We have a Venus-Mars Conjunction taking place in Aquarius on February 21, 2024 at 6°57’ Aquarius in the early morning sky.  For most of the world, this takes place on February 22nd. But in the Pacific time zone, Alaska and Hawaii, it is the 21st.  

We’ll be able to see it coming into form right now. And especially between February 19-23 where these two planets are very close together.  Venus will be significantly brighter and just above the red-orange glow of Mars.  The pair of planets will rise about an hour before the Sun rises, so there won’t be very much time to actually view this before the sunlight drowns out the planetary lights.

Their appearance in the sign of Aquarius is the first time they’ve connected in this sign since March 5, 2022 when they were together at 00°01′ Aquarius.  The early degrees of Aquarius have been featured quite a bit since 2020, when Saturn ingressed into that sign, then conjuncted the planet Jupiter at 00°29′ Aquarius on December 21st of that year.  And in 2023, Pluto ingressed into Aquarius, and did it again on January 20, 2024.

Both Venus and Mars have already passed Pluto in its first degree of Aquarius.  However, this Venus and Mars conjunction is only about 6 degrees from Pluto on the 21st.  This means that Pluto will have some influence on this conjunction.

In the sky, Venus and Mars are in the Goat-Fish constellation, under the head and horns symbolized for the stars Dabith, Algedi and Alshat.  This area of the constellation connects us to the Earthen part of the Goat-Fish that walks upon land.  It is there to help us remain steady and stable in ourselves even as we awaken to immense change and chaos across the globe.

Venus symbolizes the feminine principle and Mars the masculine principle.  This is a combination and balance between the Yin and the Yang.  But the Yin and Yang are being expressed together in the sign of Aquarius. This sign is all about expansion of one consciousness beyond the boundaries of flesh and blood.

With Pluto’s influence this is both the expansion into the divine cosmos and digging to the deep well of the unconscious/psyche.  This is both a collision and an opportunity for potent alchemy within humanity.  The Aquarius themes that have arisen in recent years are being highlighted by Venus, Mars and Pluto.

Venus can tend to balance out the actional force of Mars, perhaps offering us a glimpse of what could be possible when the feminine and masculine work together. 

Aquarius is also about ideas and ideals, egalitarian and humanitarian pursuits along with innovation, experimentation and revolutionary thought.   This sign has also been known to be part of technological developments and sudden rises in technology.  It is a sign that can be “light-polarized” and ignore or simply deny the shadow exists.  However, like all signs, it has a powerful role in humanity’s evolution, especially in consciousness and is just as much needed as any other astrological sign.  Without Aquarius’ support, life might have been a lot more stagnant and we could still not have awakened beyond the Middle Ages.

The coming together of Mars and Venus is a highlight of a greater cycle pattern of the two planets.  About every 77 months, the pattern of Venus and Mars repeat in the sky.  The last time this current pattern showed up was between 2016-18.  Even more, this 77-month repetition is part of a larger 32-year pattern.  This was last seen between 1990-93, where Venus and Mars came into conjunction on February 19, 1992 at 1°00′ Aquarius.

The detailed explanation of the Mars-Venus patterns can be taken up at a later time. However, I can say that the dance of Venus and Mars in the sky has inspired numerous stories in ancient mythology along with modern-day themes and stories told in film, TV, books and other fictional/non-fiction.

For the purposes of this article, it is important to connect the time periods of the Mars and Venus cycles and the sign of Aquarius.  2022 and 1992 are the years to look at here as these are the conjunctions in those early degrees of Aquarius.  This leads to the question as to “What will the themes of Aquarius open up for humanity in the current time as well as the future?”

I feel we are in a relatively new territory as a civilization.  While there may be allusions to past civilizations from thousands of years ago and even with Atlantis, we have a chance to choose a different kind of future. 

With Pluto in Aquarius, it relates to the shadow of technological development that can get out of hand.  But it also has the potential to see a death-rebirth in the fields of energy sciences and Earth-sciences. 

With Venus and Mars in conjunction, it is a reminder of the need to come together with ideas rather than compete or oppose one another in an egoic inflation kind of way.  It is possible to seed the distant future with experiments, innovation and vision that show promise in collaboration and co-creation with each other in community.

This conjunction near Pluto also shares that even with the chaos around us, we can choose as individuals and as communities a path toward a more ideal world that is supportive of each other rather than seeing our kin as rivals, enemies or something worse. 

Aquarius on the healthy side attempts to utilize its celestial knowledge for humanity’s benefit to all.  The cooperative part of us can shine through if we give it permission, thereby coming together as an evolving civilization that steps into a practical application of universal love instead of withdrawing our hands and staying in our respective corners.  This is an archetypal ideal vision and not necessarily something that can truly be a reality (certainly in this polarized climate, it is difficult to imagine it ever working).  But there is hope as the potential exists and ideas are being born.  All we need to do is nurture them and have the courage to reach out.