Venus in Scorpio: Pursue Your Taboo Desires

When you find yourself in an environment that has conditions opposite of those where you do your best work, what do you do?

It would be ideal if we could always set up the conditions we know we need to do our best work, but what’s ideal isn’t always reality.

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations that aren’t set up for our ideal needs — they might even be the exact opposite of what we need.

When you’re on the other side of the world from your usual haunts, in a place where you don’t feel in power, where you don’t have access to your accustomed resources, how do you do the work you’re here to do?

Exploring the Patterns of Our Parts

The study of astrology allows us to look to the archetypes of the planets and signs for helpful insight about how to navigate.

Each planet represents an archetype that exists within us. Each has a job or jobs its here to do. And each sign is a habitat —an environment with a given set of conditions.

As planets move through the signs, they must do their jobs in the conditions of the sign where they are visiting. Each planet has one or two signs where they are “at home” and one or two signs where they are said to be “in detriment.”

Following a planet through the signs, we get to explore that part of ourselves and how it might operate in different conditions — including conditions that may not be its ideal.

Venus in Scorpio

On December 4, 2023, Venus leaves Libra — one of her home signs — and moves into Scorpio. Scorpio is ruled by Mars, which is the planet of war and severing.

Scorpio is considered a sign of “detriment” for Venus because it is opposite Taurus, which is Venus’ other home sign.

Venus is the planet of love, relationships, art, beauty, pleasure, comfort, and money. In short, it stands for what we desire in life.

Scorpio is a sign that deals with death, grief, and the taboos of life. Scorpio probes deep to explore power dynamics and other hidden emotions we keep beneath the surface.

Scorpio is ruled by Mars, the planet of war and severing — the opposite of Venus’ vibe.

In Scorpio, Venus asks questions that might take time to answer, and may require going deep. Venus in Scorpio embraces the darker, less comfortable emotions — those we typically don’t consider “pleasurable.”

So what does Venus in Scorpio mean for us?

First, it’s important to realize that no planetary placement is inherently “bad” or “good.” Astrology isn’t personal; it’s the study of archetypes and patterns, and the lessons we can learn from them.

Here are three areas to explore while Venus is in Scorpio:

(1) Desires Against the Grain

Venus’ transit through Scorpio invites us to explore the desires we have that might be “taboo” or against the grain of cultural norms.

These desires might be in the realms of love, beauty, art, how and where you find pleasure, or how you make a living — all “Venus” topics.

Astrologer April Elliott Kent explains that

Scorpio compels us to love what is not conventionally loveable.

During this transit, we are called to love what scares us.

What desires do you have that are “taboo” or agains the grain of the cultural norm? What would be at risk for you to acknowledge or claim these “taboo” desires?

(2) Deeper Motivations

This transit also invites us to explore the deeper motivations behind how we pursue relationships, pleasure, beauty, and career.

Are you being driven by your true desires, or by the standards of cultural norms that have been ingrained in you from the time you were old enough to remember?

(3) A Different Way of Approaching Relationships, Pleasure, and Work

One thing that we learn from all planets in signs of their detriment is how to do our work when we don’t have our ideal resources or conditions.

Venus’ job is to create relationships, find beauty, pleasure, and everything within the realm of money — including how we make it.

When we are not in our ideal environment, we must find a different way to work. Sometimes this requires we go against the grain in how we approach our work, in how we even think of our resources.

The place where Scorpio falls in your birth chart will help inform what area of life you’re being invited to pursue in a different way.

If you don’t know where this lands for you, or want to discuss how this applies to you in more detail, reach out through my contact page to schedule a call.