Why is Jupiter an Enemy of Mercury in Astrology?
In Vedic astrology, each planet considers another as a friend, neutral, or an enemy.
Jupiter is an enemy of Mercury. On the other hand, Mercury considers Jupiter neutral. What is the reason behind this?
An Explanation from Vedic Mythology
It is said that the Moon (who in Vedic mythology is a male deity) had performed a sacrifice through which he had gained immense power, which came with great arrogance.
Tara, a beautiful young woman, was married to Jupiter, who was the priest of the devas (the gods). As the priest of the gods, Jupiter was the symbol of wisdom.
One day, the Moon saw Tara and felt an immediate attraction towards her. Some stories say she was abducted by him, while others say they had a romance, but the result was that Tara and the Moon were together, whether by mutual will or not.
When Jupiter discovered this, he became furious. He tried to get his wife back, but the Moon kept her with him.
With all the power the Moon had gained, it was very difficult for Jupiter to recover his wife by his own strength, so he asked the gods for help.
The devas (gods) took his side, while the asuras (demons), led by their guru Venus, who was an enemy of Jupiter, took the Moon’s side.
The creator of the universe, Brahma, had to intervene, and he asked the Moon to return Tara to Jupiter.
When Tara came home, she was pregnant. She refused to say whether her child was the Moon’s or Jupiter’s. The child who was born, Mercury, was a beautiful and intelligent boy, and both the Moon and Jupiter claimed him as their son.
After much pressure, Tara had to confess that Mercury was the son of the Moon.
Intellect Is Not a Product of Wisdom
Because of this myth, in Vedic astrology Jupiter is an enemy of Mercury. Jupiter does not like Mercury, since he was the son of his wife with another man. On the other hand, Mercury considers Jupiter neutral.
From this story we can also see that intellect (Mercury) is a brilliant and beautiful product of the mind (the Moon). But it is not the child of true wisdom (Jupiter).
Wisdom has to do with the realization or recognition of the individual soul as part of the universal soul.
The mind, on the other hand, is illusion. The illusion that we are a separate, individual being. The illusion under which we live in the world.
Intellect, born of the mind, is a child of this illusion. Intellect is the basis of logic, analysis, differentiation, and comparison. Having a good intellect is a great tool for living in the world. But it is not a product of wisdom.
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