Since Astrology is based on observing of the Solar System from the geocentrical point of view (from the Earth), sometimes it may seem to us that a planet is moving backwards along the Zodiac. Imagine that you are sitting in a train which is overtaking a slower one. It may seem to us as if the slow train went back, even though we know that's not true. In Astrology such a phenomenon is called retrogradation.
Venus is retrograde 7.2% of its total movement. This means that about 5 times in 8 years it happens to be fictionally moving back. Interestingly, by making those five stops of retrogradation during the cycle, it always creates a magic pattern – the pentagram. This symbol corresponds with the nature of Venus, if it's turned upside down, it means succumbing to the senses (the sign of the goat – the devil), but in it's default positon, it represents liberation from the senses (the sign of the enlightened man – Adam Kadmon). The previous data suggest that about 1/13 of people have retrograde Venus in their radix.
Venus Retrograde in 2013 and 2014:
|21.12.2013||-||31.1.2014||(in Cazimi 11.1.2014)|
The behaviour of a retrograde planet can be compared to the behaviour of a person who is walking with a crowd and they suddenly remember they have forgotten something important at home, and immediately decide to go fetch it. They turn around and try walking the other direction causing chaos. Their absent-mindedness attracts attention of their surroundings. Of course, if one goes against the tide, there is always risk of conflicts and misunderstandings. And since in this article we are discussing Venus, the description will apply mainly for the senses, perception, values and emotional functions.
Retrograde Venus influences the individual and transpersonal levels. It means that people become more introverted and focus on the inside. It's hard for them to express their feelings, which are often very intense and complicated... They often come into conflict with the establishment of the society. That's why people may suffer from frustration and emotional blocks. Evaluation of one's surroundings and their perception becomes rather quaint and atypical. It's often seen as opposed to the cultural or social norms, therefore one may feel lonely and secluded from the world. Concerning emotional life, people tend to act against the generally recognized ethic and moral rules.
It seems like their spirit is forced by the circumstances to develop against the course of the natural instincts. Many individuals start to incline to asexuality or asceticism. Or the other way around. Their sexual appetite becomes hard to satisfy because of their overexcited senses. It's because people need to free themselves from the carnal world. It's often related with some kind of an important life goal in the social, spiritual or artistic area. A creature freed from the primitive instincts, senses and emotions tends to be more objective and open-minded.
Sometimes we read that Venus causes emotional coldness or distance. In fact, it's a matter of supression of the emotions deep inside one's personality. It can be associated with some kind of emotional disappointment, memories of which make people fear to express their thoughts. It's because concerning retrograde planets, one tends to grow more sensitive, self-critical and more vulnerable to the principle represented by the given planet. In the previous article, we discussed Mercury, which is associated with communication and entrepreneurship. On the other hand, Venus represents love, perception and (self) evaluation. Retrograde Mercury made it difficult to synchronize one's thoughts and their ability to express them. Retrograde Venus analogously influences the emotions and senses. There's a shift between what one feels and what they actually show on the outside, because their feelings are often affected by the past or by a higher source. A person with retrograde Venus in their horoscope tends to return to the past in order to compare their current relationships to the past ones. They sometimes also realize their true feelings after it's already too late. Self-evaluation as well as one's own physical attributes become suddenly very important. This excessive interest in oneself may rather negatively influence girls in particular, because they may start to distrust their own feminity.
In Karmic Astrology, retrograde Venus symbolizes the unresolved karma problems in (love) relationships, set of values and senses. It may be because a person has experienced some kind of emotional disappointment they couldn't cope with. Now, the time has come to make amends. Another possible cause of this can be a mission or a life goal chosen before one's birth the fulfillment of which requires control of the senses or liberation from the lower instincts. And last but not least, the point of one's existence could be to make their surroundings rethink the established set of values by showing them another way. The important thing is to learn to trust one's feelings and values and also to learn how to appreciate one's own body.
It's important whether the retrograde Venus is the morning star (rises and sets before the Sun) analogously to the sign of Taurus (2nd House), or the evening star (rises and sets after the Sun) analogously to the sign of Libra (7th House). In the first case, Venus can be focused more on the values, sensual life or the evaluation by means of talent, shared energy, skills and property. In these areas, one may have very specific attitudes which often differ from the general attitudes of the society. The Venus as the morning star is somewhat more spontaneous and social than the retrograde evening star. It's influence may function as an opposite to Taurus (2nd House) and resemble Scorpio (8th House). It may mercilessly get rid of everything that doesn't match it's ideals. In the second case, the attention is focused more on the relationships or self-assessment through partnerships or physical predispositions. This position may function as an opposite of Libra (7th House) or resemble to Aries (1st House) blocked. A person can become solitary, or develops rather individual attitudes to the love life. They are often extremely sensitive about their appearance or the external influences coming from their surroundings. The past love experience may influence them powerfully too. What's more, such a person may be constantly fighting their own instincts and senses (even completely supress them), but if the supression lasts for too long, the emotions may explode bringing powerful destruction.
It's important to notice the secondary directions too, as well as the direct Venus itself. If there's retrograde Venus in your birth horoscope, the year in which Venus turns direct again, will be extremely important for you. It will be so powerful, your perception, feelings and social or love course will completely change. Be careful about the period during which direct Venus (with respect to the direct Sun) changes from the evening star to the morning star. Then the polarity of your feelings, perception and self-evaluation will reverse.
In the Electional Astrology, Venus symbolizes aloofness, mistrustfulness, emotional distance and untypical perception in the areas ruled by this planet. People grow introverted and focus either on the past or on the transcendental. Therefore, this influence can cause problems with cooperation, signing contracts, artistic events, starting love relationships, marriages/engagements, financial transactions, buying/selling, or evaluating the aesthetical value of things.
Note: Here is the list of the dates and degrees of the Zodiac when Venus will turn retrograde in the upcoming years. The first figure is the start of retrogradity with Venus as the evening star (Hesperus). The second figure represents it's exact conjunction with the Sun, this phenomenon is traditionally called "in Cazimi" – in the heart of the Sun. In that case, the influence of Mercury is extraordinarily powerful. It's also a borderline at which retrograde Venus becomes the morning star (Luciferus). The third figure tells us about the end of retrogradation. Venus stops moving for several hours the day on which it changes it's direction back to direct. It's effects become extremely strong.
Mercury Retrograde in 2013 - 2020:
The beginning of in Cazimi and the end of the retrogradation in the GMT Time Zone:
|The Beginning||in Cazimi||The End|
|21.12.2013 (28°59' Capricorn)||11.1. (21°12' Capricorn)||31.1.2014 (13°33' Capricorn)|
|25.7.2015 (00°46' Virgo)||15.8. (22°39' Leo)||6.9.2015 (14°23' Leo)|
|4.3.2017 (13°09' Aries)||25.3. (04°57' Aries)||15.4.2017 (26°55' Pisces)|
|5.10.2018 (10°50' Scorpio)||26.10. (03°06' Scorpio)||16.11.2018 (25°15' Libra)|
|13.5.2020 (21°50' Gemini)||3.6. (13°36' Gemini)||25.6.2020 (05°20' Gemini)|