Below, I’ve outlined a Venus Retrograde ritual in the spirit of transmutation of pain into wisdom for our heart’s greatest good, and how you can work with this time in a very practical way, bringing some healing and solace to your heart.

Step 1: Build the Altar

This is a simple way to honor the goddess. Make sure to honor her using the four elements. Some ideas are listed below.

Use a pink, purple, blue, green, turquoise, or white cloth, and at least one item from each element represented below:

• Air: note, feathers, sigil, pictures of roses or goddesses representing love, chimes, empty bowl, notebook/pen, small wand/fan
• Fire: pink, white, or green candles, incense, herb wands, cauldrons, charcoal, ash, lighter/matches
• Water: rose water or hydrosol, seashell, rainwater, seaweed, kelp, moss, moonstone
• Earth: roses, chocolate, herbs, plant matter, stones or crystals (rose quartz, jewelry), small bowl of dirt or sand, dried roots, salt

Step 2: Make a Simple Hawthorn Infusion

You’ll need hawthorn leaf, flower, and berry, and a quart jar.

To make a medicinal dose, use 28g total of leaf, flower, and berry (if filling your quart jar all the way to the top) or use 24g of herb and fill to the 800 mL line.

To get the most out of your medicine, prepare the leaf and flower as a standard infusion by pouring boiling water over 12–14g of herb and letting it steep, covered, for 20 to 30 minutes. For the berries, make a standard decoction by simmering 12–14g in about 500 mL of water, allowing a little extra for evaporation. Then combine the two extractions for a well-rounded tea.

Note: If you’re just making a simple cup of tea for yourself, use 2 teaspoons of leaf and flower and make a standard tea infusion.

Spiritual & Emotional Properties of Hawthorn

Hawthorn draws its strength from deep within the earth, carrying its steady, constant heartbeat and aligning our own hearts with its rhythm of unwavering love. Its flowers calm the emotions and bring tranquility to the heart, while its berries nourish the soul and strengthen the beauty within, helping the true essence of who we are shine through. The thorns help to repair old wounds, soothe the spirit, teach us how to set clear emotional boundaries, and protect the heart from further harm. Hawthorn returns us to the stream of love that spills from every corner of the universe, reminding us there is always enough.

(Paraphrased from Hawthorn Materia Medica by Sajah Popham)

Step 3: Heart Meditation and Journaling

Take some time to get quiet and focus on the energy of your heart. Ask the following questions while in meditation, and then journal about them:

Guided Meditation

• What do you love and are grateful for currently?
• What no longer serves you, or what have you had to release that’s coming back up for review?
• What do you deeply desire?

Journal Question

• What’s one decision you can make today that aligns with the life you actually want?

Step 4: Close with Song

Sing or hum your favorite heart song, to your heart, to Venus, to gratitude and compassion, and to the Earth. Ask for your heart to receive healing and renewal in alignment with your highest good.

Learning With Venus

If you’d like to understand the Venus Retrograde Cycle in more depth, the possibilities that happen during her time in retrograde, and particularly the dates to work with for Venus Retrograde in Scorpio and Libra in 2026, please see my blog article here: Venus Retrograde in Scorpio & Libra 2026: Returning to our Hearts & Wholeness.

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Work With Me!

If this resonates, I’m holding a Heart Healing Circle at the Embody Wellness Expo this Sunday, October 18th at 11am at the St. Vrain in Longmont. We’ll work with Venus retrograde and hawthorn medicine together, with tea, meditation, journaling, and song. You can find more details on Saturn’s Daughter’s IG @saturnsdaughterhq or website saturnsdaughter.com. I’d love to see you there. 🌿

If you’d like deeper one-on-one guidance through this Venus retrograde, I offer astrology consultations. You can book a session at evolvingheartwellness.com/astrology.