Venus Retrograde

Venus, the second planet from the Sun and the planet of love and beauty has gone retrograde in Scorpio today at 07:05am EDT, 12:05 PDT. Venus goes retrograde every eighteen months for a period of about 40 to 43 days, and will remain retrograde in Scorpio from October 8th to November 7th, about a month. During its retrograde cycle, it will move briefly back into Libra on November 18th. (A planet is described as retrograde when it 'appears' to be moving backwards through the zodiac).


Venus is the Roman Goddess associated with love and fertility as well as the patron Goddess of prostitutes and the protector against vice. She was known for ruling over peace, love, creativity and sensuality, but She also had a destructive darker side when She was in Her Morning Star phase which outshines all the other stars and planets. She moves into the evening sky in March,low in the west as darkness begins to fall; then She climbs into better view through the spring and into summer. She disappears from view in October when She passes between Earth and the Sun, and eventually returns to view as a “Morning Star” by early November, and remains there for the rest of the year. Hence, Venus in myth as known to create, but She also had the power to destroy.

A Venus retrograde period begins when she is at her most fragile, apparently motionless in the heavens, having almost completed her 18 month journey around the zodiac. When Venus retrograde begins, our feelings may become kind of numb until we adjust. During this period, Venus, is not in a position to receive the light of the Sun; rather, She will be on her own in the dark. From October 8 through November 18, she will be retrograde in the sign of Scorpio, the intense, fixed Water sign, with a brief return into Libra in November. So what does mean to us?

Scorpio, a water sign ruled by the planet, Pluto, the Lord of the Underworld,  brings us the opportunity to journey through the shadow side of our psyche. Life, death, and rebirth are the keywords of Scorpio. It is a time to reflect upon issues related to our relationships, friendships, and our own self-worth...a time for an honest evaluation and healing of past issues, repressed desires, and possible deep-seated resentments with self and others. It there is any toxic energy to be found at the core level of a relationship...even abuse or lack of trust....you can be sure it will surface during this Venusian phase. 

In Scorpio, Venus encourages us to focus more on our true values; that is, those values that many of us may have lost touch with throughout the years. For example, many of us work at jobs we do not like (myself included), live in places and with people we do not love, do not even care for; in general, this means that we have settling for less in our lives. So, we can look to this Venus retrograde period to provide us with lessons on evaluating the real worth and value of people and the things in our lives as well as offer us the opportunity to assess what it is we want to receive and to explore that which will truly make us happy.

Venus retrograde in Scorpio has also been known to stir up some hidden pockets of jealousy, secrets, or even hatred. Think about it. What have you not been able to forgive or let go of?  Where in your life have do you feel you have been betrayed?  During this period, situations may arise that will reveal where trust has been broken, and what you need to do to repair the relationship...if it can even be repaired. Hence, this will be  a great time to reassess your relationships and friendships. However, despite the fact that you may become aware of differences or unresolved issues,  this will NOT a time to act upon things for this is purely a time of evaluation rather than a time direct action. Be careful how you treat friends and loved ones as feelings can be easily hurt during this period.