Brihaspatideva
(The Jupiter Planet)
Brihaspati (Lord of prayer or devotion) is also known as Brahmanaspati and Devaguru
(guru of the Celestials). Brihaspati is the personification of piety and religion, and the chief
'offerer of prayers and sacrifices to the Celestials', with whom he intercedes on behalf of
humankind.
Brihaspati is the guru of the Devas and the archnemesis of Venus (Shukracharya), the
guru of the Danavas (Demons). He is also known as Ganapati (leader of the group [of
planets]), and Guru (teacher), the Deity of wisdom and eloquence, to whom various works
are ascribed, such as the Barhaspatya sutras.
Jupiter (Brihaspati) is considered the greatest benefic amongst the Nine Planets, and only
under unusual circumstances does he temporarily display malefic traits. Indra deva (the
King of the heavens) and all the other Celestials are obedient to his command, respect him
as their preceptor and mentor, and follow his counsel. Those who worship Jupiter regularly
and sincerely lose their worldly miseries can achieve all their (deepest/greatest)cherished
desires. Jupiter is truly worthy of worship, for he is particularly merciful, and his wisdom is
extraordinarily profound. Jupiter has a bigbellied body with a broad, prominent chest and a
voice like a lion's. Jupiter is fond of sweets, he wears yellow clothes and wears a garland
made of yellow flowers. He is expert in the Vedas and all Vedic scriptures and all forms of
knowledge. His mind and senses are disciplined and his intellect subtle. Attached to ritual,
he follows the path of righteousness. His metal is gold and gem Yellow sapphire or topaz.
Jupiter is the Lord of the body's fat.
Jupiter's father was called Angiras, the son of Lord Brahma (according to the Rig Veda
4.40.1). Once Lord Brahma grew passionate at the sight of some Apsaras (who are most
beautiful, supernatural female spirit beings) and lost his seed (semen). He put that semen
into fire and from that fire the great Maha Rishis Marichi, Bhrigu, Angiras and other Maha
Rishis were born. Angiras was so called because he was born out of live coals (angara). It
was the curse of this Angiras that caused the birth of (the greatest superhero of all time)
Shree Hanumanji. Eight sons including Jupiter (Brihaspati) were born to Angiras by his
wife Shraddha. Jupiter's difficult penances earned him his place as the Guru to the
Celestials, and from this position he focused all his energies on advancing the cause of the
Celestials by thwarting the strategies of the demons. Once Venus, (Shukracharyadeva) the
guru of the Demons, went to the Himalayas to ritually worship Lord Shiva for 1000 years so
that he may obtain a method by which to destroy the devas. While Venus was busy with his
penances, Indradeva sent his daughter Jayanti to obtain this method by deceit. She stayed
for many years with Venus as his disciple and servant until he obtained the spell. Then,
when he was about to return to the asuras, Jayanti accepted him as her husband. Because
of his longstanding “familiarity” with her, he could not refuse her request. He therefore
agreed to be her husband for 10 years, during which period both of them will be invisible to
the world.
Jupiter in the mean time decided to make the best use of this opportunity. Disguising
himself as Venus he went to the asuras, who gave him a loving sincere welcome after his
supposed long penances. Jupiter settled in there and during the 10 years that he taught the
asuras, he succeeded in removing the hatred and factionalism from them. At the end of
these 10 years, Venus sent Jayanti away and returned home. When the asuras saw the two
Venuses, they were stupefied, and in their confusion they declared that the real Venus was
the one who had been teaching them for the past few years. The real Venus, dismayed at
their ingratitude, left indignant, cursing them that they soon will be destroyed. Shortly
thereafter Jupiter resumed his real form and returned to the heavens. The asuras, now like
sheep without a shepherd, approached Venus again and begged his pardon. Eventually he
relented and again became their guru, but his curse had already taken its effect, and for
many an age the asuras were too weak to threaten the Celestials.
On another occasion the tables were turned, and it was Indradeva who failed to give the
proper respect to Jupiter. Insulted, Jupiter stalked out of Indra's court and couldn't be
traced. When he came to know of this débâcle, Venus very quickly incited the asuras to
attack and the Devas severely wounded all over their bodies humbly took shelter at the
creator's feet. Lord Brahmaji said “The asuras were weak when they rejected their guru
Venus. Now that they have propitiated him they are again powerful and wealthy. You dare
not try to confront them without a guru. You must get Vishwarupa to do your work”
Vishvarupa was the son of the celestial architect Tvashtri and his wife Rachana, who was
an asura (demon). Vishvarupa had three heads – one each for soma, liquor and food.
Because of his mother (being from the demon race), Vishvarupa secretly made offerings for
the prosperity of the asura race, using the head which drank liquor. When Lord Indradeva
discovered this he rather impulsively cut off all the three heads of Vishvarupa. Now this
created a gargantuan problem, as Vishvarupa had been the guru of the Celestials (due to
the absence of Jupiter). Indra was guilty of one of the worst sins ever called Gurumurder.
One of the effects of this evil karma was to incite Tvashtri to create the gargantuan demon
Vritrasura. Tvashtri ordered Vritrasura to avenge Vishvarupa's murder, and only with the
greatest of difficulties did Lord Indra kill Vritrasura. Since Vritrasura was the son of a
Rishi, his death was yet another very heinous evil karma, which required Lord Indra to
performed many penances while spending 1000 years inside a lotus stalk blooming in a
remote pond in some part of the universe. When after all these misadventures Lord Indra
finally succeeded in placating Jupiter (Brihaspati), and welcomed him back to his place as
the Deva's Guru (spiritual teacher), Indra's rule again commenced, and he gained
ascendency over his enemies.
Brihaspati is described as being yellow in colour and holding the following divine attributes:
a stick, a lotus and beads. He presides over 'Guruvar' or Thursday. Unlike a regular
Sanskrit compound, his name receives two accents in Vedic Sanskrit, brihaspati "lord of
prayer", like brahmanas pati "lord of prayer".
He has two brothers named Utathya and Samvartana. He has three wives. His first wife
Shuba gave birth to Bhanumati, Raaka, Archishmati, Mahamati, Mahishmati, Sinivali, and
Havishmati, his seven daughters. His second wife Tara gives birth to seven sons and a
daughter. Through his third wife Mamata, he has two sons, Kacha and Bharadwaja.
He attained his position as the preceptor of the Devas by performing penances on the banks
of Prabhas Tirtha. Lord Shiva granted him this position, as well as his position as one of the
Navagrahas (Nine Planets).
There is a wide debate whether Kacha was Brihaspati's offspring or his brother. But the
Mahabharata states that Kacha was his brother. All Brahmins belonging to the Bharadwaja
Gotra are believed to be his descendants.
In Jyotisha (Hindu astrology), Brihaspati is the name for the planet Jupiter, which is one of
the Navagrahas (the nine planets). It is also known as Guru, Cura and Devaguru.
Brihaspati is considered to be the greatest benefic of all of the planets. Guru rules over the
signs Dhanu (Sagittarius) and Meena (Pisces), he is exalted in Karka (Cancer) and in his
fall in Makara (Capricorn). The Sun, Moon and Mars are considered friendly to Brihaspati,
Mercury is hostile and Saturn is neutral.
Guru in Vedic astrology is considered to be of the element ether (space) or Akasha Tattva
(i.e. Akasha = Space/Sky/Aether; Tattva = Essence/Category/Truth). This indicates vastness,
growth and expansion in a person's horoscope and life. B ṛhaspati also represents the
balance of past karma, religion, philosophy, knowledge and issues relating to offspring. He
is concerned with education, teaching and the dispensation of knowledge. Humans with
Jupiter dominating in their horoscope could grow fat as life progresses and their empire and
prosperity increases; and diabetes is an ailment directly related to Jupiter. According to
traditional Hindu astrology, worship or propitiation of Brihaspati or Guru (Jupiter) results
in cure from ailments affecting the stomach and helps ward off sins.
Brihaspati is lord of three Nakshatras or lunar mansions: Punarvasu, Vishakha and Purva
Bhadrapada. The following items are associated with Brihaspati: his colour is yellow, metal
is gold and gemstone is yellow topaz and yellow sapphire. The season associated with him is
winter (snow), direction is northeast and element is ether or space.
The Planet Jupiter (Brihaspatideva) in Vedic astrology.
Jupiter is well known as the most helpful, generous and benefic of the 9 planets. His grace
has always been sought by the votaries of astrology. In Sanskrit, he is called "Guru", the
spiritual teacher or the guide. He signifies dharma, the law of our inner nature, which is the
law of creative evolution and selfrealization. He shows our principles in life, our guiding
light of truth. The extent to which one has this can be measured by the disposition of
Jupiter is in one's birth chart. He is the planet that indicates such domains of principle as
law, religion and philosophy. He is a spiritual and ethical (sattvic) planet, which insists
upon the pursuit and support of the good. He establishes our good in life and through his
influence that goodness comes to us.
Jupiter is the planet of intelligence; not intellect which depends upon information or refined
discernment (indicated more by Mercury), but formless intelligence which is goes back to
eternal laws, ultimately to the sense of the eternal itself. He represents our sense of the
enduring and the extent to which we are aware of, live according to, and manifest cosmic
intelligence. He represents the Divine spirit which establishes and upholds even the laws of
nature. He gives powers of expression through solid principles which can produce anything
from philosophies to institutions (not so much art, however, which is under Venus).
Creativity springs from our inner principles, which are determined by Jupiter. He is
expansive and loves to share. Hence his constant delight is in greater unfoldment.
As Mercury tends to show our outer career in life, how we relate to society on a practical
level, Jupiter indicates our inner career, where we really find our personal fulfilment and
what we enjoy doing. He indicates our spiritual mission in life as Mercury represents our
outer expression. With a good Jupiter but without a good Mercury, one may be wise inside
but will outwardly appear unwise. Jupiter does not give attention to detail like Mercury and
so may not allow us to articulate ourselves with clarity. His concern is more with doing the
work right as opposed to explaining how it is correctly done.
Jupiter represents joy in life, joy in living, the positive spirit. He is the great optimist who
always sees the good. In him all sorrow, depression and melancholy is overcome or turned
into a learning experience. Jupiter is the planet of luck, grace, favour, and fortune and so
forth. He gives wealth, abundance, prosperity and success. In the lower sense he gives
fortune on the material plane, for it is the daring optimist who succeeds in the end. He also
is indicative of good karma, unexpected rewards. Those who win at races or lotteries or have
great inheritances usually have a well placed Jupiter in their birth chart. In the higher
sense, Jupiter is the Divine grace which can fulfil all of our needs without our seeking. He
gives religious merit and spiritual beneficence. When Jupiter is with us, all life all the
universe is with us, as he is that cosmic and Divine beneficence. On a physical level, he is
the planet of health. He makes us active in a healthy way and attunes us with the joy of
nature. He gives vigour, vitality and a strong immune system.
On the negative side, however, through the expansive Jupiter nature, when it is afflicted,
we can become overly optimistic. We will imagine the best and not guard ourselves properly.
We will be vulnerable to the deceptive schemes of others. We can overextend ourselves, go
beyond our resources, be overly generous or spend too much. Our speculations will prove
incorrect. We will try to do too much and yet will succeed in nothing. We may suffer from
unexpected bad luck, bad karma, trouble with authorities and institutions or loss in
litigation. Too much of Jupiter in one's birth chart can make us too materialistic, too
enamoured of wealth and caught in conventional values and beliefs. We may become self
satisfied, too content and caught within the statusquo. Jupiter is a fun loving and joyous
planet but when wrongly placed can get us caught in the pursuit of pleasure and luxury
much like Venus. Though the pleasure of Venus is largely sexual, that of Jupiter is largely
of groups and crowds.
Jupiter likes music and can indicate musical talent. He likes shows, ceremonies, parades,
rituals. He can make us into a showman. On a lower level, he like parties and can make us
selfindulgent. His influence can make a good entertainer, with his love of expansive energy
and noise. His happiness is in sharing, even when unspiritually oriented, he will cause us to
drink with our friends and pay for the drinks.
On a higher level, he indicates the priest and is concerned with propriety, formality and
hierarchy. He can make us enamoured of ceremony, ritual and display. Hence in Sanskrit
he is also called "Brihaspati or Brahmanaspati" the original priest or Brahmin. Jupiter is
the great planet of aspiration. It shows our faith in life and can indicate the religion we
follow or the form of the Divine we are naturally inclined to worship.
Jupiter shows our devotion and dedication in life. As such, for the woman, it signifies the
husband. In her chart it will show his nature, health and her relationship with him.
However, this is more true of the Hindu society where marriage has followed family and
religious sanction. For westerners, where marriage is more owing to choice or passion, Mars
often is more indicative of the partner for the female.
IN YOUR CHART JUPITER CONTROLS (IN YOUR LIFE): protection, benevolence,
affluence, fame, astrology, councillors, advisors, religiousness, belief in deities, priests,
teachers, judges, children, guardianships, charity, generosity, contentment, laziness, fat,
expansion, largeness, devotion, faith, hope, higher aspect of cosmic intelligence, fairness,
justice, honesty, financial dealings, foreign affairs, God's grace in this world, honour,
lawfulness, master of knowledge & wisdom, insurance, legal matters, medicine, occult
science, physicians, liver (purification of blood), morality, conservativeness, optimism, peace,
opulence, performance of sacrifices, perpetuation of established codes, philosophy,
pilgrimage, religious vocations, reputation, trust, scriptures, Vedas.
WHEN JUPITER IS BENEFIC IN YOUR LIFE CURRENTLY THEN ONE SHOULD FEEL
THESE EFFECTS: makes one generous, candid, high reasoning ability, proper judgement,
higher attributes of the mind, religious, study of religious scriptures, respect elders and
preceptors, joy, one receives respect and reputation, has progeny, gain of wealth, prosperity
in life, philosophic and philanthropic nature, good conduct and morals, peace and prosperity
and good health.
WHEN JUPITER IS MALEFIC IN YOUR LIFE CURRENTLY THEN ONE SHOULD FEEL
THESE EFFECTS: an afflicted Jupiter in your birth chart will make the benefics given
above negative in your life making one not a moderate rather an extremist, false hopes,
carelessness, debts, disputes, failure in speculation, worry through children, false prestige,
loss by relying on others, donations beyond one's capacity, cheap popularity, unusual girth,
misjudgement, miscalculations, diseases caused by a malefic Jupiter include tumours, liver
complaints, jaundice, dropsy, diabetes, cancer of the liver, dyspepsia, abscesses, hernia,
cerebral congestion, catarrh, inflammation of the lungs, flatulence, diseases of the
respiratory organs, asthma, discolouration of the body, rheumatic fevers, troubles in the
right ears.
Kindly note: Some the information above may portray the Celestials (like Brihaspati and
Chandradeva) as adharmic, but you should know much information that one reads in our
Shastras is totally inconceivable to us mere mortals. To truly understand our Vedic
Scriptures can be quite an effort indeed hence It requires a Guru to explain the intricacies
and the secrets it has in It. Every event conveys some noble secrets in some direct or
indirect way. You have to understand It with one's inner self and not like a novel. The
personalities in our Vedic Scriptures are of course not worthy of comparison to the
characters we come across in a novel. In each personality in our Vedic Scriptures, are there
to convey message(s) to us. But let me state here categorically, when the Supreme
Personality of Godhead Shree Krishna and His devotees like Lord Brahma, Lord Shiva,
Mother Durga, Lord Indra, the 9 planets, and so forth performs an act, it should NEVER be
questioned. Yes, this will not go down well with many so called “newaged” “ I want the
truth” people out there, but honestly what right does one have to question the Lord and his
elevated servants? God can do what ever He pleases and He is not accountable to no being...
BUT His servants are. The Lord has a reason for everything He does, and who gives one the
right to question our Dear Lord... His Lila (pastime) is beyond human comprehension but
we humbly tried to explain a little (with my minuscule intelligence) above as to why the
Lord or His devotee acted in this regard.
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advice. We appreciate that there are variances between organisations and humbly
request that if our views differ from yours that you respect our decision not to
conform to the prescripts of your particular organisation. We remain committed to
spiritual advice which is based on scripture.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this article. We pray that this article
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beauty and remarkable foresight of our ancient Hindu culture. We wish to educate
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topics. Jai Hind... Jai Shree Radha Krsna.
Compiled for the upliftment of Sanathan Dharma
Narottam das & Arjun Nandlal
Email [email protected]
