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| 'Transformation' by Maciej Wierzbicki |
Venus Retrograde in
Capricorn: A Practical Metamorphosis of
Values
Still visible in our evening
sky until her heliacal setting in early January, Venus has been slowing down in
preparation for her retrograde station on Dec. 19th. Surrounding that station, Venus is conjunct
Pluto…the planet of Decomposition, Metamorphosis, and Rebirth.
Each time Venus comes to a
retrograde, she is nearing the end of a synodic cycle. This particular Venus cycle began June 3rd,
2020 in Gemini and a new cycle will begin on January 8th, 2022 in
Capricorn. Until then, an ‘elder Venus’ is
releasing her last breaths of wisdom from a relatively difficult cycle. All the while, Pluto is with her…acting as
Death Doula and aiding her decomposition and metamorphosis that leads to her
rebirth as Morning Star.
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| Art by C.H. Thorburn |
This is a very soulful process
we’re all feeling, especially as it relates to our values and our
relationships, but it also intensifies the necessity of releasing that which is
dying, served its purpose, and run its course.
Past relationships often resurface during Venus Retrograde times, as
well as past transgressions in these relationships. This one, with Pluto’s influence, might bring
up some particularly heavy or even traumatic parts of our past to be worked
through. This part of the long-running
transformation that has been happening in Capricorn since 2008 (when Pluto first
entered this sign) may require a change of heart in all of us. And, individually, that will look different
for each of us. But, collectively, we’ll
be seeing a dramatic alteration in traditions that were once valuable to us but
no longer reflect our collective values.
Already, we can see some of
these processes unfolding. For one example,
what once held the derogatory name of Squaw Mountain in Colorado is now being
renamed Mestaa’eahehe Mountain (pronounced mess-taw-HAY) in honor of an
influential translator and mediator in the early 19th century, also
known as Owl Woman. Venus, as the
quintessential feminine planet, often venerates women’s roles in relating,
bringing things (and people) together, and reconciliation. Venus in Capricorn also highlights the crucial
role of the Wise Woman or the Council of Grandmothers who are important pillars
of our society that have often been degraded (such as in the term ‘squaw’) or dismissed
(such as the ageism that plagues our elder women) in modern society. At this time, we’ll see more and more
instances of them rising up to reclaim their power to guide us into values that
are more sustainable.
Venus entered Capricorn on
November 5th, but it was November 17th when she first
entered the degrees of Capricorn that she will soon be retracing through her
retrograde. From that day until December
19th, we were going through our first introductions of the kinds of
changes she means to inspire in us throughout the course of this transition
(which will come to a close in early March 2022).
This introduction has already
brought up some difficult matters of the heart and soul. When Pluto is in the mix, things can feel
heavier, more intense, or more crucial. As
the higher octave of Mars (which has much to do with the will to act), Pluto has
to do with the deeper actions of rebirth that are beyond the will. In other words, Pluto inclines the
transformation processes that will happen whether we are willing or not. It is the inner workings within the chrysalis…or
the phoenix reborn from the ashes.
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| 'From the Ashes', artist unknown |
Beautiful symbolism, yes. But when it comes down to it, we humans are
largely terrified by the idea of losing anything we know well and surrendering
to the life-altering changes that restructure our lives into ‘something
else’. It becomes a crisis, and often
those crises bring us to total collapse before we can begin to rebuild what is
necessary from all that has changed. And
yet, when we must…we must.
We may be in a process of
saying farewell to something we held tightly to in the past, whether it was
good for us or not. Many of us may find
ourselves questioning the longevity of certain relationships in our lives, or
even our own ways of relating with others.
Ideas, concepts, or structures of love, money, beauty, or anything that
we may hold as valuable…any of it could be up for review as Venus slows down to
retrograde and shift our perspective.
The thing about Capricorn (or
any sign of the Earth element for that matter), is that anything that expresses
through Earth is concerned with practicality.
Capricorn, in particular, is an Earth sign that administers practicality
through objective orchestration. The
Capricorn way is ultimately one that works to provide practical changes that
will endure the tests of time. Sustainable change doesn’t often happen
overnight (especially during a year where Saturn square Uranus is the dominant
theme). It is an incremental process that
addresses what is systemic in the roots of a thing, and that requires some wise
and careful planning and implementation.
Therefore, much of the Capricornian change is happening ‘underground’,
so to speak. So that on the surface, we
may wonder if anything is really changing at all. This can bring us humans, who have largely
been conditioned to value both convenience and immediate gratification of our
desires, into worry. The worry is that
the rot that threatens our roots is quicker and more powerful than our potential
to reverse the damage done. But the
Capricorn way is often to be prepared for any challenge…making its way from sea
level to mountain top one sure-footed step at a time.
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| 'Capricorn' from Cyril Rolando's Dancing Zodiac |
These Pluto in Capricorn
lessons have been important for the whole world to experience on a deeper level
since 2008, but they are even more crucial for the people (and the government)
of the United States to learn. This
country was founded when Pluto was in Capricorn (27 degrees tropical Capricorn,
or 5 degrees sidereal Capricorn). Pluto
reaches 27 tropical Capricorn in February 2022 and 5 degrees sidereal Capricorn
in 2024…which is a two year window where the U.S. is building up to its first
Pluto Return, a significant Rite of Passage for any nation.
On either side of this
national Rite of Passage, transmutations (beyond the will of the country) will
happen. It is a long and often grueling
process that leads to a completely new expression of our national soul through
crisis. We have been through a couple
years now of the Separation phase of this Rite of Passage. And for the next two years, we will be
Crossing the Threshold. Then in 2024, we
will be in the Integration phase of this Pluto Return, where we gradually begin
to express the deeper meaning behind this Capricorn change through Pluto in
tropical Aquarius.
So with Venus showing us how
to rebirth in Capricorn at this time, her dance with Pluto is wise medicine for
the resilience of heart and soul through hard times. As we Earthlings dance along with our sister
planet, we celebrate the beauty of these Solstice days we are entering and the shifts
we all must go through to honor our light.
wise words from Alice Walker
Love and Gratitude,
Felina Lune Kavi
P.S. Below, I have listed some of the dates of
this part of the Venus cycle (as Venus transitions from Evening Star to Morning
Star, making her way through these degrees of Capricorn and beyond).
Venus Cycle
11/17/21- Venus first enters
Rx degrees in direct motion
11/19/21- Venus trine UranusRx
(single transit)
Unprecedented
advancements of females. Amplifications
of expressions of ‘strange beauty’ or ‘strange love’ that unites traditional
values with untraditional twists. An emphasis
on the social side of technology.
Out-of-the-box expressions of creativity. Spontaneous and improvisational ways of
relating. An easy flow of unexpected reconciliation
that may only last briefly, but provides something novel to consider.
Global
example: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris
is transferred presidential power for a short time while President Biden
undergoes medical treatment, making Harris the first woman in U.S. history to
become acting president. During this unexpected event, the transiting trine
formed a Grand Earth Trine with Harris’s natal Uranus-Pluto-Venus stellium in
Virgo, and the transiting Full Moon/Lunar Eclipse was conjunct Harris’s natal lunar
nodes.
11/30/21- Venus sextile
NeptuneRx (Part 1: The Introduction)
Opportunities
to engage the heart with the higher octave of the heart. Mystifying occurrences, as if in a dream,
that may pull on the heartstrings. A
confusion of values that can draw people together spiritually or
creatively. An inspiration of creativity
when working together with others.
Global
examples: Honduras elects Xiomara
Castro, their first female president. Dame
Sandra Mason is inaugurated as first president of Barbados, as the country
becomes the 34th Republic in the Commonwealth of Nations. Mass shooting at Oxford High School in
Michigan, USA.
12/3/21- Evening Star Greatest
Brilliance
Venus at
maximum brightness in the night sky.
From this point, she begins to significantly slow down in preparation
for her retrograde station. This gradual
shift intensifies Venusian themes in our Earthly awareness.
12/11/21- Venus conjunct Pluto
(Part 1: The Introduction)
Crisis
of the heart. Dramatic change through
destruction that leads to rebuilding. Crucial
lessons in relating. Things of long-held
value lost or released, making way for the rebirth of our values.
Global
example: Quad-state tornadoes leave a
trail of death and damage in the U.S.
12/19/21- Venus stations Rx in
CAP 27 (Sabian Symbol- ‘a mountain pilgrimage’)
We are
not quite ready for the mountain pilgrimage that the heart desires, we have some
preparation to do first. With Venus, we
will retrace these Capricorn steps to find the Heart Matter we must bring with
us to this Mountain. All Venusian themes
are on high…be it lessons in reconciliation, relationships, love, beauty,
money, or values…and we’ll feel the great pause to reconsider these things leading
up to and through this station.
12/25/21- VenusRx-Pluto conjunction
(Part 2: The Retrograde Revisit)
The
reconnection of Heart and Soul. Reconsideration
of what transpired around 12/11 with a different perspective on what we’re
releasing.
12/29/21- Mercury-VenusRx conjunction
(single transit)
Aligning
the mind with the heart. Expressing ways
of communicative relating. Messages of
love or value.
1/2/22- Heliacal Set as
Evening Star (West)
At her
setting, we say farewell to Venus gracing our night sky as she rests into the
invisible transition between cycles.
This invisible phase, lasting until Heliacal Rise on 1/14, is when the
retrograde pull of Venus draws us most deeply into our inner heart.
1/5/22- VenusRx sextile
Neptune (Part 2: The Retrograde Revisit)
Another
opportunity to engage the heart with the higher heart, but on a more inward
level than on 11/30. Inspired creativity
from within. A mystification of inner
values that can lead to constructive release of addiction or escapism as one
Venus cycle ends to make way for the new.
1/8/22- Interior Conjunction
of Sun-VenusRx (New Venus)
The Capricorn
Venus cycle begins in CAP 19. The Sabian
Symbol is ‘a 5 year old child carrying a huge shopping bag’. In this New Venus cycle, we are tasked with
showing up in more responsible ways.
These new responsibilities require a great deal of effort…maybe more than
it might seem we can handle at first.
But we are stronger than we may think.
In this cycle, we can prove that we are capable of taking on these responsibilities
and contributing our efforts in new ways.
1/14/22- Heliacal Rise as
Morning Star (East)
Around
the time we can first see Venus rise before the Sun as Morning Star (which is
different for each of us, and dependent on our location)…we may start seeing how
our own heart transformations reflect in our environment.
1/29/22- Venus stations direct
(trine Uranus): Sabian Symbol- ‘a
student of nature lecturing’
The
intensification of Venusian themes returns and draws us outward and forward
again to integrate what we have learned through retrograde. While Venus does not fully return to exaction
of the 11/19 trine with Uranus, those themes of unexpected occurrences and
out-of-the-box ways of relating are still part of the shift. We have a fresh perspective now on the nature
of Heart Wisdom, and we want to share what we’ve learned with others.
2/14/22- Morning Star Greatest
Brilliance
Venus is
at Maximum Brightness in our pre-dawn sky.
From this point, she begins to pick up more speed as she moves forward
through our Zodiac. Soon, she will begin
her long descent in our sky toward her ‘Underworld’ Initiation.
2/16/22- Venus-Mars
conjunction in Capricorn
Venus
meets with her lover, Mars, to combine the heart with the will. These are often passionate conjunctions,
where desires feel paramount. There are
two this year, which is unusual. And, in
this one, Mars is moving a little faster than Venus. So he catches up with her, overtakes her, and
moves ahead of her for a few weeks. And,
although Venus is still quite bright in the sky, Mars is exalted in Capricorn and
much stronger at this conjunction. There
is likely to be a theme of taking what we want in a calculated manner. Consideration for others who will be impacted
by such moves is key.
2/24/22- Venus sextile Neptune
(Part 3: The Integration)
Lessons
that arose for us on 11/30 and then again on 1/5 are now being integrated after
revision. The creativity of this aspect may
now become fully manifest. Working with
others on creative or spiritual projects can boost opportunities.
2/27/22- Moon-Venus
conjunction (1st Descending Gate, the Gate of Authority)
Venus,
now descending in our morning sky, begins her long journey through the
Underworld gates…a visible representation of the Inanna myth. This first gate is related to the crown
chakra, where Venus/Inanna gives up her royal crown to pass. This is symbolic of releasing any distortions
we have of our own authority and distortions with our direct connection to Spirit
and our own divinity.
2/28/22- Venus trine North
Lunar Node, sextile South Lunar Node (single transit)
Venus
is in good relationship with what we are collectively taking in as well as
releasing during this time. Soul encounters
with others now are likely and ultimately beneficial.
3/1/22- Venus leaves previous
Rx degrees
As
Venus finally moves past the 27th degree of Capricorn where she
stationed retrograde in December, we are now able to move forward with our
plans to make that symbolic ‘mountain pilgrimage’.
3/3/22- Venus-Pluto
conjunction (Part 3: The Integration)
Themes
that were present surrounding Venus’s retrograde station in December
(particularly the 1st two Venus-Pluto conjunctions on 12/11 and
12/25) return for deeper integration in our lives. What have we learned of the crisis we have
been through? There may still be some
remnants left of that time to more fully release.
3/6/22- Venus-Mars conjunction
in Aquarius
Venus
catches up with her lover, Mars, for one more conjunction…now in the 1st
degree of Aquarius. This time, she
overtakes him…but in doing so, she finds herself caught between the two
malefics (Mars and Saturn) again for another few weeks. While there may be some noticeable
constriction from Saturn’s influence in Aquarius, the inherent passion of this
conjunction is still present. When used
constructively, it can add a little more spice to a relationship or bring more
motivation to creative endeavors.
Additional Coming Transits
12/19/21- Chiron stations
direct in Aries
12/21/21- Sun enters Capricorn
(December Solstice)
12/24/21- 3rd
Saturn-Uranus square
12/28/21- Jupiter re-enters
Pisces
