By Katrina Rasbold
On May 16, 2023, the planet Jupiter entered the sign of Taurus and on September 4, 2023, it shifted into a retrograde course. If you have paid even a cursory attention to astrological news, you already know that Mercury goes retrograde three to four times a year for approximately three weeks at a time. Jupiter, on the other hand, goes retrograde approximately every 13 months and stays retrograde for approximately four months each time. Of course, none of the planets ever literally move backward on their orbital path. It is merely how the tracking of the planet appears from our position on Earth. The effect is similar to how wonky we feel when a car, train, or bus parked beside our stationary vehicle begins to move and for a moment, we feel that our vehicle is moving in the opposite direction and the moving vehicle is still.
As wonky it can be, but before we get into that, there are some important things to know. First, in our birth chart and astrological progressions, Jupiter acts like a jolly, favorite uncle who inspires us with exciting stories of his travels, intercedes on our behalf when we have parental woe, and always has peppermint candies in his pockets for us. Jupiter is about a sudden rush of good fortune, as if Divine intercession swept in and fixed whatever is vexing us. The aspect of Jupiter in relation to the other celestial bodies, signs, and houses in our astrological chart influence our good fortune and opportunity.
Saturn, on the other hand, is the grumpy uncle who is the grown-up version of the kid who reminds the teacher they forgot to assign homework just before the bell rings.
Even when Jupiter goes retrograde, it is kindly. When it is direct, the blessings that come manifest outwardly. In retrograde, all of that turns inward and we have a unique opportunity for self-development and spiritual growth. This helps us to consider what might make us truly happy, what is important in our lives, and what not only sustains us spiritually, but helps us to thrive. We have good fortune and opportunity inside with our emotions, thoughts, and spiritual well-being rather than outside with our engagement with the world.
Jupiter went direct again on December 31st and during that four months, you may have discovered new insight into your relationships, your motivations, your connection to the world and the people in it, and how you relate to your Higher Power, whatever that may be.
Now that Jupiter has again stationed direct, our outward good fortune responds as if a bottleneck suddenly released its blockage. Situations that previously felt stuck or insurmountable suddenly resolve as if by magick. Why? Because Uncle Jupiter arrived with the peppermints. The money someone owed you suddenly comes through. The news you waited for arrives. A feeling of renewed hope and vigor infuses spirit and sings in our veins.
Because Jupiter went direct in Taurus, a sign that does not enjoy sudden change, expect some of this good fortune to arrive in smaller increments… baby steps, and yet those increments quickly add up.
To compound all this energy, Mercury goes direct today, January 1, plus we have the collective celebration of the dawn of a new year added to the energy of Jupiter going direct. That is a massive surge of “fresh start” energy in play where we can put all of that newly found spiritual introspection to work as we welcome positive change into our lives.
Enjoy the good fortune that comes to you without tainting it by waiting for the other shoe to drop or worrying about what may be over the horizon. Live in the moment of opportunity that Jupiter brings to us and fully embody gratitude over what you receive when this planetary aspect brings its blessings. Don’t look a gift planet in the mouth!
Some Jupiter dates to note for 2024:
April 20 (Yes, 4/20) – a conjunction with Uranus (snigger) in Taurus brings sudden changes.
May 18 – alignment with the sun creates an energy surge where things feel more intense and exciting.
May 23 – an aspect with Venus surrounds us with love of all types, but does not positive influence our finances, so be careful with your money.
May 23 – an aspect with Neptune boosts our collective consciousness and increases our psychic visions and intuition to an all-time high.
May 25 – Jupiter leaves Taurus and goes into Gemini, an Air sign, so our good fortune comes in the form of mind expansion, learning, sheer cleverness, and tons of charm. We have wit and social skills in abundance and our curiosity is brimming to the point of overflowing. Our powers of expression through verbal and written means skyrockets. During this time, we must be mindful to not overly speculate (gossip), overly communicate (to the point that we do not take time to listen), or work so strongly with our excited and amplified mental acuity that we fail to trust our intuition or even come up with a good plan before we rush into action.
October 9 – Jupiter goes retrograde in Gemini.
February 4, 2025 – Jupiter goes direct in Gemini.
Katrina Rasbold is a professional Witch, published author, priestess, and editor of Green Egg Magazine. She and her husband, Eric, are the creators of the CUSP spiritual path and owners of Crossroads Occult. She and Dahlia Rose host the popular livestreamed video broadcast “Crossroads of Cognizance” most Thursday afternoons.