Venus in Cancer ~ Sensitizing Our Hearts

If you have clear skies look to the west after sunset you will see Venus and the waxing crescent Moon together. Both Venus and the Moon are in the sign of Cancer, the Great Mother, and the sign that the Moon "rules".

In astrology, the meeting of two planets is called a conjunction, which means "join together." This event is what I refer to as the "New Venus Portal" and it opens up the next chapter in Venus's 19-month heroine's journey - an opportunity for our own deepening and maturation as human beings.

As we move deeper into the age of Aquarius, the Venus cycle is teaching us how to honour the feminine principle and the expression of the Solar Feminine through heart-led leadership on our path of purpose.

We are coming in the closing stretch of a particularly challenging journey that was infused with Pluto's medicine and took us "to the bone" energetically with a relentless setup to release, purify and let go of people, places, and things that are no longer aligned with us on our path. Underworld themes were woven into each of the phases and many feel worn out from the amount of losses.

The invitation of new portals is to receive what is moving through our deep hearts. The initiation water sign of Cancer can inspire increased sensitivity, contact with previously hidden emotional needs, and our desire to find or be with our tribe.

I find this to be one of the most powerful times of the month to set aside time for silence, reflection, and being on the Earth gazing at the Sky. The "practice" is one of not doing or undoing and being radically present to our feelings as well as the stories that got imprinted in them.

The heroine's journey is an invitation to rewrite the stories of our inner world and claim ourselves victorious for learning and growing in the face of our mistakes and the patterns that haunt us. Something I've been considering lately as an indicator of maturity is the ability to be kind when others are not. It's so easy to bite back when we are hurt. And the crab does have those claws...

Venus is currently in her Evening Star phase and moving towards her greatest distance from the Sun - she is now visible for about three hours after sunset. Energetically, this part of her phase is about differentiation - the ability to have and honour our own experience while relating intimately with another.

She moved into the sign of Cancer on May 7th and will remain there until June 5th. Venus represents our feminine nature which is our primary need to connect and bond. Cancer connects to our personal stories, our ancestry, especially our mother line.

The Venus cycle is the dance between Venus and the Sun and begins with a special union between them, dubbed a "Star Point" by astrologer Arielle Guthman. The sign of Leo has an affinity with the Sun and Venus in this sign resonates most strongly with the Solar Feminine.

In her time in Cancer and meeting with the Moon at this portal we have an extra strong dose of the Lunar Feminine before she shifts into Leo. She will remain in Leo for 4 months because she is beginning a new 19-month cycle.

At this New Venus Portal (exact at 5:45 am on May 23rd) the creative life force of the Sun has just shifted into Gemini - the sign of changeable air. Seasonally, this is the time in the Northern Hemisphere when nature begins to "buzz" and blossom.

The background energy of the Sun shifted from the stability of Taurus to the mutability of Gemini -  the quest for data collection, conversations, and sharing socially. Amidst these energies, Venus in Cancer seeks emotional safety and may not be keen to say "yes" to all of the possible interactions but to spend time at home beautifying, gardening, cooking, and hanging out with loved ones. Being near and in water is brilliant. 

This Cancer portal is almost exactly opposite the 18˚ Capricorn Star Point that conceived this cycle in January 2022. It's an optimum time for reflection, writing, and feeling the transformation of your heart since that beginning. If you have been syncing with Venus and noting what has arisen in your life at these key points,  you may be getting clear on the theme of this cycle for you. (Look to which house holds Capricorn for major clues.) 

We continue to have a pile-up of planets in the sign of Taurus, one of Venus's signs, which highlights the importance of the Venusian principle of fertility, embodiment, and valuing our organic nature in the face of an exerted effort to separate us from our bodies and pull us more into the digital world. More on that another time. 

Over the next month, Venus will be moving closer to Mars newly in the sign of Leo. You can see him higher in the sky above Venus and the Moon.

It feels like we are invited to have one last drink of our deeper inner waters with Venus in Cancer held in the solitude and focus of the Capricorn cycle before a burst of fiery creativity energy that will carry us into a new frequency for the next 19-month cycle in August.

I hope you get out on the earth and under the sky for some deep time with your beautiful heart.

Love,

Sasha