As you may know, the sun will be moving into Virgo territory on Friday, Aug. 23 — kicking off Virgo season 2019, and wrapping up our Leo summer vibe for the year. But we've also got another important cosmic guest headed into Virgo territory just a couple days before, and that's the lovely Venus, planet of love, romance, money, luxury, and pleasure — aka sugar, spice, and everything nice. Venus moves from Leo into Virgo on Aug. 21, marking a major shift in our love lives especially. That all said, be prepared: the beginning of Virgo season is going to be a rollercoaster for your love life, and it's all because of the lil' planet we know as Venus.
Here's the deal: Every planet in astrology has its own energy, and of course, this energy is expressed differently in different signs. Venus is quite happy and comfortable in certain signs — such as Taurus and Libra, the two signs which it rules over, as well as Pisces, the sign in which it's known to be "exalted," or otherwise really happy, free, and able to shine its most positive influence. Conversely, there are a couple places in the zodiac where each planet is least happy and most constricted, and for Venus, Virgo is one of them. When Venus is in Virgo, it's known to be in its fall. "A planet’s fall is a sign of the zodiac in which it is thought to be particularly poorly-placed," defines the Astrology Dictionary. "When a planet is in its fall it is considered to be debilitated." In other words, Venus isn't her usual self when she's in Virgo territory — she has trouble expressing her best and brightest energy here, and struggles to touch base with her most desirable qualities.
So what does this mean for all the Venus-ruled parts of our lives? Well, let's talk about Virgo energy, since it's there that the planet of love n' money will be residing for the next four weeks. Virgos are perfectionists to the core: They have an impeccable eye for detail, they're really good at staying organized, and they can spot a typo or a crooked wall hanging from six hundred miles away. Nothing slips past them, really.
This means that we might notice ourselves getting a little nit-picky and overly critical in our love lives. Little quirks about our partners or crushes that used to be cute and silly may suddenly seem obnoxious and immature. Our genuine attempts to help the people we love may come off as pushy, judgmental, and critical instead of kind. We may also suddenly feel the urge to make perfect, clear-cut sense of all of those hard-to-rationalize matters of the heart that tend to come hand-in-hand with love — which is a damn near impossible task that will likely only leave us feeling frustrated and overwhelmed.
"[T]his is a time when you can get picky and moody if love and finances are not perfectly arranged and clean as a whistle," wrote astrologer Pam Ciampi of Venus in Virgo in Llewellyn's 2019 Daily Planetary Guide. See, love is messy and irrational, and it can't be organized by color or alphabetical order or anything else. Venus in Virgo desperately has an itch for something that's virtually impossible to scratch, and it's something we'll have to navigate thoughtfully and temper — otherwise we risk hurting the people we love when really, we're just trying to help.
But Virgos also have hearts of gold. They're truly gentle humanitarians who can be nit-picky, yes — but only out of a genuine desire to help improve the people, situations, and world around them. "Venus in Virgo is a perfectionist in love — but also knows how to have fun," explains astrologer Lisa Stardust, who spoke with Bustle about the Virgo Venus vibes. "We may all take on the role of having high standards when it comes to matters of love and money — opting to have a pristine and simple no nonsense view on such matters than to be risky." Virgo Venus energy reels in our impulses and pressures us to play it safe. You might notice yourself being more reserved around your crush instead of getting your flirt on, or waiting for your boo to make a move and take things to the next level instead of taking the initiative yourself. This vibe makes us want to feel totally sure we're taking steps on steady ground before proceeding.
Because of this current Virgo-Venus-influenced desire for emotional safety in our love lives, we might find ourselves straying away from anything that makes us feel too vulnerable and staying inside our comfort zones altogether during this transit. "We may prefer uncomplicated relationships and like to have pure fun," explains Stardust. So while for some of us, emotional safety might look like closing ourselves off to our partners and going a bit cold — for others, it'll look more like pursuing a short-lived summer fling in favor of putting our hearts on the line for something deeper and longer-lasting. Virgo Venus definitely has some control issues as well as fears of commitment and vulnerability to work out, but in the short term, it won't necessarily keep you from having some easy, breezy fun in love.
Fair warning, though: Don't keep yourself up at night trying to close-read every little detail of your love life, cause we know that isn't helpful to anyone. Right, y'all? "Venus in Virgo over-analyzes," warns Stardust, "so don’t read too much into late night texts and proceed with caution." Don't assume your crush is sub-tweeting you. Or ignoring your text. Or saying something they don't mean. Catch yourself in the act of over-analyzing and nip that sh*t in the bud before it spirals.
Venus in Virgo can get super critical in love, yes, but it's only because it's so dang passionate and wants to help. If we indulge this urge with an added spoonful of sugar, we can ensure our loved ones don't interpret our helping hand as a threatening fist. Over the next four weeks, do your best to take things at face value, loosen yourself up when you notice yourself feeling afraid of getting hurt, and be gentle on your partner — cause we can't (and shouldn't have to) change anyone we choose to be with. Good luck, star babies!
