Venus enters Cancer tomorrow at 9:43 am EDT. Venusian energy has expressed through Gemini for a long time, since April 3. Through its long tenure in the realm of duality, the brightest planet has, appropriately, served a dual role. For over four months, the archetype of values and attraction has been both the background and foreground of events, in the sky and in your life. After today, Venus will move on for a change. If Mercury is any indication, the change of sign will be followed with a change of mind.
The day after Venus’ April entry to Gemini, Mercury resumed direct motion in Pisces. On Wednesday, Mercury stations direct in Leo. The correspondence is striking. The implication is that a change in how you feel will be followed by a change in how you think.
Venus is concerned with feelings and a big part of its ingress to Cancer will be about getting the feel back. During the last four months traipsing back and forth through Gemini, the domicile of Mercury and the airy, mutable intellect, the planet concerned with feelings has been re-tasked. As Venus transited the Gemini Sun, its task was to fuel conscious vision from the foreground. During the eclipses of May and June, Venus was the sensitive background, enhancing communication. The receptive nature of Venus is suggestible, and a good deal of time in Mercury’s realm has left a deep impression about how it expresses in your life. It’s an impression overdue for a change.
Venus is the root of values and attraction. You don’t think your values, you feel them. Any attempt to intellectualize values ultimately leads to empty feelings. Neither do attractions originate in the rational mind. Thinking too much leaves attractions unfulfilled. An ingress to the domicile of the Moon is just what the doctor ordered to restore Venus to its roots.
Cancer is the domicile of the Moon. The associated element of water is the symbolic epitome of feelings. Cancer’s cardinal quality likewise represents a change in pattern, initiating a new season, and with it a return. The Moon takes us back. Stop, slow down, and spend some appreciable time gazing at the Moon. Dare to deny that looking on its reflected light inspires your own contemplation, leaving you something to carry away, changing how you think.
Included within that reflection will be the conclusions of seasons long forgotten, on the other side of now. Reflecting your own experience, Venus will return to a previous season of receptive expression, as opposed to receptive impression, upon ingress to Cancer. That, in turn, will change the direction of your thoughts.
When Venus made ingress to Gemini as April opened, Mercury responded in synchrony. The swiftest planet responded by concluding its retreat into the watery depths of Pisces, returning from its sabbatical to catch up with and pass Venus. Venus, exalted in Pisces and making its move immediately before Mercury’s, seemed to be the sympathetic source of Mercury’s summons. Tomorrow, the circle closes. Following the overdue entry of Venus to where the Moon rules, Mercury will conclude its audit of Leo and set out to catch up with the Sun. Our thoughts will advance in turn.
Just as Mercury will soon return to forward motion, as if prompted by Venus, our thoughts are due to advance, informed by our feelings. Just as Venus initiates a role more whole and resonant with its nature, Mercury will resume progress moving in the direction of Virgo and its own exaltation. Progressing with it will be our objective thinking, in complement to our subjective emotions, rather than in conquest. To work with this astrology is first to allow your feelings to be refreshed and even cleansed by the opportunities that will surely present themselves like a new, more hospitable season. Thus fortified, your weary and wary mind will surely change in kind.
Offered In Service
Len is available for astrology readings. You can contact him at lenwallick [at] gmail [dot] com.
Dear b –
Thank you for your prayers and kindness to me. I appreciate the astrological details you have sent me and will try to understand…..My mind is not too clear these days, there are so many unanswered questions. You and Len have been very kind to take time to send me your thoughts and infomation on our charts.
May your life be full of many blessings…Charle
Dear Len, I really have enjoyed the way you pull things all together. Thank you!
Mystes, I would not thwart your aspirations to become closer to your son. Surely that is a noble aspiration. And I wish it. I am lucky to have a close relationship to my mother. I can’t speak about your situation as I do not know you. I would only state the importance of allowing a certain disintegration. It is indeed valuable if not completely vital. Individuation is a bit more a part of our western psyche and must be nourished. Her lessons and imprints are always there. For the male, he must defend his sovereign person. To face his demons in solitude. He will treasure the lessons you have provided because they act as a light. What he may resent is not finding that space of separation that qualifies his adult manhood, because only he can find it. Only he can penetrate his mind. Only he can hear himself think and feel the truth. But you will and can always be there and it is good for him to know this resource. I think my mom was amazing. But she can self admittedly supply the precursor to wisdom without understanding the archetypal energy of wisdom and its inherent force in nature and the subconscious – something boys are afraid of facing but who all know it is up to them to carve their path from this fear – the inner feral feminine. What I am saying is, I’m not sure it’s a good idea to literally compare archetypal stories to real relationships. If I did as a young kid, I’d think of my mother as a goddess and that all life springs from her into my life. Instead, if I cultivated my inner Aphrodite and then saw her reflected back in Nature, then that is an open door to a new experience of life.
I had much anger – but this is only energy, energy of the heart in pursuit of truth. I apologize for my boldness. I hope you are not offended by me.
Tanto affetto,
Paolo
Dear Charle,
I’m so sorry to hear you have lost your brother. Grieving is part of a process, and as painful as it can be, it serves a purpose which can only be understood long after the pain subsides. You have your friends here who pray for you and your family as well, that this will become an eventual healing of some kind. I’m glad you came to let us know of your tragedy and I hope we can be of some comfort to you through this difficult time.
You asked if your cardinal square had anything to do with this time and I can assure you that no major planets are in aspect to it. However, the Moon in Pisces was opposite your natal Sun Venus conjunction on Sunday as it crossed over your midheaven. It does this every month Charle, as you know. Other planets have been known to “trigger” the timing of the loss of loved ones and Jupiter is one of them. The Transiting Sun was conjunct your natal Jupiter over the weekend and in the third house of brothers and sisters. Also, transiting Jupiter is crossing over your Gemini ascendant now. Jupiter brings understanding.
Transiting retrograde Mercury in your third house has been squaring your natal asteroid Ceres for the past week. In mythology, Ceres taught the mysteries of life and death as exemplified by the plants who “die” and then return to life again. Transiting Neptune has been trine your Ceres and in June he stationed retrograde and is now moving away from that aspect and won’t return to that degree until February, 2013.
Last month the Sun in Cancer did set off the degrees of your cardinal cross between the 8th and the 13th, about the same time as Venus was crossing over your ascendant. Odd how the planets work together at times, as it seems the goddess of love was doing her best to cushion the difficulties that you were experiencing due to the Sun’s transits to your cardinal planets. The Sun represents consciousness and that might explain why your last two weeks were experienced as extremely unpleasant. Venus went on to square your natal Sun-Venus conjunction last week. On Sunday she was trine your Mars in Libra at the same time she was trine the U.S. Moon in the 7/4/1776 chart for 5:10 PM, known as the Sibly chart. Did you know your Mars was trine the U.S. Moon? That Moon represents the “people” of the U.S. and Venus, as Len tells us, “is concerned with feelings”. The country is grieving a terrible loss just as you are grieving a personal loss Charle. You are very sensitive to the moods of your country seems to be what this aspect is saying.
Your brother’s natal Saturn was conjunct your chart’s midheaven and he may have been like a father to you in some ways. However, his natal Uranus was opposite your Mars and his Pluto was square your Mars. You must have had your “differences” as all brothers and sisters do, but I know he loved you and his Jupiter-Venus-Mercury conjunction sextile to your Mercury-Neptune conjunction shows you had a good rapport.
We have all experienced what you are suffering Charle and we can only say that we understand what you going through. I think Len put it very well when he said to you “may you find comfort and grace as well as the grief” at this time. Peace and Love dear friend.
be
Len,
Exquisite, eloquent. And that’s just the writing. Then there are the words of wisdom.
Simply, thank you.
JannKinz
Dear len –
How kind you are – thank you so much for answering.
I felt so blind-sighted by the news that he was in critical care, and he was gone in 2 weeks. His life, in recent years was extremely trying for him emotionally and I had so many regrets and so much guilt about his unresolved issues from his childhood and felt I should have tried to help him more than I did thru the years.
Where does our responsibility start and stop? He became an alcoholic, and I could not help him anymore than I could help the father of my sons who died when he was 50, from alcoholic complications.
I am trying to be calmer now about it and know that he is free from pain and emotional angst.
Thank you for your caring, compassionate note.
Blessings……….charle
prickle: Thank you for your comment. May this time next week find you feeling a lot better.
mystes: Thank you for sharing a very valuable and pertinent perspective on the meaning of Venus in Cancer. May your gentle persistence in wise loving be returned to you in kind.
biren: You are most welcome. Thank you for your kind appraisal.
Lunesoleil: You are always very welcome. Thank you for your kindness.
be: Seriously i love in turn your personification of Venus in the context of this transition. You are such a wonderful astrologer and writer, always generous and persistently cogent.
charle: Please accept my sincere compassion and sympathy as regards the loss of your sibling. i wish i could give you a hug and keep you company to help take some of the weight of pain off your shoulders. Such times go beyond astrology to the human condition of an immortal spirit bringing sacred grace to a mortal body for only so long as biology allows. It is a confounding condition for those of us who know nothing about what it is about except that each and all of us must certainly follow in transition. It appears to be the rule without exception, leaving only the time and the means of transition to be determined. Each and all of us deserve better, but we can only resolve to do better with and for each other. May you find comfort and grace as well as the grief. Bless you, charle.
aword: Please get yourself some rest, and thank you for your kindness.
aword,
Indeed, me you too! I am a little thwack’d tonight, but will contact you soon.
M
Mystes,
My feelings, thoughts, prayers for both you and I are that you are correct; thank you for your insightfulness re Mothers and Sons of Mothers as we have certainly passed critical mass.
xo
Linda
Len,
I Think, once again, that you have given me so many new insights.
I Feel such gratitude to you for these gifts.
Having just completed a few exhausting days of physically moving home, I am beyond having energy to “think” about what’s going on in the sky. Perfect timing then, to contemplate life using Feeling only. I shall Feel then, what I can of what our bright light Venus has to say.
Dear b – I apologize for using this blog, but did not know how to reach you b. The last 2 weeks have been an extremely unpleasant time for me and yesterday my younger brother passed away after having been in critical condition for this time period. Does this have to do with my chart’s cardinal cross? His birthday is November 30th, 1934. thank you if you are able to respond………charle
I’m thinking what this girl Venus needs is some soul food Len. I’m not much of a cook but just being in the sign of Cancer is food for the soul. If it cools down some we could fix some fried chicken, but if it continues as it has been – 95 to 100+ degrees, well she’s welcome to fresh fruit and ice cream and a comfy spot in front of the TV.
Seriously, though I love the “receptive expression as opposed to receptive impression” remark of her crossing from Gemini to Cancer. She’s been mentally taxed what with all this texting lately; four months of non-stop communication with headquarters (the Sun) has taken it’s toll.
At the Libra Full Moon in April she was in early Gemini reporting back on the situation that the Sun and Moon would face at the Solar Eclipse on May 20.
At the Taurus New Moon on April 21 she was scouting out the territory where she would “occult” the Sun in her retrograde phase.
On May 5th while the Moon was full in Scorpio and she was at 22 Gemini, she hooked up with Karma, also at 22 Gemini, to get their filing caught up in preparation for her station retrograde 10 days later. After the retrograde station at 23 Gemini, she would park there and wait until the May 20 eclipse while getting things lined up with Saturn. She would have exacted a trine with him but just didn’t have time to wait for him to get situated. She would be moving slower now that she was retro and wanted to be back to 15 Gemini by June 5 for her meeting with the Sun. That was a really big deal! Instead, she re-scheduled Saturn for the end of July, promising him a perfect trine then.
The rest of June and July filled up her schedule (don’t forget she had an opposition to Quaoar’s discovery degree too) with important research work and other meetings – all of them requiring she stay mentally on top of things. She really needs a break to, as you say, restore her roots. We can talk about a change of mind after that.
be
A Venus more maternal, more intimate it is going to change the Venus who do not like too get involved in Gemini, who prefer word games to the great passions. Gemini Venus likes to play with the love and Cancer, Venus is read blue flower and more easily open his heart….
In my Sun to my Moon sextile and trine yes I love 🙂 🙂
Thanks Len, finally we will vibrate under another guise of Venus…
Beautiful, Len… ‘beautiful’ – as in the effect, the feeling… not the word.
🙂
and this deserves a place in the shelf with other great ‘zen-nings’, like “look at the moon, not my finger”:
“You don’t think your values, you feel them.”
thank you.
Hey Len,
I am *very* eager for Venus in Cancer; indeed the vibe has already started to shimmer in my world. Since it is the secondary ruler of my son’s chart –twice over– I am ready to see my relationship with him transform to a more peaceful and loving framework. Despite the very Western and Oedipal fears that wash over men (esp. young men), their relationship with the Mother is true North, and I am committed to our realignment.
This might be a repeated story, but the philosopher husband took me to see La Luna (Bertolucci’s autobiographical movie of his incestuous relationship with his mother) on our first date. Then we married on his mother’s birthday. The implicit request was that I help him work through what he *implied* were her inappropriate advances.
Now. Think about Aphrodite and Eros (or Venus and Cupid, if you will). Just think for a moment… does Venus seduce her son? No. Cupid, his mother? No. But is he the *expression* of Her powers? Is She the primordial wellspring of his? Think about what that might mean, and how it gets tangled up in Western eros and anguish.
We have had a hard couple of years, this beautiful boy and I… We are living this out, and I watch the transformations with great energy and interest, slowly finding and untangling the knots. This atmosphere –with Sol in Leo and Venus in Cancer — what could be better??
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My “weary and wary mind” is exactly right. I’m ready to be refreshed and cleansed. It’s been a long season.
Burning River: Your generous assessment of my Thursday blog has been received with the deepest gratitude. Thank you.
Before I can get to read and comment on this new article, Len, I want to ask you to read my very late comment to your last post. Off-topic here sort of, but too much on my plate today to do better. Until I can find a cozy moment and spot to attend to your newest for us.
Hug
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