Defining Juno, the “marriage asteroid”
March 13, 2009 by Julie Demboski
“Defining Juno” is the first of a five-part series by Julie Demboski on Juno, the “marriage asteroid.”
Don’t know where Juno is in your chart? Find out how to get it for free.
Juno needs your attention. She wants to show you the way to personal empowerment; she also wants to show you particular weaknesses in partnership. As one of the four main asteroids (the others being Pallas, Ceres, and Vesta), Juno has become an integral part of the natal chart, and we need to understand her, since she has been popularly characterized as “The Marriage Asteroid,” a designation that is only sometimes appropriate or desirable. You’ll soon see why.
With the asteroids, one must start interpretation with whatever the name is based on, in this case the Roman version of the Greek goddess Hera (and there is an asteroid Hera, so in defining Juno, we look to Roman sources and stories). That said, we’ll be using the Greek name for her partner and spouse (Zeus), rather than the Roman one (Jupiter), to avoid confusion with the planet.
Our story begins with the marriage of Juno and Zeus; this was a mating and partnership of equals, and as such they enjoyed a three-hundred-year honeymoon of perfect accord, perfect bliss. A honeymoon occurs when two people begin to accommodate, know about, even mold to each other in a very intimate way, and this is possible because they are alone together. By its very definition, a honeymoon occurs outside the world the couple will occupy every day; in this sense, it’s entirely artificial, and this says something about Juno in relationship: perfection can only occur when the relationship is in an unreal state. This is part of why many believe it is a marriage indicator: we find a “perfect relationship,” find solid Juno contacts, let’s get the license! Hold on — once the honeymoon’s over, reality sets in, and with Juno, it ain’t pretty.
Though the marriage of Juno and Zeus is one of absolute equals on a personal level, it occurs within a patriarchal society, one very similar to our own; even Juno, queen of Olympus and all other gods, is subject to the supreme god, her husband Zeus. The societal expectation is that, even within a bonding and partnership of “equals,” the one with the male genitalia is superior. So, when this pair takes their place within the social order, Juno is immediately “less” — and it’s all downhill from here, for two reasons.
One is that Zeus embraces his assumed superiority, and indulges his appetites without restraint; thus he signals to Juno in no uncertain terms that he has respect for neither her nor their marriage vows.
The second is that Juno does not sit idly by and take it; she strives in all her decisions and responses to empower herself (with varying levels of success). She represents the ability of every female to be in charge of her own life, and this is largely what she symbolizes in the female chart (and this is regardless of sexual orientation). Juno shows a woman the energy that she can wield with ultimate authority. However, Juno isn’t empowered within a vacuum, and this is part of her weakness. She can only measure her own state of empowerment through interaction, though she expresses empowerment from the inside out, through her own attitude. (If we’re seeking a sense of pure power and its expression by the individual, we look to more traditional indicators such as the Sun, Saturn, and Pluto, which may be affected by others, but are not dependent on the individual in relation to them.)
There’s another facet to Juno’s power, and that is the clout she gets via her relationship; she wouldn’t be a queen if not for her marriage to a king. It’s why Juno stays in a marriage in which she is openly disrespected through her husband’s repeated infidelities. We must always be aware that Juno’s empowerment comes with interaction, within society; status matters to Juno, because she can derive personal power from it.
In the male chart, Juno suggests what the individual finds “wifely” and/or appropriate for partnership of any kind. It applies as an indicator of the health and status of the internal anima. And there is a particular phenomenon wherein a man may psychically appropriate the female Juno energy of empowerment; it plays out one of two ways, as a male who completely loves and appreciates women (and so is highly attractive to them), or as someone who sees himself as the end all and be all, with an almost Zeus-ian idea of rights and privilege and no recognition that others may hold energies complementary to his own. (Please see my articles Juno: of Dandies and Dictators and Desperate for Power: Aspects of Rod Blagojevich for examples of this commandeering function in action.)
About the Author
Julie Demboski has been an astrologer for 20+ years and currently resides in Seattle, Washington. View her services, her blog, and her books, Chiron in the Natal Chart and The Astrology of Intimate Relationship, available through Dog & Sunflower Press. Contact Julie at: juliedemboski@hotmail.com
Next in the series: Juno by sign: What’s your power style?
Photo of Zeus and Hera on the Parthenon by bram_souffreau; photo of woman by cambiodefractal under CC License
Subscribe to Sasstrology for the latest articles by email or RSS.
Become a fan of Sasstrology at Facebook.
Follow Sasstrology at Twitter.
Very helpful opening article! I have been using the four Ladies in my work for a couple years now and while I generally do not differentiate between how Juno (or any other planet for that matter) works for males versus females, it is informative to see it done to further refine my skill. I look forward to the rest of this series.
-Ryven
Thank you, Ryven.
I generally don’t differentiate energy effects between male and female charts, either, but in my work with Juno the disparity was striking–and the more I saw this as a female-oriented energy, the more everything else fell into place and made sense.
jd
My JUno is in Aquarius! What does that mean? fear of commitment. oh yes, I have that in triple load
Hi Ermine,
Fear of commitment is possible, though I would think rebellion from the current status quo (whatever that is) is also likely, as is an attraction to (and under some circumstances, rejection of) the unique. Much depends on the aspects and the House placement, as well as the state of the ruler within the natal chart–and of course, cross-chart the possibilities really multiply.
jd
My Juno is in Scorpio, Julie… Care to help and tell me what mine means?
My Juno is Sagittarius, what does that mean? My exes Juno is in Aries
Hi eagle,
Again, with just a sign, what we can say is limited–if you’re a woman, you find empowerment through intensity, depth, looking beneath the surface–relationships aren’t taken lightly at all, everything is examined with a, wait for it, eagle eye! If you’re a man, that’s what you’re looking for in a partner. Juno in Scorpio can be a little much for some, and can be inadvertently destructive, but they carry a quality of courage that can’t be overstated–it’s the placement that can look directly at the darkest aspects of life and not only not turn away, but draw power from it.
Good luck with that! Now, to everyone else who will write and ask me to tell them what their placement means: wait, it’s all in an upcoming post!
cappie chick, please see 2nd paragraph above–all will be revealed!
my juno is in virgo and when i read about it i dont think i agree with it or maybe i just dont understand
Thank you Julie, rebellion is right, it’s me. attarction to the unique is me too. Thank you so much. as loyal as I am to my work, and loyal to my atractions, but marriage and commitment is abit scary fo rme. so it takes a very patient partner to understand that and slowly my trust builds, if unthreatened
Hey Julie,
Thanks for your reply. Juno in Aries and Juno in Sagittarius are equals on a personal level, but when Aries realizes he has power over Sagittarius, he disregards all feelings he had before and indulges in other women not caring about all he had before like it meant nothing? That’s kind of how it felt, like we were soul mates, but then he took it all away, when he realized that I really loved him and would do almost anything for him. Saying he doesn’t want commitment and we had nothing and we never will. His freedom was threatened. I know for a fact that we had something amazing, and it was pure love. I’ve never felt anything like that before. He is a Scorpio. I’m done though. I do miss him, but I don’t think all that pain for the past five months is worth it anymore.
Interezzzzting — my juno is in Sag and i’ve always imagined that were i to hit the the sexual-lifestyle fantasy jackpot and marry a star pro athlete (which is kinda sagittarian) i would be able to tolerate a certain level of infidelity as long as they were peons on the side and i were the queen at home, rulin the franchise so ta speak.
ps- is something i wouldn’t tolerate in another kind of marriage.
Fascinating- my Juno is conjunct Chiron, in Taurus, in the 12th House, and opposite Mars. Not really a surprise- I would love to be married, for lack of a better term, or at least in a serious monogamous relationship, but I guess I didn’t realize just how deep my baggage about it measured. Damn. And I thought my Venus-Mars square was loaded enough. So I guess that means I’m never actually getting married, huh?
Hi Julie. Thanks for sharing your Juno wisdom. I have Juno conjunct Sun so the idea of empowerment through interaction is fascinating because it begins to explain how I love to be in a loyal and committed partnership BUT (and note that it’s a big ‘but’) also need and offer a lot of personal freedom. I’m really looking forward to reading the whole series.
Hello All!
cappie chick: Since when does Aries inherently have power over Sagittarius? In my experience that’s more like two fiery Wills clashing–more alike (and equally matched in energy and intent) than not. You might gain from the answer to the latest relationship question at http://askjulie.wordpress.com
bis: Great ‘work’ if you can get it! Good luck with that!
Lucy: Nope!
aello: You must be empowered to even BE in a relationship; Sun/ Juno is an excellent protective placement for a woman–she’s likely to have the kind of Self-esteem that makes her very effective at contributing to the world (as you do!)
Thanks, everyone!
jd
having juno conjunct saturn here, SIGHHHH. no wonder i can’t be in a relationship. i have to escape i swing bipolarly between feelings of repulsion and adoration, am full of mistrust and obsess over how if we had kids i think they would be unattractive.
For you it’s trap or be trapped, isn’t it, bis? But gee, don’t be so hard on the kids!
Hey Julie,
It was more like a question, I’m not really sure about all this astrology stuff. Thanks for the link I’ll check it out. From what you’re written in your reply maybe it wasn’t the juno that was the problem, it was probably his sag moon squaring his virgo venus.
Can’t wait for the rest of the installments
I have Juno conjunct my Ascendant from the 12th house, in Virgo. It’s the only aspect in my chart that scares the crap out of me.
Well, that’s totally disappointing, considering that I went and found my Eros, which is on the DC opposite the Moon and square the Sun in Pisces. Pluto is also my final despositor, and I have Neptune and Jupiter in the 7th. So if I’m thinking correctly and fatalistically enough, I am the most loving and accepting sex maniac in the world, who’s also destined to die alone? Brilliant.
Hello!
Michelle: Thanks! And that sounds like a strong Juno that backs you up, not something to be scared of.
Lucy: I meant “Nope, you may get married”–though I like your description so much I would hate to see a meaningful relationship ruin it!
I have Juno in Cap in the 7th house … conjunct my descendant. Does this mean I always look for marriage? Or “project” marriage in my partners? LOL ..
I hope not.
O, btw, I was “Tay” (short for Brittanay lol) that commented on your blog about Pluto-juno conjunction !! Love ur blog
I have recently begun a relationship with an old boyfriend from high school. It was a brief but intense relationship then, and we remained friends and very close afterward. We both married and would still have lunch together, etc. but nothing ever happened and I would tell myself that he was just a friend and there were no romantic feelings. I did, however, feel that he and I had an amazing mental connection. Since then we have both divorced, and he asked me to dinner. Once again, I thought it was totally platonic. I was totally wrong. From out of nowhere, this incredibly intense relationship has developed over a short period of time. He has said that he never felt for anyone the way he felt about me. His juno is conjunct my juno within 2 degrees (mine 28 deg scorp his 0 deg sag). Also, His north node is conjunct my north node, both at 24 degrees libra. I know this is very significant, but what exactly does this mean????
Hi Laurie,
From the two markers that you give me, Juno and NN conjunctions, the implication is that your birthdays are relatively close together–so these contacts are not extraordinary when we’re talking about people of roughly the same age; probably pretty much everyone in your graduating class shared these!
You would have to look at the way other, important energies blend to get a better understanding of what’s pulling you together. A mental connection suggests significant contact to Mercury and/or Uranus, strong involvement of Aquarius, and maybe a 3rd or 9th House connection. Your relationship sounds exciting and promising, no matter what the astrology, so enjoy it!
Hi Brittany,
With your Juno placed the way it is, giving away your power or keeping it for yourself might be the real issue.
And Tay, maybe you should go hip-hop with ‘B-tay’–just sayin’!
Thank you both,
Julie
Hi,
My Juno is in Libra, 1st house. Juno has conjunctions with Jupiter, AC and Chiron. Has also trine with Uranus in 9th. As there my Saturn has square with my all 1st house, I live alone, since I came from abroad. What is strange, I don’t care about men here.
What is worse, I have got sicker as well, as I was in abroad (chronic pains).
In my Natal Chart is all (also health) connected with abroad, but I can’t leave from here, what makes me totally finished (I had to leave my job – in connection with abroad).
Bobbie
Love your article on Juno. Mine is in Leo in the 5th house. Would love to have your thoughts on that. I have had very interesting relationships and have always been attracted to Leos.
Hi Bobbie and BB,
More info on placement by sign and House is available in the other parts of the article here on sasstrology.
Bobbie, consultations are available-please contact me if interested.
BB, Thank you!