Jupiter-Pluto conjunctions

I’m currently doing research on Jim Jones, the infamous leader of People’s Temple. Jones led his 900 followers in a mass suicide at Jonestown, Guyana, in November 1978. This post is about one feature of Jones’s horoscope.

In his natal horoscope, Jones had a conjunction between Jupiter and Pluto (A conjunction is an aspect,  where two (or more) planets are close together in the horoscope – so their energies combine).

Jupiter is about wealth, expansiveness, confidence. Pluto is connected with power, force. Combined in a horoscope, this signature often indicates someone who is a big risk-taker.  Jupiter-Pluto often appears in  horoscopes of very wealthy people.
For instance, Bill Gates has this aspect (in his 2nd house, of money!), So does Rupert Murdoch and Warren Buffett. And so did one of the wealthiest people who ever lived, John D. Rockefeller.

And Australian media magnate Kerry Packer has Jupiter-Pluto in opposition aspect (the two planets are about 180° apart) in his horoscope. I also know someone with the conjunction. They once ran three hospitals, and have a gambler’s approach to risk. And he is comparatively wealthy.

Jim Jones has his Jupiter-Pluto conjunction in his 7th house. The 7th is about “other people”, “open enemies” (that is, adversaries I can see … the 12th house denotes hidden enemies – ones I can’t see) and partners.

So we could say that on one level Jones saw his “enemies” (perceived or real) as plentiful (Jupiter) and powerful (Pluto). And this is true. He was forever fearful that the FBI, CIA or other organisations were after him and his organisation. He also used these fears as propaganda at Jonestown in Guyana, scaring his followers into believing they were “under attack” from various enemies, thus increasing loyalty to Jones.

On another level, Jupiter-Pluto is about wealth. Jones’s wealth derived from contributions from his followers (7th house), many of whom signed-over their land, welfare checks and other assets to People’s Temple.  The organisation had many millions of dollars in the bank by the time of the events of November 1978.

There will no doubt be many people with Jupiter-Pluto aspects in their horoscopes who are NOT wealthy, famous or infamous. I think the point is that if you have a horoscope which points to power and wealth, having a Jupiter-Pluto “hard” aspect (0°, 90°, 180°) in your horoscope certainly helps!

References:
Jim Jones horoscope data from astrodatabank.com;
Raven (book), by Tim Reiterman.