Venus Retrograde in Pisces ⚢ 2017

Apr 2–15, 2017

Planets in retrograde are not actually spinning backwards – it is entirely an optical illusion as seen from Earth. Backwards motion appears to happen when Earth passes slower moving planets in the outer solar system. In astrology, this illusion manifests as a “backwards” functioning of the planetary roles. Click here to learn more about retrograde.

A little recap: Venus turns retrograde once every 18 months for six weeks, and this cycle initially started on March 4 in Aries. It is not advisable to make changes to your personal appearance. You may move or question whether you’re “in the right place,” but nothing aligns until we feel at home within. Venus Retrograde will help build and expand this inner home. As much as Venus concerns herself with the interpersonal, the retrograde period is meant, as they all are, to take us inward.

Venus Retrograde in Pisces is seraphic, phantasmal, neither rational nor logical, but yielding, impartial. Pisces cradles the soul, soft and malleable, ready to shift into whatever new form best captures and emanates the light of Universal Love. The fishes remind us that, stripped of our bodies and outward identities, we share the same molten core. What we have in common is belief in a better world. But a profound weight crushes these delicate shoulders. We must unite as a species against the evils of mankind.

On the subject of women’s collective and chronically depleted self-esteem: my friends and mentors – you are magnificent, independent women. You are artists, healers and pioneers. Why don’t we advocate for ourselves? Why don’t we look in the mirror with love, or accept compliments with ease? I have, on too many occasions, and in true fear, obeyed an ugly face screaming that I am not worthy. Let me tell you with resounding confidence that WE ARE WORTHY. This struggle is collective and it has been raging for millennia. Do not give up, do not feel defeated!!

The oppression of women is brought front and center during times such as these. I can think of no other celestial body which so fully encapsulates the power of womanhood and our destiny to rise above the lowliness of patriarchy. Venus Retrograde is, for this reason, an auspicious opportunity for women and men alike to rearrange our alliances and social reality. We can, with courage, set boundaries where there were none. We can and will stand up for ourselves in relationships which breed despair and abuse rather than love.

The feeling here is “all things fated.” Venus Retrograde heralds the end of significant relationships because we no longer have a choice whether to speak or make change – life unfolds as it must, regardless of attachment to outcome or not feeling ready. It is crucial that we act on the impulse to communicate when it arises. This urge indicates that a window of divine timing has opened.

I hope Venus Retrograde in Aries has treated you well so far. We will see Venus in Aries again on April 28. Many themes will carry over into this next transit. One such theme, and the most quintessential, is social malfunction. Conversations may be stilted, awkward, off-key. Changes may crop up unexpectedly in the form of lateness or cancellation. Everything is up in the air, and it’s anyone’s guess how the mood will fall.

Social malfunction does not lend itself well to parties or any kind of social gathering, so I advise against these. Take this time instead to be solitary. One peculiar thing will start happening to you, however. Against all odds, deep in your ravine of solitude, you will be contacted by people you have not seen or thought about in years. Maybe it will be a message online, or a phone call, or maybe you will run right into them while you are searching hungrily for the perfect snack to compliment your solitude. They will be lovers or old friends, or those with whom you have shared some intimate connection, the kind of connection that, even when left for many years, quietly, like a letter in its envelope, suddenly comes back to life with such force and emotion that you may fall willingly back into it, and be sweetly reminded of its profound impact upon you, and moved by the mere thought that it never left, that it can be resurrected instantaneously, as though it were just yesterday that you strolled side by side, merciless in your youth.

One effect unique to Venus Retrograde in Pisces – and this is especially true for those who have significant water in the chart, or who embody constellations ruled by Venus (Taurus and Libra) – is sleep disturbance. I advise planning ahead by going to bed as early as possible in the days leading up to this transit. Everyone will need more sleep, particularly those mentioned above with heavy water or Venusian elements in the chart. This increased need will cause us to sleep very late in the day unless we adjust accordingly.

On April 8, still retrograde, then again on April 21 in direct motion, Venus squares Saturn Retrograde. We last saw this aspect on January 27, the day of the New Moon in Aquarius. This is not a light-hearted aspect. In other words, it is on these days that the real test of Venus Retrograde manifests itself. These are the days on which we must be at our emotional strongest. Otherwise, we may develop the false perception that we are unloved or unwanted, which then causes us to be stiff, reserved, overly sensitive to rejection and lacking in self-confidence. Depression and the very real need for “more than what is possible” (CafeAstrology) prevent us from truly releasing emotional pain, although our pain is perfectly valid. Be kind to yourself! Don’t read into anything!

Celebrate Venus with Pisces Yoga. To ascertain your personal Venus sign, click here.

Mantra:  I love myself