by Jema Killala-Barnard The Ember Moon arrives each year like a warm coal, a small, steady glow in the deepest dark. In astrology, this is our Sagittarius New Moon, always appearing just before the solstice. It’s the final new beginning before the light returns. And this moon feels especially potent for me. There is something about this moment, the way darkness closes in, the way we wrap ourselves in stories and fairy lights, the way we instinctively try to call the sun home,

Why My Venus Work Shifted During This Cycle My journey with Venus has always been one of deepening mysteries. In western esoteric traditions the rose is a symbol of hidden knowledge, so it makes sense that the goddesses of the rose would lead us on a path of ever unfolding wisdom. Each petal revealing a new layer of understanding. This unfolding is guiding me through the depths of the underworld, into a deep transformation, a shedding of my skin, a re imagining of my work. Th

What Is the Venus Rose Point in Gemini? Venus has been below the horizon for a while now, too close to the Sun for us to see. Our bright and beautiful morning star will not appear before sunrise for almost a year but on 4th June she will meet with the Sun again, before she enters her evening star phase forming the Venus Rose Point in Gemini. Inanna’s Death in the Underworld, The Turning Point As we follow the journey of the Descent on Inanna she is deep in the underworld, hel

What Is the Eighth Venus Gate of Descent? The journey of Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. This gate completes her descent, meeting death at the final gate of initiation to the underworld. At each gate Inanna has removed one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that make civilisation possible, and each

What Is the Seventh Venus Gate of Descent? The journey of Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are continuing the phase of her descent; meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld. At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that

What Is the Sixth Venus Gate of Descent? The journey of Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are continuing the phase of her descent; meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld. At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that ma

What Is the Fifth Venus Gate of Descent? The journey of Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are continuing the phase of her descent; meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld. At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that ma

What Is the Fourth Venus Gate of Descent? The journey of Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are continuing the phase of her descent; meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld. At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that m

What Is the Third Venus Gate of Descent? The journey Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are continuing the phase of her descent; meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld.   At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that mak

What Is the Second Venus Gate of Descent? The journey Venus travelling through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are beginning the phase of her descent; meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld. At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship; the mes can be considered sacred powers that make

What Is the First Venus Gate of Descent? The journey Venus travels through our sky mirrors the myth of the Descent of Inanna. At this time, we are beginning her descent by meeting each of the seven gates of initiation that lead to the underworld. At each gate Inanna must remove one of her mes, which are detailed in Sumerian mythology as divine orders that are essential in understanding a human-god relationship. The mes can be considered sacred powers that make civilisation po

What Is the Venus Pentagram Point in Leo? Following her sacred dance, Venus is in her retrograde phase. This is the closest she gets to the earth, marking the completion of her Capricorn cycle. As she meets the Sun once again she forms a pentagram point in radiant, sun kissed Leo and begins anew. The End of the Capricorn Venus Cycle (2022–2023) The Capricorn cycle began in January 2022. Capricorn is an earth sign, grounded and reliable. When Venus is in Capricorn thoughts are

It’s late at night, the washing machine spins in the background, and you’re scrolling through your phone while nursing a baby or folding laundry with the other. There’s that big dream inside you, maybe it’s a business idea, a book, a sacred offering, a longing to step more fully into your purpose, and yet, every time you try to build it, life happens. A toddler cries. Someone needs a snack. Another nappy change. I See You! I Am You! And then you read about this Saturn–Neptune