Drawing From the Venus in Scorpio Vault

When the sign of Scorpio is prominent something is changing from one state to another. As Venus transits and retrogrades in Scorpio over the next four months (September 8 - January 7, 2011), Eros, Mars, the Moon, the Sun and Mercury will also pass through, keeping the Scorpionic state-changing process in the astro headlines. 

Under the astrological lens, we all have Scorpio in our charts, just as we have all 12 signs/energies/functions represented. If you have a strong Scorpio/Pluto contingent represented by planets, points, transits or aspects in your natal chart, the transformational changes in state will be ongoing and a much stronger, deeper theme in life - relating to a longer-term process of pressurizing and purging, tending and melding to continually wrest something truer and more to our soul's liking for growth and divine alignment from the elements with which we have to work on this planet. 

Wherever Scorpio lies in your chart is the area that will be undertaking this alchemical transformation over the next four months. With Venus, Eros and Mars involved, it is coming about through alchemical changes in relationship and relationship dynamics. The way we relate is ready to change. This especially involves underlying male/female and masculine/feminine energetic exchanges and dynamics, as well as money, value, self-worth, beauty and needs - especially emotional and sexual needs. 

Certain figure eight energy dynamics we've been ingrained into in the past must now be re-routed. Certain crystallized emotional pathways and roles we've been conditioned to take - or have allowed ourselves to be placed in again and again for the convenience of others - must be shed through conscious effort and use of will. Certain attractions and relational tracks we've taken again and again that prove not to meet our deepest needs must finally be moved beyond. The societal concept of relationship in general, especially love partnership, is undertaking a massive maturation process with Saturn's transit of Libra. 

As a culture, North America has a very juvenile idea of what love and partnership mean along with an often energetically irresponsible use of sexual energy, reinforced through media. As Saturn digs in in Libra, Neptunian-illusory versions of love relationship, beauty, money, sex and what our needs really are within relationship are dissipating quickly. As a culture, we're being forced to grow up quickly around these concepts. But after the initial sting, reality within relationship will become much more attractive and much more deeply sexy than facade versions we've been accepting and reinforcing. This is how we get to the true relational power we can wield together for grandscale collective change. 

These themes are hinted at now as brave warrior woman Pallas Athene, out way in front of the pack in Scorpio for the past nine months, prepares to square Neptune-Chiron in late Aquarius at the end of this month. 

Pallas is wielding her etheric sword in Scorpio and will puncture wounding illusory bubbles, many of which were pumped up and reinforced during the Aquarius triple conjunction of Jupiter, Neptune and Chiron May-July 2009. Neptune and Chiron have retrograded back to that degree. Now, as Pallas disconnects us from ties to the manipulative Neptunian illusions/delusions that can so easily be our downfall, we can dissolve them and come back to Earth - which is the truly healing path in the long run. Clearing them away is a process, however. Isn't it always? Pallas leads the way, but the themes grow in intensity October through December, coming to a head at various times during the Venus retrograde as the Moon, Mars, Eros, the Sun and Mercury also square Neptune-Chiron in late Aquarius. Especially feisty is a time period around October 22 when we power through the illusions with sheer strength of committed will as Mars-Eros square Neptune-Chiron. 

There is great healing potential through relationship with this Venus retrograde, but only if we're masterful with the energy, refusing to cheapen, dilute or downplay our experience as human beings at this time on this planet. Refusing to fall for the old tricks, the old detrimental attractions and the old plays on our hopes and dreams and the way we wish things were. 

To fortify ourselves for the journey ahead, I thought I would draw on some information previously posted since Mercury is retrograde in Virgo (going back over previous work). I sometimes find it fortifying to go back over pertinent information ahead of a big transit. 

In addition to a couple recent posts on the Venus retrograde ("Venus Trines Neptune-Chiron and Enters the Retrograde Shadow at 27 Libra" from September 2 and "Venus, Eros and Mars in the Via Combusta and Karmic Love Cleansing Through the Alchemical Fires" from August 25), here are some older excerpts: 

 A post from the second last time Venus transited Scorpio (September 23-October 18, 2008): "Venus in Scorpio, I Love Your Hardcore Ass! And Yet, You Make Me Want To Die...," October 7, 2008. 

"...we're the people who can never deny the dark and twisted elements of human experience. We see through the glossy, personality veneer right to the soul, right to the denied parts that people try to cover up and pretend don't exist. We see through the song-and-dance right to the hidden motivations of each individual we come into contact with. We know what they want from us and see the ways they're not being straight about getting it... Unlike other people, we can't pretend we don't know about this stuff. We can't pretend that we don't know you're trying to manipulate us. We can't pretend we don't see you doing the wrong thing and getting rewarded for it, gaining power from it. We can't turn a blind eye when we see you sucking other people dry and using their energy for personal gain... 

This is also why most Plutonic/Scorpionic-types can't stand the current "everything has to be happy, happy and positive" propaganda in the pseudo-spiritual circles. Scorpio knows negative and positive, light and dark, co-exist. They are yin and yang. To deny the dark and negative is to deny the realities of life. And it's this denial that actually gives the dark free rein to come out in ugly, twisted, unconscious ways - ways that can then be even further denied. 

When the masses insist that the dark doesn't exist, or that it doesn't exist IN THEM, it leaves a disproportionate amount of dark and ugly for the people who can't refuse its existence. In other words, it's just not fair, not balanced, when people refuse to accept and integrate the reality of light and dark co-existing. When people refuse to take responsibility for conscious awareness of the darker aspects of life and self, they leave a very skewed reality for those who know otherwise and can't bury their heads in the sand." 

And a post from the last time Venus transited Scorpio (November 7-30, 2009) "It's Been a Long Time Coming...And It STILL Ain't Here!" November 15, 2009. The Moon was conjunct Venus at the time of this post, just as it will be September 11. 

"The Moon in its dark phase came together with Venus this morning. A conjunction of the feminine planets, merging forces in the deep, dark sign of ancient soul knowledge, Scorpio. Feminine strength and its raw, powerful beauty - wounds, scars and all - holding its position as Saturn in Libra and Pluto in Capricorn square off in the first of three closing squares. Holding its position as the Old School Masculine believes it's divvying up the world and serving it on a silver platter to its cohorts at the top of their man-made pyramid-scheme hierarchies. Dividing it into dollars and cents, euros and yuans, rupees and dinars. 

All the raw, soul-deep Scorpio is squaring the triple conjunction in Aquarius and trining Uranus Rx in Pisces. Eyes on the future, eyes on the future is the constant refrain. But what about now? And what led up to now? It's been a hurtful trip to this Earth for many of us. A long succession of hurtful trips through the lineages. And we're supposed to believe a change is coming. That it's almost here. After lifetimes of dirt in our eyes and salt in our wounds, after being ground down and ground down until we barely had the strength to go on. After having the faith diminished to the tiniest pinprick of candlelight. After having what's right and good punished and abused and mocked for so long. 

Scorpio is intuition. The soul knowledge we kept inside and carried with us through generations like the most valuable of family heirlooms. Like the best china or lace or silver or pearls. Because it is the most valuable family heirloom. 

And we agreed. No, we'll never forget. We'll never give up. We'll continue despite derision and opposition and every dirty trick in the book. We'll use that derision and opposition and all those dirty tricks to get better and wiser and stronger and more effective. Until the change is here. Until we can see it with our own eyes and hear it with our own ears and taste it with our own tongues. And everyone who kept that promise, who kept his or her soul close, who protected the connection and the knowledge above all else and fought for that right in others, knows the struggle. 

We know it's the only battle worth fighting here on this beautiful little planet. 

Here's Beth Hart, an Aquarius Sun, singing about the real change - not the co-opted Obama-fied version: Beth Hart's A Change is Gonna Come 

It's an old song written by Sam Cooke that has been covered many times, but her version really captures the feeling of this Scorpio square to Aquarius and trine to Pisces to me. She's singing about all the times our hearts have been broken because the change didn't come. The sweet, child-like hope we had for it that was crushed so many times. And the times we went out on a limb for what was right and good and were left hanging because what was supposed to be there to support us wasn't. And she's singing about the never-say-die resolve. The sheer strength of will of what is right and good. The power of soul truth. And the love that is so strong it keeps us getting back on our feet to try again...and again. We can be thankful for the particular brand of Venus in Scorpio love here because with it, the heart has been broken and betrayed so many times that it won't be fooled again. Venus here is not an easy sell. Glossy words and social charms will never impress. Only the real change will suffice." 

From "Let's Be Thankful for Mercury Retrograde in Taurus Right Now," April 26, 2010. This also talks about the dynamics of a Scorpio Moon, which we will be experiencing as precursor to the Venus in Scorpio retrograde this Saturday, September 11. 

"The Moon wants to hold on, but Scorpio knows that to do so is death - at least soul death. So we have to be gentle but skillfully ruthless with any ways we've been conditioned to dish out or accept subtle mistreatment, severing ties to energetic dynamics that will never truly nourish us. There are themes of emotional deprivation/starvation here - and of fighting our way out of that and into truly nourishing territory. Psychic surgeon Scorpio, cutting away whatever snuffs us out emotionally so that the truly vital connections can strengthen and grow. It's a precise application now, more often working with people and relationships rather than simply cutting ourselves off from them altogether."