In astrology, Venus is associated with love and money. Depending on how you respond to Venus, love and money might make you feel like you have entered the purgatorial gates of Hell. There is a reason for that.

Venus is the second closest planet to the Sun, next to Mercury, but it is the hottest planet in our solar system. So hot, in fact, that its atmosphere emits enough greenhouse heat to warm Earth.

Temperatures on the surface of Venus reach around 880 degrees Fahrenheit, which is hot enough to melt lead. Not exactly hospitable.

In ancient Greco-Roman civilization, Venus was given the name Lucifer (“light-bringer”) in Latin as it shone so brightly in the night sky. Venus is the 3rd brightest luminary from our perception here on Earth.

Venus, known as both Evening Star and Morning Star, rotates on its axis in a unique direction that is opposite of most planets, which means it spins in a backwards motion, or otherwise upside down. Maybe at some point its axis flipped, maybe not. All of the planets in the Solar System orbit the Sun in an anti-clockwise direction, but Venus rotates clockwise in a near circular orbit rather than elliptical.

Venus retrogrades are the most eccentric, which means it moves backwards and disappears from sight, which mystified our ancestors. Most planets retrograde at different times (Mercury the most frequently), but Venus is the most dramatic.

Without advances in astronomy in the ancient world, humans could rely only on observation. What they perceived was the planet Venus essentially falling from its position in the sky every 18 months for a period of 40 days and 40 nights.

Sumerian mythology associated the planet Venus with the goddess Inanna, who was cast down from Heaven into the Underworld for trying to conquer the domain of her sister Ereshkigal. This “fall from Heaven” was considered a moral story of hubris; of discovering that one’s sexual power and beauty will not guarantee transcendence from dark or evil forces.

The Hebrew word for Venus was Helel or Helel ben Shahar (“light bringer – son of the dawn”), which is likely the origin of the word “Hell”. Lucifer and Hell became two separate entities (i.e. fallen angel and Underworld) in a fascinating twist of interpretation, as they were one and the same.

Although the planet was named Venus after the Roman goddess of love and beauty, and Lucifer means “light bringer”, the strange movement of this hot, luminous planet became associated with the fire of the Underworld. There are theories in astronomy that the Earth could eventually evolve much like Venus into a fiery, inhospitable planet. Global warming has threatened that this evolution may be on the horizon. Not in our lifetimes, however.

Fascinating how mythology and religion are so closely linked to human perceptions of the solar system; how many of the myths written thousands of years ago in religious texts still have a strong cultural presence across the globe.

As we shift more solidly into the Aquarian Era (a precursor to the Aquarian Age), Venus appears to be moving towards a more New Age identity and a less mythological interpretation; however, the archetypes will likely remain. Mythology is really just great storytelling.

The expression “love is hell” might have new meaning for you now. In regards to morality: whether or not our spirits ascend after death or descend like the orbit of Venus is a question I’m afraid I cannot answer. I can say, however, that without Venus, life on earth may not exist, and that is the truest expression of love I can imagine.