Venus (Shukra)
With planetary number 6, Venus is known as the planet of beauty and love. Venus is the second closest planet to the Sun, so much like Mercury, it can never be too far from the Sun in a Birth Chart. (This is why Venus can never receive the aspect of the Sun.) From the placement of Venus we can see how someone is going to relate to other people, what gives them pleasure and happiness. The association of Venus with passion and the ardent type of love is incorrect. The energies of Venus are soft and not truly fueling passion. Materialism and enjoyment of fine things and worldly pleasures, fine clothes, jewelry etc. can be seen from the condition of Venus.
Creativity both in art and in free flowing thinking is also the gift of Venus. Venus has only 1 aspect, it always aspects the 7th House from its placement, that is the Sign directly across from it.
For example Venus in Taurus aspects Scorpio, or if we look at it through Houses, 12th House Venus always aspects the 6th House
Venus rules 2 Signs, the Cardinal Air Sign Libra and the Fixed Earth Sign Taurus. For everyone Venus becomes the ruler of the Houses where Libra and Taurus fall in their Birth Chart.
For example for a Scorpio person Venus rules the 7th and 12th Houses, for a Pisces it rules the 3rd and 8th Houses, etc.
Venus is strongest in Libra, its Mooltrikona Sign, Exalted in the Sign of Pisces and Debilitated in Virgo. Venus does well in friendly Signs (Capricorn, Aquarius, Cancer)
As all Benefics, Venus gives good results in Trikona (1st, 5th, 9th) and Kendra (1st 4th, 7th 10th) Houses. For males, romantic partners and spouses are also understood from the placement of Venus. In Malefic Dushtana Houses Venus is considered badly placed, as the ease loving, comfortable and pleasure seeking energies of Venus get easily bruised in areas where grit determination and the ability to fight are necessary for survival and success.
The planetary gemstone of Venus is the Diamond (White Sapphire, White Topaz are also powerful alternatives). Only people who have well placed Venus should ever wear these gemstones, as wearing the gems of ill placed planets can magnify and enhance the negative energies. Venus rules Fridays.