The upcoming Venus retrograde in Leo (July-Sept. 2023) is quite a ride.

The intensity peak of the Venus retrograde transit is between August 6th-August 9th 2023, just when Venus is conjunct Black Moon Lilith and squares Uranus at the same time.

This is an insanely intense combo that is almost guaranteed to lead to an emotional catharsis of some kind.

What is emotional catharsis?

Emotional catharsis is a process in which our emotions are displayed in all their rawness.

Even though it’s often quite “dramatic,” emotional catharsis is not negative. Quite the contrary – it is very liberating. Emotional catharsis helps us understand and express what we’re feeling.

When we ‘think’ about what we feel we don’t actually feel. We do the opposite – we suppress our emotions. It’s not feelings that gets us in trouble. What gets us in trouble is containing or denying our feelings.

When we suppress our true feelings for too long, the eruption of these bottled feelings can take everyone by surprise – including ourselves.

But there are ways to consciously work and even induce emotional catharsis. In fact, catharsis was a process Sigmund Freud used at the beginning of his psychoanalysis sessions.

Venus Retrograde Conjunct Black Moon Lilith

Coming back to Venus – and why this Venus retrograde will bring emotional catharsis. Venus retrograde is by default a wild card, especially in the sign of Leo. Leo is the sign of the Self – Leo doesn’t really care what others think. Leo just wants to express him or herself.

Venus retrograde in any sign is an unpredictable Venus because it goes against the norm. Venus direct is what everyone finds desirable. Venus retrograde is what YOU find desirable and worth pursuing.

And then we have Black Moon Lilith. Lilith was Adam’s first wife. The legend says that when she refused to be submissive, she was cast out of Eden. Lilith didn’t like that – so in a chart, or by transit, Lilith is the pure expression of the wild, unleashed feminine spirit.

Lilith is our raw instincts, the forbidden fruit, the liberator. Lilith is called Black Moon Lilith because she is literally black – she is not a planet or an asteroid, but a mathematical point calculated when the Moon is at apogee – or the farthest distance from Earth.

Because Lilith doesn’t actually exist in physical form – she rules our deepest repressed desires that are difficult to be expressed in the material, 3D reality. It speaks to the darkest parts of ourselves that we’re often afraid to acknowledge or where we feel criticized or misunderstood.

Black Moon Lilith is where we refuse to submit to others and seek equality. Lilith is a symbol for the dark side of the feminine energy; ‘dark’ not because it’s negative, but because it’s not acknowledged.

When we suppress our emotions (Venus), they will eventually erupt in unprecedented ways.

Venus Retrograde Square Uranus

Venus retrograde and Lilith are also square Uranus. Uranus is the planet of freedom and liberation. Uranus strikes like lightning, illuminating the obvious in a flash. Uranus doesn’t care for social conventions – it only cares for truth.

All these energies combined: the unpredictable Venus retrograde, the raw Lilith, and the freedom-seeking Uranus – and we know we’re up for quite a ride this Venus retrograde.

How to work with this very intense energy? The worst thing would be to try to suppress it. This Venus retrograde is not about avoiding things “I’m not doing ‘this’ because Venus is retrograde”. With this energetic buildup it’s next to impossible to avoid what’s coming.

Your raw, bottled-up feelings will come to the surface anyway. So a much better approach is to tune into this energy and work with it, rather than against it.