Mars and Venus; the power of mutual reception
So lately I’ve been having fun playing with the Wild Unknown archetype cards as a way of expressing the symbolism of the planetary ingresses through the signs (you might have seen my posts over on Instagram, I’m @wildstarlys on there). But when it came to Mars moving into Libra, I was a little stumped, I just couldn’t find the right combination. Until I looked more deeply at the Aletheia card, which speaks of truth - a Libra ideal - and most importantly reminds us that truth is an action, that all our ideals and high aspirations count for nothing if we don’t back them up with action. And this is exactly the message of Mars in Libra. The shadow side of Libra can be avoiding conflict or avoiding making decisions because Libra sees all sides, understands all viewpoints, even sympathises with them. So picking just one can be a challenge, bringing the risk of getting it wrong, of upsetting someone (big Libra no no, right?!), of missing out. All of which can lead to overthinking and that stereotypical Libran indecisiveness. Mars is in detriment in Libra, which is opposite Mars home sign of Aries, where Mars is comfortable as the decisive, independent warrior. In Libra Mars needs to learn a different approach, to reach for his goals using new tools of collaboration and cooperation. For strongly Libran folks, a visit from Mars is a reminder that they are individuals, powerful in their own right. That sometimes, healthy conflict can be a good thing, and so can simply making a decision and acting on it.
Meanwhile, we also have Venus in Scorpio, a sign traditionally ruled by Mars and where Venus is in detriment (Scorpio being opposite Venus’s other home sign of Taurus). So Mars and Venus are both in detriment, meaning in the signs where they are not comfortable and need to work a little harder. But they are also in mutual reception - Venus in the sign ruled by Mars and Mars in Venus-ruled Libra. Still with me?! Two planets in mutual reception are in “each other’s” signs, so they can help each other out and support each other. So for example
Mars reminds Venus that she is powerful in her own right
Venus reminds Mars of the value of compromise
Mars shows Libra the power of decisive action
Venus shows Scorpio how desire forges connections
And really, isn’t “mutual reception” such a marvellously Venus phrase! With these two personal planets (meaning that they are part of our day to day experience of self and of life) helping each other out, we can really be creative in the realms of activism, relationships and ideas right now, bringing head and heart together and acting on what we find. How are they playing out for you?