Jupiter is about to enter Gemini
Jupiter changes signs roughly every 12 months. It’s a sort of fairy-god-parent / Santa figure of the planets, and signifies abundance, expansion, wisdom, luck and opportunity. According to traditional astrology, Jupiter is one of the two benefic planets in the cosmos, so can generally be understood as positive, especially for those born during the day. This coming Sunday the 26th of May at 11:14am NZT, Jupiter will be leaving Taurus and entering the mutable air sign of Gemini (until June 10th of 2025).
A personal story of the last time this happened
The last time Jupiter was in Gemini was June 2012 – June 2013. I’ve been looking back at that period in my life, and boy was it busy.
Gemini is in my 9th house of long – distance travel and higher learning, so naturally it was during this period that I directed a backyard production of Hamlet, juggled 3 – 4 jobs, and travelled from New Zealand to the US and UK to audition for drama schools. It was during this period that I relocated to London. It was during this period that I got accepted onto a Masters program in Glasgow.
My Mars is in Gemini – so I was also experiencing Jupiter transiting my natal Mars. According to Robert Hands ‘Planets in Transit’ – Jupiter conjunct Mars is “a very exuberant transit, with high energies…you have much more initiative than usual, and you can accomplish a great deal by yourself.”
And this was true, I was taking a lot of initiative. But Mars can also be inflammatory. And it was during this period that I was at my most bold and courageous, whilst simultaneously dealing with intense stress induced eczema all over my body. I was putting myself out there, and it was vulnerable in ways I can’t begin to explain.
It was a time of great activity and putting myself out there, but it also included a moment when I had to decide. I had to pick where to study. I had three options and I had to choose one. And while it felt like a lot of pressure, it was actually easier than I expected. When I took the time to tune into my gut, it was clear where I felt most at home, and most drawn to.
Doubt, Faith and decision making
In light of this transit, I’ve also been thinking about doubt.
There’s a great section in Jenny Odell’s excellent book, ‘Saving Time’, in which she writes about seeing someone ahead of her, a figure in darkness, and not knowing if it’s a human or an animal. She writes:
Eventually, the figure turned out to be a person wearing a large cloak, now disappearing around a shrubby corner. In that brief pause, I had experienced doubt, and doubt had increased my sensitivity to everything. The etymology of the word doubt contains the Proto-Indo-European root dwo, for “two,” with the later Latin dubious meaning “of two minds, undecided between two things.” Though the temporarily unknowable figure had stopped me in my tracks, preventing forward movement, doubt is not stillness. Something grows in that cut, even if it's collapsed in the very next moment.Saving Time by Jenny Odell
This moment of uncertainty – when multiple things could all be true until we know more – this feels very Gemini to me. And Jupiter is a planet of expansion. So the volume on this multiplicity is about to be turned way up.
Gemini is a mutable air sign. It’s the sign of the twins, of twoness, of ‘both and’. Gemini can see things from all angles and perspectives.
Air signs are social and intellectual. Mutable signs are unboundaried and flowy. This is why Gemini is often illustrated as a cloud of butterflies – they love to socialise, they’re super adaptable and they’re always energised by ideas.
Gemini is also ruled by the messenger/trickster planet of Mercury. And, like its fellow air sign Libra, it can struggle with decision making. It can be scattered and uncertain. One of Jupiter’s more spiritual significations is faith. So this dance between faith and doubt, certainty and uncertainty, this is the tension that I’m anticipating.
Jupiter is expansive and abundant. Entering the sign of Gemini could trigger many different things.
Think: all the tabs open in your browser. Think: all the invites to all of the parties on the same night. Think: all the love interests getting in touch at once.
Jupiter is also in detriment in Gemini, which means that it struggles in the style of Gemini. Alice Sparky Kat has a great article about the philosophy of Jupiter in Gemini which you can read here. They explain Jupiter being in detriment in Gemini by writing “Simply put, Jupiter in Gemini doesn’t think the way other people want it to.”
This is why so many astrologers I follow have been emphasising the potential for overwhelm, distraction and scattered energy.
There’s also a kind of subversive wisdom to be discovered from planets when they’re in their detriment or fall. The planet shows up in a paradoxical way, or is required to get uncomfortable, and a lot of growth can come from discomfort. Jupiter in Gemini, by not thinking the way other people want it to, is going against the grain. For some this can absolutely trigger doubt, especially self doubt.
And ALSO, doubt or uncertainty, is not something that’s in the way of decision making. It’s PART of the natural process of decision making. To be uncertain about what to choose indicates that you have many worthy options. Let’s not lose sight of the fact that an abundance of options can be a joyful thing, a thing to be grateful for. I once remember being chastised for complaining about having too many ideas. Not everyone has that many ideas, I was reminded. Of course we can be overwhelmed by choices, but how wonderful to have so many.
This is the dance we’re being invited into with this transit, a dance of certainty and uncertainty, faith and doubt, a dualistic dance where all perspectives have room to express themselves.
And there’s a balancing act required too. I don’t want to be a killjoy and advise cold hard decision making in the face of so many sparkly possibilities. But I also don’t want to deny how distracting this transit could be for some folks. So, in the dualistic nature of Gemini, I suggest we allow for both. We make room to wonder at the abundance of fireflies, and we take the time to sift through our options and circle back into our guts.
If the last transit was anything to go by, I have no doubt that we’ll find inspiration in the process.
TLDR:
Jupiter will enter Gemini on Sunday the 26th of May at 11:14am NZ Time, and it has the potential to be a really joyful time for some folks. Check out where Gemini is in your chart, what house it’s in and whether it contains any planets or points. I also recommend reflecting on what was going on in your life June 2012 – June 2013 as a reference point.