Meet Your Shadow. Revisit Your Desire.
October invites us somewhere deeper.
This month, Venus the planet associated with love, beauty, pleasure, desire, relationships, and personal values, begins her retrograde journey in Scorpio before returning to Libra later in the month.
For us, this makes October less about looking outward and more about getting curious about what is happening within.
What are we craving?
What feels pleasurable now?
What desires have changed?
What parts of ourselves are still waiting to be explored?
Welcome to October’s Venus in Wanderland.
A month for revisiting desire, reconnecting with pleasure, and meeting our Shadow with curiosity.
Venus Retrograde in Scorpio
Venus begins October in Scorpio and stations retrograde on October 3. She continues moving retrograde through Scorpio until October 25, when she returns to Libra, remaining retrograde until November 13.
In astrology, Venus retrograde is traditionally associated with revisiting our relationships, desires, values, beauty, self-worth, and pleasure.
And in Scorpio, that reflection can go a little deeper.
Scorpio brings themes of intimacy, vulnerability, depth, and the parts of ourselves we do not always reveal easily.
So rather than asking, What should I want?
This Venus retrograde invites us to ask:
What do I actually desire?
Maybe there are parts of our sensuality we have not fully explored.
Maybe our relationship with pleasure has changed.
Maybe there is something we have been curious about but have not given ourselves permission to acknowledge.
Or perhaps we simply need time to reconnect with ourselves without expectation.
Our desires are allowed to evolve.
Our bodies change.
We change.
And sometimes pleasure becomes more interesting when we stop trying to define it and start allowing ourselves to remain curious.
The Shadow Side of Venus
When we talk about Shadow, we do not necessarily mean something dark or dramatic.
Our Shadow can simply be the parts of ourselves we have not fully met yet.
A desire we have not expressed.
A boundary we are learning to recognize.
A pleasure we secretly enjoy.
A part of our sensuality we have never had the space to explore.
Venus retrograde in Scorpio offers a symbolic opportunity to meet these hidden layers with less judgment and more curiosity.
Not every desire needs to become an experience.
Sometimes simply acknowledging what lives inside us can create a deeper relationship with ourselves.
And that alone can be powerful.
October 25 Venus Returns to Libra
On October 25, Venus retrogrades back into Libra, one of the signs traditionally associated with Venus.
The energy begins to shift from the private depths of Scorpio toward themes of connection, reciprocity, relationships, beauty, and balance.
After asking:
What do I desire?
We can begin asking:
How do I bring those desires into relationship with others?
How comfortable are we expressing what feels good?
How clearly do we communicate our needs?
Are we allowing ourselves to change our minds?
Do our relationships reflect who we are now or versions of ourselves we have already outgrown?
This is where one of our favorite ideas comes in:
The "I" Before the "We".
Before we communicate our pleasure, we have to begin discovering it.
Before we share our boundaries, we have to recognize them.
And before we create intimacy with someone else, it can be beautiful to develop intimacy with ourselves.
October Crystal: Black Obsidian
For October, we are pairing this Venus retrograde journey with Black Obsidian.
Traditionally associated with introspection, grounding, protection, and shadow work, Black Obsidian beautifully mirrors this month’s invitation to look beneath the surface.
For us, it can represent the courage to become curious about the parts of ourselves we may not always acknowledge.
Our hidden desires.
Our needs.
Our boundaries.
Our sensuality.
Our Black Obsidian Shadow Yoni Egg can be incorporated into meditation, journaling, body awareness, or simply placed nearby as a physical reminder of the intention behind your practice.
The crystal does not determine what we experience.
Our intention does.
And this month, that intention is simple:
Meet your Shadow with curiosity.
Your Venus Retrograde Ritual
A Little Shadow. A Little Venus.
October is not asking us to become someone new.
Perhaps it is simply inviting us to become more familiar with who we already are.
To revisit desire.
To listen to our bodies.
To allow pleasure to evolve.
And to meet the unexplored parts of ourselves with a little more curiosity.
A little Shadow. A little Venus. A delicious journey back to yourself.
