Venus and Alchemy: Re imagining the Venus gates
- Jema Killala-Barnard
- Nov 28
- 4 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
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.
The Venus Rose, A New Way of Seeing the Cycle
The 5 petal rose of Venus is the image of her synodic cycle, I have previously referred to it as the Venus Pentagram, others call it the Venus Star. It maps her dance between the earth and Sun, the ebb and flow of her Venus current as she moves closer to us, kissing the Sun with a retrograde loop and beginning a new cycle. Rising in the morning sky for 9 months, sinking behind the Sun out of sight and being re born as the brightest light in the evening sky for another 9 months. Drawing closer to us before she is pulled back into the heart of the Sun again, hidden for 40 days to begin her cycle anew.
From Pentagram to Rose: Changing Symbolism
This dance moves through 5 signs then repeats every 8 years, forming the 5 petals of the rose or points of the star. Each petal holds the secrets of life and death, each is an alchemical journey to the shadowy depths and back. An endless love story, a picture of devotion and sacrifice, always returning to the heart.
Inanna, The Underworld, and Mythic Roots
The most ancient myths we have of Venus are those of Inanna. She is called the morning and evening star. The myth of Inanna’s descent through the seven gates to the underworld has been a guide for the 7/8 times that Venus meets the Moon as a morning star on her descent, and again as an evening star on her journey of ascent, back to her throne. A myth that forms a map to navigate through this celestial dance.
The Seven Gates and the Seven Planets
Seven is a sacred number, it gives us systems for understanding, seven planets, seven days, seven chakras, seven stages of alchemy. It is often associated with completion or perfection. On the Quabalisic tree of life, the seventh sphere is the sphere of Venus, the sphere of expression through art, creativity, culture and music. The sevens in tarot may not be the most pleasant cards but they represent an up levelling, following the success, peace and comfort of the sixes, sevens represent the new challenges of avoiding complacency, struggling on up the hill to new levels of mastery. Sevens represent the challenges we face when we chose growth and expansion.
Previously I have followed the teachings of others guided by Venus to use the chakras to illuminate each Venus gate. Over the last journey of descent I have been called to lean back into the western mystery traditions and explore other correspondences for each of inanna’s gates. This ancient wisdom has been re interpreted over generations and cultures for thousands of years. The ever evolving stories and re imaginings of this ancient wisdom have been mused on since imagining was even possible. This means that if you have been following my blog you will notice a change in my framework. Its an experiment of sorts, I expect my understanding of this sacred journey to grow and change and evolve along with my relationships with Venus, Inanna and Erishkegal, my guides on this journey, and also as I grow and change.
In this new incarnation of my Venus story, the Venus Pentegram becomes the Venus Rose, as we have explored each Venus gate in relation to the Chakras for the last 9 months, this next journey of ascent I will explore how they each relate to the seven planetary guides and stages of alchemy.
Why I Began Exploring Alchemy Through the Venus Gates
Exploring the mysteries of the process of alchemy I see the parallels between this system of understanding transformation and the journey through the Chakras. The first gate we meet in August will be the Gate of Saturn, of Calcination. Burning away and reducing us to our most basic components, our foundations, this is where we will build from. It is undeniable that the theme of foundations is also a theme of the root chakra. These symbols complement and add complexity to each other, we dance in the nuance and unravel new depths of understanding as we walk this path and follow the guidance of Venus re born.
Venus Ascent Dates 2024–2025
4th June – Underworld Venus Rose Petal/ Star Point in Gemini
11th July - Heliacal Rising – Earliest point that Venus may be visible in the evening sky
6th August - First Venus Gate - Virgo – Saturn - The Gate of Foundation
6th September - Second Venus Gate - Libra – Jupiter - The Gate of Creative Growth
6th October - Third Venus Gate - Scorpio – Mars - The Gate of Personal Power
5th November - Fourth Venus Gate - Sagittarius – Venus - The Gate of Compassion
5th December - Fifth Venus Gate - Capricorn – Mercury - The Gate of the Sacred Voice
3rd January - Sixth Venus Gate - Pisces – Moon - The gate of Insight/Perception
1st February - Seventh Venus Gate - Pisces – Sun - The Gate of the Queendom
1st March - Eighth Venus Gate - Aries - Gate of The Divine Throne
16th March - Heliacal Setting – Venus drops below the horizon and is no longer visible
22nd March - Venus Pentagram Point in Aries (New cycle in Aries)
A Note About Change and Creative Evolution
This piece was written during a season of deep personal initiation, when I was experimenting with weaving alchemy, mythology, and astrology into one Venus framework. It reflects a moment of exploration rather than a final system — and although my Venus work has since simplified and deepened, I’m preserving this post as part of the evolving story.
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