Venus, of course, makes her presence felt by House at least twice in the natal chart, once in her rulership of Taurus, and once with Libra. These two signs are naturally quincunx each other, and this describes the way we quite typically see relationship matters (Libra) as incompatible with material ones (Taurus). We tend to believe that the lowest form of relationship in which we can engage is one where we receive a material benefit; we call this person a ‘prostitute’ or label them ‘kept’ and act as if this (a money for  action or energy exchange, and we condemn this in spite of the fact that a job has the same general parameters) is in itself a moral failing. Our natural uneasiness in mixing or equating the two must be tempered by an awareness that living in mutually beneficial material situations is really what we must do, not just for survival but in order to build civilization. We tend to see a relationship that involves love as more noble than one that provides something we need–and yet we mix these things, love and material need, all the time, particularly when we are in partnership–and perhaps that is one of the underlying reasons the mate relationship is so fraught with emotional landmines: we hold ourselves and our loved ones to impossibly high standards, demanding ‘pure’ love be given and received, and yet the very fabric of day-to-day requires an interdependence that, if we recognize any facet of it as a cold, material exchange, may de-value our relationship in our own eyes.

Taken from ‘Your Money-tude’ in the current issue of ECLIPSE; to see this article or to get the daily forecast (planetary aspects and those of Sedna, Chiron, Vesta, Ceres, Juno, Pallas, and Zeus, as well as most Lunar aspects, too) delivered to your email every Thursday, subscribe!