Venus Goes Retrograde October 8, 2010

Venus, the planet of love and beauty goes retrograde in Scorpio, the sexiest of all signs, on Friday, October 8 at 07:05 am UTC (3:05 am EDT, 12:05 PDT).

Sensual Venus goes retrograde every eighteen months for about 40 to 43 days, and will remain retrograde in Scorpio from October 8 to November 7. During its retrograde cycle, Venus will move back into Libra on November 8, going direct in Libra on November 18. A Venus retrograde period usually indicates a time where we review and evaluate the relationships in our life. However, the powerful cosmos energies this year emphasize the need to completely overhaul the way we approach all our relationships.

Venus conjuncts Mars in Scorpio within hours of the retrograde, the Sun and Moon are in Libra and Saturn is conjunct Mercury also in Libra. In deep, dark, secretive Scorpio, Venus intensifies its core energy and needs a transcendental connection -- one that goes right down to the marrow of your soul. This is a time of intensity and there may be wrinkles to iron out in your closest relationships. This is the time to just let go and feel the agonies and ecstasies that come with Venus in Scorpio. As Kahlil Gibran, the poet, tells us sorrow and joy are inseparable. In order for us to experience pure delight, one has to also experience the opposite."Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears." Be prepared for a roller coaster ride of your deeper emotions. Be ready to experience the full spectrum of your feelings, and emerge cleansed -- a wiser soul and better able to forge the kind of bonds which make you know you are loved.Relationships will be the central issue during the next couple of months. 

www.astrology.com

Venus has an 8-year cycle and it starts a new cycle this year (2009 in Aries).  We are also experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime Venus transit that has two parts, one in 2004 and the final one in 2012. At this time, try to think back to 2001 and ask your Self what was going on that was subconscious THEN but you can see it's physical manifestation NOW. 

Venus rules Libra, balance in relationships, and it rules Taurus, proper values; therefore, one of the things you are being tested on during this time, is to identify and define what you value in your relationships - what is most important to you? - what have you been "saying you value" but haven't been acting like you value? - what did you "used to" value but no longer do? - what is no longer relevant to your life at this time? - how have your values changed or how do you want them to change? this is where ANY partnership or relationship is - business or personal - getting in alignment is the ultimate goal with this energy. Congruency is being demanded - you must walk the walk now. PAY ATTENTION RIGHT NOW!! Whatever you are going through is a very deep personal transformation that you may not even be able to articulate or express until some time down the road. You may want to retreat and reflect in solitude. If you CAN, I highly recommend that you DO. You may even feel pressure - to get away ALONE - do it if you can - even for a day or a weekend. Things that are challenging to articulate or understand now, will become abundantly clear when Venus goes Direct. Anything that has been just under the surface will finally surface to be dealt with, Also, when Venus is Retrograde you get to BE your twin for a change. Your natural opposite is 6 signs away from yours (Aries/Libra; Taurus/Scorpio; Gemini/Sagittarius; Cancer/Capricorn; Leo/Aquarius; Virgo/Pisces) so you will connect with your opposite qualities and characteristics which can be so enlightening - pay attention!! To some, recognizing your opposite, and most of the time, hidden nature can be disturbing but it can empower you too. If you are really out of sync with what you truly value - if you are NOT walking the walk that you have been talking, then Venus Retrogrades can be challenging for you.

If you have been creatively stagnant; if you have not been living your truth and purpose; if you have been settling for less than you deserve; if you have allowed distractions to keep you from honoring what you truly value then Venus will shine a bright, undeniable light on that fact at this time and demand that you adjust accordingly. Personal relationships are especially affected. People fear commitment and intimacy and tend to create distance rather than face those fears and create reciprocal relationships. According to Retrograde Planets by Erin Sullivan, "Ideally, it is a time to contemplate what one's deepest, most personal, creative needs are and from what well-spring those needs originate. It is a time to explore one's own needs for love and nourishment and to examine one's capacity to receive both of those life-sustaining forces."

Retrograde Planets are planets that appear to be traveling backward, from the Earth's perspective.The affect they have on us, as humans, is that whatever the usual affect of this planet, now it will 'go the other way' - in the opposite direction of the "norm". The energies are more inner directed or internal - versus their normal outward expressions. And it suggests that we RE-vise; RE-view; RE-everything - go back over that territory, there is something crucial you missed.

http://www.karmictools.com/RetrogradePlanets.html#venus