Venus Retrograde in Capricorn

What you need to know about Venus Retrograde in Capricorn

What is a Venus Retrograde?

During a Venus retrograde, the planet of love, beauty, and connection slinks backward through the heavens.

Or at least: that’s how it looks from our point of view on Earth.

All retrogrades are illusions caused by the different speeds at which our starry wanderers orbit the Sun. Like overtaking a slower-moving car, Venus only appears to be moving backward from our perspective.

Venus retrogrades happen every 18 months, and during our lifetime, the retrogrades always take place in the same 5 signs: Gemini, Capricorn, Leo, Aries, and late Libra / early Scorpio. (If you map out these stations in the sky, it forms five petals of a rose, or five points of a star — cool, right?)

As Venus “slows down” and stations retrograde, its energies saturate the atmosphere. A yearning for union can become especially potent, though retrogrades tend to turn our attention inward. We fall in love with unclaimed parts of ourselves.

Deep Transformation

With Venus stationing retrograde in the sign of Capricorn on December 19th, we’re called to restructure our value systems, important relationships, and stories about love. We gravitate toward connections that are in it for the long haul.

The retrograde journey, which lasts a fabled 40 days and 40 nights, will see the Goddess of love in a state of transformation, as well as invisibility. Its transition from evening to morning star will shift something in our hearts.

First, we must surrender to the mysteries of this subterranean landscape. As Venus slows down, we acclimatize to our night vision. Like the Sumerian goddess, Inanna, shedding her garments and adornments at every tier of the underworld, this retrograde asks us to loosen our grasp on outdated paradigms of love, money, and connection.

Just as the caterpillar turns to jelly in its cocoon, anything not serving us in matters of the heart will be broken down. New desires and longings will also be budding their wings in the fertile dark.

Looking Back

Looking back to the period of December 2013 to January 2014, when Venus was last retrograde in Capricorn, we glean insight into what is being shed and transformed.

Time may be cyclical, but we can choose to act differently when confronted by these themes again. Just as Venus is purified in the heart of the Sun, we too lighten our loads and embark on a new adventure of the heart.

As Venus stations retrograde at the threshold of Pluto, trust that no stone will be left unturned. Shadows that were too painful to confront before will be named, claimed, and released. Inconvenient truths and taboo topics will not escape our unflinching scrutiny.

We may begin to understand how the trauma of the past two years has irrevocably shifted what we value. Our true blues emerge as we walk away from fair-weather friends. In this new Venus cycle, we emerge as the sovereigns of our own hearts.

To learn more, re-read your Venus in Capricorn horoscope and learn about your natal Venus under the Chart tab of the CHANI app.