac. The difference with tropical zodiac is given by Lahiri ayanamsa so that makes for 24 degrees 3 minutes and 43 seconds difference at the moment! Incidentally this is the only ayanamsa which is Government of India approved as well!

Personally it works rather well, not to mention is the most widely used by vedic astrologers, can't complain!

[dorothea]

Thank you Robert. Looking forward to jupiter in my 10th hitting my natal sun & natal Jupiter. Should make an interesting year. Creative expressions & child like playfulness. I need that more than ever. I feel horribly stuck.