Chanelle

Al-Biruni and Abu Ma'shar assigned Persia, Mesopotamia and parts of the Arabian Peninsula to the joint rulership of Venus (Al-Zuhara) and Jupiter (Al-Mushtari). they stated that this planetary combination gave the peoples of these lands their intense disposition toward exquisite perfumery, high courtly etiquette, beautiful garments, legal-religious sophistication, and soulful music. i was able to catch the venusian structure of the near east before i even took a look into the official sources because it is just extremely obvious.

i find it very fitting that venus' birth place is located in west asia and it is indeed a very venusian region. one of the most common snacks of the region is lokum wrapped in rose petals. rose & rosewater arent some niche luxury ingredient there; it's in desserts, drinks, perfumes, religious rituals, cosmetics, household traditions.

if you think about what people associate with a "Venusian" culture; perfume, gardens, flowers, hospitality, sweets, ornamentation, poetry, beauty woven into everyday life, west asia is overflowing with it.

scents and perfumes are big part of the culture. the arabian peninsula is literally famous for its perfumery and introducing oud to the world, and hosts bakhoor's birthplace. in many west asian societies, good scent is associated with cleanliness, dignity and beauty. hammam culture being extremely common in nearly all of west asia attests to this.

while hygiene has virgo association, the part of it that has to do with self-care, grooming and beauty is in the domain of venus.

in traditional astrology, mercury rules the dry, intellectual mechanics of hygiene, venus rules the pleasure and restoration of hot water, steam and oils. the hamam is the manifestation of venus in the water triplicity: it is a temple of stone and steam where cleansing becomes a slow, highly social, sensory ritual of massage, exfoliation and aromatic oils, rather than just a quick, functional chore.

Islam, born in west asia, also emphasizes cleanliness repeatedly in Quran (cleanliness is next to godliness).

perfumery was highly regarded in the Islamic world. scholars such as Al-Kindi wrote extensively on perfumes and distillation methods while Ibn Sina helped refine techniques for extracting floral essences like rosewater. the region became famous for ingredients like rose, jasmine, amber, musk, saffron, especially oud.

in many Gulf households, offering guests coffee and burning bakhoor are acts of hospitality.

the Safavid court elevated this obsession with perfumery to an almost mystical, highly sensory ritual. Shah Ismail I, the founder of the empire, was himself a mystic poet who wrote passionately, weaving the fragrance of the beloved and the spiritual essence of flowers directly into his verses. in Safavid courtly life, scent was treated as an active element of hospitality and prestige. guests were routinely sprinkled with pure rosewater upon crossing the threshold, while royal garments and heavy silks were stored in chests layered with ambergris, musk, and dried jasmine. they considered this to be dignity and spiritual purity.

it's a region where people regularly scent their homes with incense, wear layered perfumes, flavor sweets with roses, value cultivate fragrant gardens has a cultural emphasis on sensual aesthetics that's unusually strong by global standards.

alongside with rose, tulip is one of west asia's signature flowers. while tulips originally grew in central asia, the Ottoman Turks started the tulip era by cultivating them extensively and introduced them to europe. ottomans turned them into art forms, frequently used in Turkish iznik ceramics, tiles etc. ottomans even had a historical era literally called "the tulip age", which was a period of time associated with having fun and leisure and artistic renaissances.

notably, tulips in west asia are a meeting point of mars and venus, as tulips are considered a marsian flower, and came from central asia which is a marsian region. it ottoman culture, they were symbols of wealth, power, and even divinity because the word for tulip,"lâle" shares the same Arabic letters as the name of God (Allah) when written in Ottoman script, giving the flower mystical and spiritual associations as well. so tulip simultaneously became a symbol of earthly beauty, imperial grandeur and luxury as well as divine order. although tulips and Turkic people are both primarily mars influenced, the venusian geography did its own spin

Ottoman court textiles were also among the most coveted luxury goods of the early modern world and heavily influenced european fashion and decorative arts.

traditional jewelry in west asia likewise tends toward exuberant ornamentation: elaborate goldwork, gemstones, filigree and coin jewelry designed to display wealth and beauty. combined with perfumed oils, embroidered garments and floral motifs, adornment becomes a multisensory aesthetic experience rather than a simple accessory. coin jewelry, although found in other parts of the world, is not merely as common and woven into everyday wear as in west asian women's attires as well as marriage customs. it's very much a taurean adornment.

social behaviors

another distinctly venusian aspect of near east culture is the structure of social gatherings themselves. greetings in much of west asia tend to be remarkably warm and affectionate. friends and relatives often greet one another with embraces and two cheek kisses, usually cheek-to-cheek or air kisses rather than direct contact).

celebrations are intensely sensory experiences centered around abundance and pleasure: tables overflowing with food, elaborate displays of sweets and fruit, music, fragrance, communal dancing. it's important to note, it's standard to do these points in extravagant ways.

dancing occupies an unusually central role in many west asian gatherings. even if it's a mere family gathering, usually after eating there will be dancing. at celebrations, whether through line dances, circle dances, folk dances or forms of Raqs (dance traditions that include what became known in the west as belly dance), participation is often expected. refusing to dance at a gathering or celebration practically invites being dragged onto the dance floor by relatives or friends.

even simple gatherings are almost ritualized cycles of feasting, dancing, and then returning to sweets, tea, coffee and fruit.

the distinction between public and private beauty is often less rigid than in many western societies. in casual home settings included, doing a full glam make up and wearing a nice dress and bringing heels/nice shoes specifically to wear inside the house when you're visiting someone's house is standard.

mesapotamia

the deepest Venusian connection is that west asia not only became one of history's great centers of perfume, gardens, flowers, hospitality and sensual aesthetics but it was also the birthplace of the first civilization (mesapotamia) and the homeland of both Aphrodite (descendant of Inanna myths) and Inanna-Ishtar, humanity's earliest great goddess identified with the planet Venus itself. she was simultaneously a goddess of love and war, beauty and conquest, sexuality and political power. in Sumerian literary tradition, the goddess Inanna has been an inexhaustible source of inspiration for poets.

in mesopotamian myth, Inanna tricks Enki (the god of wisdom) into giving her the Me, which included the blueprints for writing, law, strategy, priesthoods and mathematics. mesapotamia is also where literacy first emerged. in traditional astrology Venus processes geometry, metric poetry, synthesis. in the Islamic golden age, Adab was the concept of high cultural literacy, refinement and polite letters. To possess Adab meant you kou knew how to write with exquisite etiquette, metaphor and beauty. Venus rules this elevated cultural literacy. calligraphy also became an important visual art form due to aniconic religious practices in Islamic cultue.

civilization itself in a way is a venusian project in the sense they allow for gardens and ornamental architecture, luxury goods and jewelry, music, dance, poetry, literature etc. and the first place where these things became institutionalized on a massive scale was Mesopotamia.

Religions, although generally all are Jupiterian on a baseline level, they're co-ruled by different planets, e.g Christianity is Jupiter-Saturn ruled. 9th century astrologer Abu Ma'shar stated that Islam is governed by Venus-Jupiter in Kitāb al-milal wa-l-duwal.

Abu Ma'shar wrote that when a great conjunction occurred with Venus, it heralded the birth of Islam and the Arab conquests. Venus represents beauty, pleasure, cleanliness, art and passion. Astrologers noted that Islamic culture emphasized ritual washing (5 times a day), sensory appreciation within divine bounds, specific marriage laws, and a holy day on Friday (which is ruled by Venus). One of Allah's names is "Al-Jameel", the beautiful.

Islam differs from most other religions for its' encouragement of indulging in material and sensual pleasures and enjoying what God has blessed you with on earth. Everything you have is given to you by God, so it's considered selfish to not enjoy and not be grateful. Quran explicitly states that gratefulness is one of the highest states of existence you can achieve from which on you unlock endless abundance, and Quran encourages asking for big things from God, because the is the most generous and abundant. Scholars and Quran repeatedly emphasize the importance of asking for grand favors for this reason. The contrast to other religions is importaht, because many religions developed strong currents of world-denial, celibacy, renunciation of beauty or suspicion toward pleasure. Islam does almost the opposite. Marriage is encouraged, eating good food is encouraged, perfume is encouraged, beautiful clothing is encouraged, and gratitude is demonstrated by enjoying God's blessings. Holiness is not based upon austerity and deprivation unlike in certain other religions.

The Quran repeatedly condemns excessive asceticism and self-imposed deprivation:

"Say, who has forbidden the adornment (zinah) of Allah which He has brought forth for His servants and the good things of provision?" (7:32)

"But monasticism they invented; We did not prescribe it for them."

The concept of zinah (adornment) itself is of course. Venusian. The Quran speaks positively of beautiful garments, jewelry,beautification of mosques and beautification of the earth, beautification of yourself and everything around you in general. Beauty becomes morally problematic only when it leads to arrogance, vanity or injustice.

The Prophet ﷺ said "Allah is beautiful and loves beauty." Venusian theology.

Cleanliness is next to Godliness

Although cleaning has Virgo associations, the grooming, keeping up personal hygiene and making your environment clean and tidy parts are under Venus' domain. Cleanliness is one of the most emphasized subjects in Quran and Islamic culture says barakah (abundance) doesn't enter unclean homes. One of the famous Hadiths which Muslims live by says, "Cleanliness/purity is half of iman (faith)" (الطُّهُورُ شَطْرُ الْإِيمَانِ). In Turkic countries which predominantly consist of Muslim populations, the saying "Iman comes from cleanliness" is very widespread (Turkish: temizlik imandan gelir / Uzbek: tozalik imandandir).

Of course, it's also mandatory to do a ritual washing before each prayer, which is 5 times a day.

Smelling good is considered a good deed and Sunnah

Prophet Mohammad expressed that fragrance has been made dear to him, wore fragrance for daily care (especially favored musk), and recommended it to his ummah. It is Sunnah to apply fragrance before Friday prayers, on religious holidays and when receiving guests. However, it is discouraged to wear scents strong enough that they're sensible by other people and it's discouraged for women to wear aphrodisiac scents outside of home.

In Islam, art and aesthetics are based on the principle of doing everything in the most beautiful way (ihsan), deriving its source from the Quran and Sunnah.

Unity (Tawhid) Reflects infinity and the oneness of God, it's one of the core principles of the religion and Islamic art. Repeating motifs and geometric shapes radiating from the center symbolize this belief.

Beauty is a part of Islamic morality

In traditional astrology and esoteric philosophy, Venus isn't just about surface-level attraction; it represents cosmic balance, divine symmetry, and the pulling force of love ('Ishq) that draws everything back to its source. When we look at Islamic art and geometry through this lens, the connection becomes incredibly vivid.

Islamic civilization has viewed art not merely as an aesthetic pursuit, but as a reflection of divine truth and a means of contemplation. In Islamic thought, art is considered a way of comprehending the beauties created by God and seeing God's attributes in them. Art, reflected in the beauty of a flower, the splendor of an architectural structure, or the pen of a calligrapher, is an expression of humanity's admiration for the artistry of its Lord and its desire to draw closer to Him. In this context, Islamic art is not merely ornamentation that appeals to the eye, but also a mirror that purifies the soul, guides humanity towards spirituality, calls to the depths of truth, and allows one to comprehend His power and the perfection in His artistry.

"Understanding Beauty" is understanding existence. Existence is a gift from the Most Beautiful Creator. It is a sign from Him, a blessing. Beauty in existence is not inherent in itself, but rather the result of a manifestation of the Most Beautiful in existence. Existence owes all its meaning and value to this manifestation. Islamic thought, which considers beauty as a part of morality, was born and developed as an activity of understanding. In it, the effort to understand is not an expression of the desire to possess, but of a consciousness of belonging. This can be seen in the relationship that Islamic thought establishes with nature, the concrete form of existence. This relationship gave rise to the perception of beauty in Islamic thought. -Mustafa Uğur Gök

According to Islamic scholars, the ‘courageous’ claims that are the product of an individual’s internal struggles and contradictory state of mind have no place in Islamic art.

“In Islamic aesthetics, art, considered a form of prayer, requires a humble attitude from the artist. The fact that the artist as a subject did not stand out in tradition, and that a privileged class of artists did not emerge, is a result of this humble attitude.”

Throughout history, Sufis have attached special importance to all arts and have encouraged artistry, especially the ones centered on the Quran, like Hat (calligraphy).

Some of the most well known tpyes of Islamic arts include;

Calligraphy: Often considered the highest form of Islamic art. Since the Quran is the literal word of God, writing it beautifully became an act of devotion.

(from left to right made by Ottoman Qur'an by the Turkish calligrapher Qarabash, Turkish Hattats, Hülya Mamati & Nilgün Gedik)

Illumination and Manuscript Arts aka Tezhip in Ottoman tradition: Its purpose is honoring sacred knowledge. The physical manifestation of knowledge is made beautiful because knowledge itself is viewed as noble.

Arabesque: Flowers like roses, tulips, and cypresses became major motifs in Persian, Ottoman and Uzbek art. Paradise is described with rivers, greenery, fruits and garden symbolisms so unsurprising that Islamic decorative arts became filled with floral imagery. This resonates strongly with Venus, whose symbolism across many traditions is linked with gardens, flowers, abundance, and cultivated beauty.

Geometry and Geometric Patterns: The endlessly repeating patterns suggest that creation points beyond itself toward divine infinity. You can never find a true beginning or end to many Islamic geometric patterns. Geometry also reflects the Quranic notion that God created everything according to measure and balance (mizan); everything is created in measure, proportion and equilibrium. Beauty is therefore not random but ordered and harmonious. Venus rules harmony, proportion, symmetry, balance, mathematical beauty, refinement.

Divine Love in Tasawwuf and 12H undercurrents.

A huge amount of Sufi literature revolves around beauty and love, as it is the mystical path of love. For many Sufis earthly beauty reminds one of Divine Beauty, human love becomes a mirror for Divine Love (the basis of the whole doctrine) & as mentioned in previous sections, beauty awakens longing for union with God. Tawhid is one of the core principles of Sufism indicating we are one with the creator and all his creation, there is no seperation. Divine Love often gets misinterpreted by western readers for literal romantic love, but it's the kind of love which transcends that as they unite you with God. This is often triggered after an experience with someone that you feel such fondness towards that they bring you closer to the creator, or lead you to experience him for the first time. Ishq is the supreme spiritual force and the ultimate path to knowing God. It is an intense, all-consuming passion where the seeker (the lover) yearns to dissolve the boundaries of the ego to achieve union with the Divine (the Beloved)

Sufis believe divine love cannot be grasped by the intellect; it is experienced exclusively through the deep, spiritual heart. The qalb (heart) is the spiritual sanctionary. Eventually, worldly attachments are left behind for the sake of divine closeness.  Within the heart we come closer and closer to our Beloved (Creator), so close that finally there is no separation as the lover merges into the Beloved, the lover becomes lost in love, “drowned in love’s ocean.” This doctrine directly reflects Venus' exaltation in 12H and Pisces.

Loving someone romantically or platonically is also significant as it's often the starting point that leads a person toward a deeper understanding of spiritual love. In this understanding we can see involvement of Venus in all 3 stages of Taurus - Libra (Ishq-e-Majazi (Metaphorical or Earthly Love) - eventually Pisces, dissolving of material attachments (Ishq-e-Haqiqi (True or Divine Love)

All addictions are a low level search to unite with God, as all desires are also a call from God to find your way to him.

On the Sufi journey we discover that the veil that separates us from the Divine is our ego, our illusory sense of a separate self. We have to “die before you die”, the ego has to be sacrificed; consumed by the fire of divine love. For the Sufi “nothing is possible in love without death,”

Between you and me there lingers an “It is I” which torments me Ah! lift this “It is I” from between us both

Venus also appears in Mevlana (Rumi)'s writings frequently as a motif expressing the ascent from the material world to the spiritual world.

Good Morals & Peace

Islam's greeting itself is "As-salamu alaykum" ("Peace be upon you"). Peace (salam) is one of the religion's most visible social ideals and even one of God's names is As-Salam. Paradise itself is described as an abode of peace.

The Prophet ﷺ taught that even smiling at another person is charity. Cheerfulness, warmth, and pleasantness in social interaction are all strongly encouraged.

Something Quran frequently touches upon is the importance of having good morals, making it essential for Muslims to always work on specific things in this regard. Gossiping, using hurtful words, unprovoked criticism are among the things strongly discouraged. The Quran instructs believers to speak kindly (qawlan ma'rufa), gently (qawlan layyina), and with dignity (qawlan karima). Even when addressing enemies or correcting others, harshness is discouraged whenever possible.

The Quran praises "those who restrain anger and pardon people". Venus seeks reconciliation and social harmony rather than unnecessary conflict.

The Prophet ﷺ encouraged exchanging gifts because it increases love and affection between people. Gift-giving, tokens of affection, and strengthening social bonds are very Venusian themes.

Mercy is one of the central themes of Islam. Every chapter of the Quran except one begins with "In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful."

(Silat ar-Rahim) – Islam places immense emphasis on preserving kinship and social bonds, visiting relatives, and caring for parents and family members. Venus governs relationships and social cohesion.

Backbiting, suspicion, mockery, ridicule, and spreading rumors (fitnah) are all strongly condemned because they damage communal harmony and relationships.

Marriage and Sexuality

Venus is the planet of union and love relationships. Islam places extraordinary emphasis on marriage as half of faith, affection (mawaddah), mercy (rahmah), spouses as garments for one another and fulfilling emotional and physical rights. Islam also places a moral duty on both the wife and husband to take care of each other, and take care of themselves (upkeep with personal beauty, hygiene etc.)

"And among His signs is that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquility in them, and He placed between you affection and mercy."

Sexuality is seen as spiritually meaningful and natural.

Women's Place in Islam

In the eyes of God, men and women are considered spiritual equals. The Quran explicitly states that both genders are rewarded equally for their actions and faith. Islam introduced reforms to establish women's rights in 7th century Arabia at a time when women were suffering. Islam made it mandatory for women to have access to financial independence, inheritence, consent in marriage and high societal value.

Financial Independence: A woman’s wealth is entirely her own. She is under no obligation to spend her own money on the household, that responsibility falls entirely on her husband or male relatives.

A marriage is considered invalid without the explicit consent of the bride. She also retains her own family name after marriage, rather than taking her husband's.

Education: The pursuit of education is a religious duty in Islam. The Prophet Muhammad stated that "Seeking knowledge is mandatory upon every Muslim" (which includes both men and women). Women were prominent scholars, jurists, and educators. the Prophet's wife Aisha was one of the primary sources of Islamic law and narration.

on a Lunar note, well-known hadith of the Prophet Muhammad states, "Heaven lies under the feet of your mothers,"