Venus Retrograde 2021
What Is Venus Retrograde?
The Goddess of Love turns naughty at the Winter Solstice in 2021, as her planet Venus appears to move backward through the zodiac, known as her retrograde period. This optical illusion of a planet moving backward occurs due to the angular position of the planet with respect to Earth, and the fact that both Earth and the planet are revolving around the Sun. Each planet goes retrograde according to its own predictable schedule, with Venus going retrograde approximately every 18 months. Venus appears to move backwards for about six weeks, and then the retrograde period ends as she appears to move forward again through the zodiac.
Behavior that Venus Retrograde Inspires
When Venus is retrograde, former lovers may resurface in your life, or your current beau takes a shine to a new love interest, or maybe you meet a fascinating new love interest. Venus retrograde reeks of lost love, unrequited love, unresolved romances, and love triangles. It is a time of complications in relationships, when the past intrudes upon the present, whether that be as the reappearance of a former lover, or nostalgia for past loves, or the surfacing of repressed yearnings and psychological issues. This is a time when some people attempt to reconnect with people from their past, whether those people were former lovers, estranged family members or friends, or even someone who owes them money!
Venus also rules legal proceedings, and this particular Venus retrograde period may see lawsuits filed or appealed; either way, prepare for a long slog if pursuing justice at this time. It is a particularly intense Venus retrograde for going through a divorce, or seeking to recover damages from someone with more power than you.
Hence, Venus retrograde reeks of karma, especially romantic karma. And there is plenty of that to go around during the 2021 Venus retrograde period, as Venus is in Capricorn, the sign ruled by Saturn, the taskmaster of karma.
One of the greatest benefits of Venus retrograde is the chance to get closure on past relationships. She brings former lovers back into your life in order to give resolution, untying thorny knots of frustrated devotion and freeing you to follow your wild heart. If you find yourself pining for the one who got away, before you send that fateful text, read the individual forecast for your sign!
Impact of the Previous Venus Retrograde of 2020
Venus formed a 90° angle to Neptune (referred to as a square aspect) when she made an about face in May 2020. Neptune rules the spread of disease, misinformation, deception, fantasy, and spirituality. The Venus-Neptune square during the summer of 2020 indicated there would be a complete disregard for reality, and that was certainly so, as people in most countries chaffed under social distancing and masking rules, and lockdowns implemented to stop the spread of covid-19. As a result, covid-19 became a pandemic, and was handed the circumstances to recreate itself in new variants on a silver platter by humanity.
Many falsehoods were also handed the same opportunity, and, just like covid-19, have become entrenched. Stock markets around the world displayed the same total disregard for reality, as they climbed to new highs, with excess capital sloshing around in the system due to the combination of government stimulus checks, bored and homebound workers, and vapid misinformation spreading like a toxic cloud – all courtesy of Neptune. (For a deeper look at how too much capital in the global markets invariably leads to financial crises, see my book “The Dragon’s Debt”.)
The 2020 Venus retrograde was characterized by wishful thinking and irresponsibility. The 2021-22 Venus retrograde will be characterized by two things: a jarring wake-up call about economic reality which demands responsible behavior; and manipulation of those in a compromised position by those with power over them.
Venus Retrograde in Capricorn 2021-2022
Moving retrograde through a sign, Venus will accent the peccadilloes of that sign in love and finances. Her expression will be influenced by the planet ruling that sign.
Capricorn is associated with worldly status and ambition, large organizations, business, government, conservative policies and politics, and traditional social structures.
Capricorn is ruled by Saturn, who was the father of numerous Roman gods and goddesses, whom he also liked to devour – symbolizing his association with time and decay. Saturn also indicates restriction, elders, and conservative attitudes in general.
Venus is associated with love, beauty, pleasure, abundance. But in the time frame of the 2021-2022 Venus retrograde, she is under a heavy cloud, restricted from enjoying herself, constrained to behave herself in ways that just aren’t fun. Venus in Capricorn is serious about emotional exchanges and relationships. She may come across as emotionally distant and unaffectionate, but she will be stable in her attraction. Venus in Capricorn desires stable, concrete expressions of another’s love and devotion. She is not so much interested in flirtation or playing the field; she wants to know if a suitor is serious and willing to commit himself. If she seems to be playing hard to get, she is - and she isn’t. She’s hard to get, and she’s not playing around, she means it.
But during this sojourn of Venus through Capricorn, she finds herself blocked from continuing her journey through the sky by Pluto. She may even be coerced into cooperating with him.
Once Venus is moving direct again, after January 29, 2022, Mars (who engaged in a secret love affair with Venus, the wife of his boss, Vulcan) is in fast pursuit, just behind her in the zodiac in early Capricorn. Venus and Mars are cozying up to each other throughout February, and they are conjunct twice: first on February 16, at 17° Capricorn, when Mars catches up to Venus and whizzes right on past her! – for Venus is still dazed and getting back on her feet from her retrograde period.
Venus, Mars and Pluto are in very close orb of conjunction on March 2, when all three planets are at 27°-28° Capricorn. Very important agreements can be finalized on this day, as Saturn, the domicile ruler of Capricorn, is conjunct Mercury at 19° Aquarius on the same day. If you decide to make or dissolve a commitment on this day, be sure that you’re seeing things clearly and that it’s really what you want, as the change will be hammered in stone.
Due to the fast approach of Mars to Venus, and their meet-up in the steamy presence of Pluto, be sure to keep your wits about you and do not succumb to a lover’s fast talk or your own fantasies.
Venus catches up to Mars on March 6 and they conjoin again, at 0° Aquarius. This triggers the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction of late December 2020, which occurred at the same degree. This will affect global and commercial alliances. It also adds drama to any generational conflict.
Venus Out of Bounds – What It Is and the Behavior It Inspires
Venus is out of bounds prior to her upcoming retrograde period, a term referring to her declination, which is her distance from the equator as measured on the celestial sphere. A planet is out of bounds when its declination exceeds the maximum declination of the Sun in its apparent movement around Earth; i.e., the maximum angle between the equator and the ecliptic, which is the apparent path of the Sun around Earth. That maximum angle is 23°30'. Venus will exceed that angle for a short time in 2021, from October 11 to December 7, just prior to her retrograde period.
A planet that is out of bounds is a planet whose expression is out of whack, usually by going to the extreme of the types of behavior which the planet represents. In the case of Venus, which represents love, sexual intimacy, sexual identity, self-worth, one’s possessions and finances, social graces, and artistic interests and abilities, her associated behaviors are displays of affection and love, giving and receiving gifts, acquiring and spending money, sexual activity, possessiveness, jealousy, flirtation, promiscuity, charm, persuasion, gossip, and enhancement of personal beauty.
When Venus is out of bounds, she can be enormously creative, introducing new artistic movements or original trends. She uses resources in unusual ways to create beauty and promote harmony. She can be extremely charming, an eccentric trendsetter, and a brilliant manager of her own or others’ public image.
But she may also engage in inappropriate displays of affection, chase shamelessly after a love interest, openly flaunt sexual taboos, keep multiple lovers on the string, flirt outrageously with those whom she knows are unavailable (and in front of their partner, no less), exceed spending limits with total abandon, con others out of their hard-earned savings, or be a cunning psychological manipulator.
Thus, if you meet a new romantic interest or must negotiate about money during the Venus out of bounds period, realize that the situation will be exaggerated, and subject to change once Venus gets back to her usual balanced self. But as Venus goes retrograde shortly after she leaves the out of bounds period, you may be entangled for longer than you think.
Venus and Pluto in Capricorn, and Saturn-Uranus Square
Venus and Pluto are conjunct in Capricorn when Venus turns retrograde on December 19, 2021. Capricorn is ruled by Saturn. Saturn is currently in Aquarius, and is square (separated by a 90° angle as viewed from Earth) Uranus in Taurus. Underlying the psychological manipulation and sexual overtones of the Venus-Pluto conjunction is a standoff between the responsibilities incurred in the past (Saturn) and the yearning for an independent future (Uranus).
As the ruler of Capricorn, Saturn exerts much influence over Venus and Pluto, coloring their interaction. Saturn is the cold slap of reality for each of us, meant to teach us lessons for our own good, for the good of humanity, for the progress of civilization. Saturn puts restrictions on your actions and obstacles in the path toward your goal, to toughen you up and get you to take action on your predicament. Saturn’s power is strongest when he is in the signs of Capricorn and Aquarius, as he is the ruler of both. Though Saturn is the traditional ruler of Aquarius, Uranus is the modern ruler.
Uranus is the king of the unexpected. His mission is what tech titans like to call “creative destruction” but it is really a case of Uranus losing his temper with the stagnation of the status quo, those boring project meetings, and kicking the table over, leaving the mess of spilled drinks for someone else to clean up (he’s too important to do grunge work). But the boooorrrrring meeting will be over!
So, if you choose to invoke Uranus in your struggle for creative freedom, just remember to be careful what you pray for. You can be sure of one thing: the result of his impetuous, imperial behavior will blast the doors open and let the sunshine and fresh air into mental rooms that really should have been invaded years ago by cats zipping around on Roombas. You will feel lighter, inspired, energized, and will actually revel in your new circumstances, once you get the floor mopped up.
As Uranus was the father of Saturn in ancient myth, the Venus retrograde configuration includes a generational standoff between these two giants. Many people will find themselves as pawns in a fierce competition between two authoritarian figures in their lives. This could be on a personal level, but just as likely a situation forced upon them by society, as Capricorn rules large organizations, government, and the power of entrenched societal norms.
Thus, the political maneuvering of various authoritarian leaders on the global stage, which reached a new phase with the Saturn-Pluto conjunction in Capricorn of January 2020, gets kicked into high gear with this Venus retrograde period. And as Venus also rules money, the conflict, at its root, is all about the Benjamins, baby.
Venus-Pluto Connection to the Status of Women
The Greek myth involving Pluto (also called Hades), Persephone, Ceres, Zeus (Jupiter), and Aphrodite (Venus in Roman mythology) can reveal much about where the events of this Venus retrograde will take us collectively.
Pluto, the god of the underworld, lamented to Zeus, his brother, that he did not have wife, so Zeus promised him Persephone, the goddess of spring and Zeus’s daughter by the agricultural goddess Ceres. With the collusion of Aphrodite (Venus), the sister of Persephone, Pluto abducts Persephone and takes her to the underworld to live with him as his wife. She can rejoin her mother Ceres only during the spring season, and is forced to live in the underworld for the rest of the year.
Thus, the vulnerable maiden is betrayed by her promiscuous relatives, Jupiter and Venus (both notorious for screwing around), in the classic story of abduction and rape.
As Venus is cozying up to Pluto as she reaches the position as which she turns retrograde, it appears that unseemly schemes are afoot, especially with regard to women’s sexuality and women’s rights. With the conservative sign Capricorn as the backdrop to this conjunction, this Venus retrograde period will most likely be fraught with confrontations over women’s rights, and possibly instances of increased violence against women that will intensify the conservative-liberal conflict over women’s position in society.
This will bring to the forefront of social consciousness issues of male dominance of women, of sexual abuse and harassment, and the underlying Saturn-Uranus square indicates strong societal forces – backward forces – opposing women’s freedom. This conflict occurs within the larger context of the Uranus-Pluto cycle. Their current cycle began in the summer of 1966, when Uranus conjoined Pluto in Virgo. The Uranus-Pluto cycles reveal the links between war and trends in gender equity. This has been especially so in the 20th and 21st centuries, as the wars in this period, mainly the two World Wars, helped to advance women’s independence (financial and otherwise) by ushering them into the global workforce in much greater numbers.
Tender (or maybe not so tender) Venus may seem to be dominated by a Pluto overlord, but Uranus is in Taurus, a sign ruled by Venus, so she is able to influence someone quite powerful (and exciting), who also doesn’t really want to see dour (and boring) Saturn win the game.
But will Uranus prove to be a reliable ally? Or a flaky bully? One thing you can say for Saturn, he’s not flashy, but if he’s on your side, he’s really there for you (though he demands payment, in the form of self-discipline and obedience).
The dilemma for Venus (i.e., anyone trapped in an existential crisis that is demanding resolution at this time) is this: can she muster the willpower and resources to leave an oppressive situation, or would she be better off to submit to society’s expectations and get immediate material security in the bargain?
The answer is – it depends. Where the Venus-Pluto conjunction falls in your birth chart will have much to do with the outcome for you. So read on! – check the forecast for your Sun sign, and if you know the sign of your Ascendant, read that sign’s forecast also.