Venus Lens: Seeing Transits Through Rose-Coloured Glasses

by Shu Yap

On a frosty morning in winter last year, I stood on top of a hill on my property before dawn, waiting to see Venus as she made her first appearance in the morning sky after being invisible for the past couple of weeks.

As I shivered and waited patiently among the birdsongs, my imagination brought me back to a time 5000 years ago when the ancient Sumerian peoples were looking at this same star. They too were probably waiting in the stillness of pre-dawn for the first sight of Morning Star Venus. Rather than standing in their dressing gowns as I was, they may have been dressed in their battle regalia waiting for the right moment to attack, for it was the first heliacal morning rise of Venus that the people of ancient Sumer were said to plan their wars for.

Sumerian worship of Queen Inanna & the Venus Cycles

The story of Queen Inanna, possibly the oldest love story written in cuneiform on clay tablets found around the southern half of modern Iraq, is connected to the Venus cycle and was the focus of important rituals and ceremonies.

In Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth; Stories and Hymns from Sumer (Wolkstein & Kramer) there are translated hymns to honour the “Lady of the Evening” (Venus Evening Star) whose “radiant light guides the people and creatures of Sumer to their place of rest and love” as well as the “Lady of the Morning” (Venus Morning Star) whose “clarity of light reveals and settles the proper judgments in society so that the people of Sumer can direct their energies towards their day’s work.”

And the “Lady Who Ascends into the Heavens” — a ritual for the first sighting of Venus as she makes her Heliacal Rise — was a much-feared ritual honouring Venus as she “appears when the sky is empty and dark...when all seems lost and void, then Inanna, the first one to brave the empty skies appears.”

The story sees Inanna transform from the brave, youthful, and somewhat naive Inanna, unknowingly walking to her death in the underworld, into the wise, contemplative, and regenerated Inanna, returning to her throne after being resurrected to life.

While there are differing opinions as to which part of the myth relates to which part of the Venus cycle, it seems clear in this translation that the descent of Inanna is aligned to the Morning Star phase of Venus, while the ascent of Inanna connected to the Evening Star phase, with the invisible phase at the Superior Conjunction symbolised by the underworld phase.

Venus-Earth projections

Venus is the only planet that can cast a shadow onto Earth. The mathematical numbers shared between Venus and Earth —the 5:8:13 sequence and the Golden Mean Ratio — can also be seen throughout nature (think of the nautilus shell for example). Five Venus cycles take eight Earth years to complete (5:8 = 1.6 Golden Mean). Eight Earth years is equal to 13 Venus years (8:13 = 1.6 Golden Mean). Venus’ 584-day cycle equals 1.6 (19 months or Golden Mean) of an Earth-year. The proportions of the Golden Mean are said to be the most aesthetically pleasing to the human eye, and given that Venus rules over beauty and art, this makes perfect sense. Would the Golden Mean proportions also be seen on other planets I wonder? And would they be as aesthetically pleasing there?

When we break down the patterns and motions of Venus and the Earth, it’s clear that the two have a special relationship. To have such well documented evidence of the Inanna hymns and rituals suggests that the people of Sumer recognised the importance of this relationship which they saw as Venus having a direct influence on their earthly affairs like agricultural cycles.

As I stood on the hill that cold morning, I pondered that Venus’s shadow and the aesthetically pleasing proportions being cast onto Earth, could in fact be a type of lens that filtered our phenomenal experiences, just as it projects onto the natural world through the Fibonacci sequence.

At that time, Venus was rising as the Lady of the Morning in her feared manifestation of Lady Who Ascends into the Heavens (Morning Heliacal Rise). Saturn had recently entered Aquarius and the Black Lives Matter movement was beginning to gain worldwide traction. Could it possibly be that this transit was being filtered through the lens of the fiery Venus Morning Star, ready to rage on the battlefield?

I decided to test out the Morning and Evening Star Venus phases as a lens over other concurrent planetary transits, imagining that I had my rose-coloured glasses on — as Venus rules over roses. I played around with this concept and found some striking patterns and possibilities. But, before we can apply the Venus lens onto some examples, it’s important to first define the concept of planetary orientation, the key parameter of the Venus cycle that I projected onto my transit analysis.

Defining Planetary Orientation

The orientation of a planet in relation to the Sun is one of the important considerations in determining planetary condition and constructing nuanced delineations. The idea of this technique is to assess whether a planet rises before or after the Sun.

Planets rising before the Sun are called Morning Stars, or Oriental, and can be observed at the eastern horizon shortly prior to the Sun rising. Planets rising after the Sun are called Evening Stars, or Occidental, and viewed at the western horizon shortly after the Sun has set.

In Dorotheus of Sidon’s Carmen Astrologicum, Morning Stars “make matters manifest” while Evening Stars “cover and conceal”. Dorotheus speaks to the symbolic nature of light and dark, or day and night when he describes these orientations.

Morning Stars

In the morning, the Sun lights up the sky bringing sight, consciousness and clarity that can support us to take action and manifest our goals. The morning brings a sense of renewal having been restored after a night of rest, giving us more energy to “make matters manifest”. In this context, the vision, sight, and energy of the Morning Star are attributes that are conducive to our ability to initiate, activate, and proceed forward with our tasks or goals.

Our natal Morning Star planets have a yang quality to their expression, through their dynamic, active and self-directed nature that’s likely to enact life in a more outward, concrete manner.

Evening Stars

On the western side, the Evening Star can only be seen once the Sun falls below the horizon. Commencing as a dim light during the twilight period, their visibility only strengthens as the skies become darker to create a contrasting backdrop. The symbology of night and darkness is one suggestion of Dorotheus’ “cover and conceal” explanation. It suggests that there is a certain mystery associated with the Evening Star planets; that they operate in the realm of the hidden and unseen worlds. When night falls, our consciousness shifts to an instinctual mode where our other senses become more important to our immediate survival. Intellect and consciousness give way to a sensitive and emotionally heightened way of experiencing.

Our natal Evening Star planets have a yin quality to their expression, through their reflective, collaborative and retractive characteristics. They are much more subdued in nature than the Morning Star planets, and their external influences are portrayed in more gentle and passive, yet complex and meandering ways.

From an archetypal perspective, Morning Stars are associated with the natures of warriors, idealists and the youth and could be personified by the likes of Pallas Athena and Ares.

Evening Star types align to the mother and mother nature, and Quan Yin is a strong match for the compassionate, resilient, and protective character of the Evening Star.

Case Study: Meghan Markle

Here’s an example where we can see the broad thematic concepts of the Venus Morning or Evening Star orientations playing out over a person’s biography. In Meghan Markle’s case study, we can see distinctive layers unfold in her known public life which is activated by Venus making her nine-month journeys on each side of the Sun. This unfoldment mimics the gradual opening of a rose, petal by petal, as each Venus cycle comes to fruition.

During the Venus Morning Star months, there is evidence of a more enthusiastic, vibrant, and initiating Markle making independent and bold, but at times naive choices as she navigates through the treacherous pathway of British royalty. In the Venus Evening Star months, Meghan gravitates towards areas that require more collaboration and connection, and these nine-month periods seem to test her resilience and inner fortitude.

The other factor I have included in this study is the point at which Venus makes her Interior Conjunction which marks the beginning of the Venus cycle, as well as the Morning or Evening Heliacal rising point. This is the point in which Venus becomes visible for the first time in the Morning or Evening skies (respective to her orientation) after she escapes the Sun’s beams.

There are varying opinions as to when the Heliacal point actually is (anywhere between 10 to 15 degrees from the Sun) however I tend to use the 10-degree calculation for the Venus cycle because I have been able to view Venus at the 10-degree point, especially as a Morning Star. The Evening Star Venus is more difficult to see with the naked eye at 10 degrees and I have found the heliacal evening rise to be more accurately closer to 15 degrees. However, for simplicity’s sake, this article will refer to the Heliacal rise point at 10 degrees.

The houses that the Interior Conjunction and Heliacal rise points fall into provide important thematic considerations for the nine-month period that will unfold from there. These houses, combined with Venus’ orientation will form the basic principles to draw our observations and forecasts from.

Also note, that the Interior Conjunction and Morning Rise point will often be in the same sign because the invisibility phase of that part of the Venus cycle is much shorter due to Venus being closer to Earth. However, the Superior Conjunction and Evening Rise point will often span over two signs, as this invisibility period is much longer due to Venus being on the outside of the Sun from our perspective on Earth. This phenomenon in itself provides some symbolic context around Morning Stars being more simple and direct in course, and Evening Stars being more complex in nature.

Conclusion

As seen in Meghan Markle’s case, the Venus Morning or Evening Star essence can be seen influencing the themes of her life, shifting every nine months. Other studies I’ve done around this Venus lens concept have simply included analysing one long transit (eg. Saturn square Uranus) that spans over Venus’ two hemispheres. Similarly, the results have shown a distinctive Morning or Evening Star quality to these transit’s manifestations.

Just as the Moon is an important consideration when it comes to horary, electional astrology, or magical elections, in terms of its waxing or waning phase having a commanding influence over the whole chart, I feel the Venus cycle acts in a similar way except it has a longer 18-month cycle of nine months as Morning Star (waxing) and nine months as Evening Star (waning).

Using this Venus lens idea to interpret your transits can narrow down the level of multivalence of the archetypes to inform your delineations more precisely. Understanding a planet’s orientation, in general, is an illuminating tool for the astrologer seeking a greater level of nuance in understanding the core essence of a planet’s nature. It provides another layer for us to contextually extrapolate further meaning from the motions of the heavens onto the reality of our earthly existence.

Therefore, I invite you to experiment with this concept in your studies and would love to hear about your findings.

Published in: The Career Astrologer, September 2021.

Author:
Shu Yap is a consulting astrologer, teacher and writer from Central Victoria, Australia on Dja Dja Wurrung Country. For Shu, astrology is a way of life, not just a livelihood. Her practice influences every aspect of her life as a grower, beekeeper, artist, mother of three, owner builder, off-grid homesteader on 80 acres of bushland. Inspired by the Hermetic philosophy, Shu practices traditional astrology, is a student of alchemy and embodies a sky-centred approach to her art. Somewhat a solitary scholar, Shu has been certified at the Melbourne School of Astrology and the School of Traditional Astrology in Horary and Traditional Medical Astrology.
Website: www.interpsycle.com
Instagram: @interpsycle_astrology
Facebook: @interpsycleastrology
Email: interpsycle@gmail.com

Images:
Venus sky over the sea: Brocken Inaglory at the English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Venus Evening Star: CC0 Creative Commons, via Pixabay
Venus pentragram: AnonMoos, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Meghan and Harry: Mark Jones, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

© 2021 - Shu Yap - The Career Astrologer

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