The Venus Sequence: Healing Relationships in Divided Times
Exploring the Sphere of Purpose within the context of the Venus Sequence
Personal Transformation through Relationship
*****6-week Mini exploration into the Gene Keys*****
This is part 3 of 7.
For part 1 go here. (Introduction to the Venus Sequence)
For part 2 go here. (On Contemplation)
The Spiral Nature of Growth
Beloved seeker, the gates of Venus beckon. Here lies a sacred descent into the depths of love, beauty, and the sensual arts. Pause at this threshold, for the transformation ahead will leave an indelible mark upon your soul.
This path is not a single journey, but a spiral staircase of wisdom. Return to Venus' embrace whenever her call echoes in your heart, for her teachings flow eternal like honey from the comb. Each ascent reveals new layers, as yesterday's insights become the soil from which deeper truths blossom. Watch as abstract concepts crystallize into lived experience, your own story becoming a testament to her ancient wisdom.
For those seeking to amplify this transformation, consider joining our intimate circle of eight seekers. These sacred workshops open twice yearly, or when the stars align a full group. Reach out if you feel called to this collective awakening by sending me a message here.
Let’s dive in to the first sphere of the Venus Sequence.
The Sphere of Purpose.
The sphere of purpose begins the Venus Sequence but is also the last sphere in the activation sequence. If you don’t know what that means, please read my Gene Keys Explained post. Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.
Remember that each sphere has a Gene Key and a line that helps add flavor and context to the gene key. Each Gene Key has a shadow, gift, and siddhi. The siddhi is hidden in your DNA (all Siddhis are) and you unlock it by embracing the shadow and embodying the gift of this gene key.
If you don’t already have your profile, go get it! If you have not gotten the Gene Keys library book, go get that too. It will help tremendously. You can borrow it from the local library, or sign up for a free audible trial and download it on audible. Or splurge and buy it. It will prove immensely helpful in your contemplations. To get deep dives on the lines of the gene keys, I will demonstrate with my own contemplation of my lines, but yours may be different and so if you want to dive deeper into the line, I recommend you purchase the whole Gene Keys Venus Sequence course. And then come back here for a simplification and translation if the explanations of the course seem too esoteric or abstract. We can chat about them, safely, here. Together.
The reason Purpose is the first sphere is quite important actually. Because every relationship in your life brings you the opportunity to find a deeper relationship to your own true purpose.
The sphere of purpose is located in your unconscious earth in your human design map. And it is tied to the location of the earth approximately 3 months before you were born, also called your design date. The position of this sphere is linked to the spiritual path you are meant to travel in this lifetime.
The habits and characteristics of your conscious earth placement are clues to the activities and processes that ground you and bring you back to God/Universe/Higher Self. They are unique to you.
This sphere is the opening of the Venus sequence and as such it is the doorway to Love. That’s love with a capital L. Unconditional Love. The only thing that is real.
Don’t Ignore the Pathways
In the Activation Sequence, the sphere of purpose is tied to the sphere of Radiance (your unconscious sun and what keeps you healthy) through the pathway of Core Stability. In the Venus Sequence, the sphere of purpose is connected to the sphere of attraction through the pathway of Dharma. But also remember that this is a hologram and that the whole profile is inside every sphere. (Star emoji)
My Sphere of Purpose
The Sphere of Purpose in my profile is Gene Key 32.4 - Ancestral Reverence
Its shadow is Failure
The gift is Preservation
The siddhi is Veneration
My line is 4 - Breath (rhythm)
I could say that failure in relationships are my path into unconditional love. And that through the gift of preservation I am carefully pruning what is not worth keeping, and honoring (smaller version of veneration) and placing high value on that which is worth keeping for future generations.
The gate 32 in human design is the gate of continuity and is the energy for guiding one’s community into its highest potential for success. It says that I am able to “smell” opportunities that will work and those that won’t. It is the potential to be in healthy relationship with success and failure. This gene key’s line 4 describes a person who is able to hold steady to their values despite what is going on outside, unless her values (Venus) or security are threatened.
I could say that the purpose of all relationships in my life, inner and outer, is to exponentially enhance the quality of veneration in my life.
The Codon Ring
The 32nd Gene Key is part of the ring of illusion. The ring of illusion only has one other Gene Key, and that is Gene Key 28. This is located in the spleen - which is the center for inuition and is tied to fears. Gene Key 28 is the Gene Key of immortality and is nicknamed: Embracing the Dark Side. So right away I know that not only i smy purpose tied to death, but also to that which must be kept alive - and preserved. Sometimes it is as simple as this.
Shadow of Failure
So much has been written about failure. Is there such a thing as failure? Only if you don’t learn from it. The biggest failure in my eyes is the failure to live my best life. To achieve my purpose, it’s whats driven me into the rabbit holes of meaning since I was a teenager.
The ring of illusion and the ring of life and death are quite present in my profile and my chart. I’ve always been acutely aware of death and the limited time we have on the planet. It’s what has frantically driven me to do all the things. Feel all the things. One song that describes me well is “The Finer Things” by Steve Winwood. The opening line: “While there is time. Let’s go out and feel everything.” Tells you all you need to know about the motor that drives me. Read all the books, take all of the courses, travel to every country, join all the communities, say yes to everything. Obviously, that is a plan that can only end in madness if not harnessed, and if not curated. Had I come across the Gene Keys or Human Design teachings at a younger age who knows where I’d be now.
Beyond our fear of death lies another primal fear: failing to continue our ancestral line. While some have moved beyond the biological drive to reproduce, those who carry the 32nd Gene Key in their purpose sphere often feel a deep, instinctual pull toward preserving their lineage through procreation. And I am no exception. As a little girl I didn’t dream of a wedding or getting married, I dreamed of being a mother.
Failure is tied to panic. It’s one of its keynotes, if you will. Frantically going from place to place? Check! And what happens when you panic and are frantic is you forget how to live in the present. Which is all there is, after all.
If I can let life in and live without panic, perhaps I won't have failed.
If I can view relationships as mirrors of my wounding, I can begin to heal.
If I slow down, I slow the shadow of failure down, too.
When reflecting on failure, obvious starting point is my two dissolved marriages, myriad fractured friendships, and difficult workplace partings. Each ending felt like a mark of personal defeat - whether letting someone go or sensing my own impending dismissal. Yet through deeper contemplation, I've come to understand relationships differently: they are mirrors revealing our wounds, and their impermanence is natural. The true measure lies not in their duration of a relationship, but in how we choose to end it. As Richard wisely notes, when we part ways with grace and graciousness, there is no failure - only completion.
Life rarely grants us control over when relationships end, but we cal always choose our response. With my first husband, the father of my children,I’d like to believe we both reached for civility but found it slipping through our fingers. Our relationship is still strained, if nonexistent, 18 years later. Sometimes grace remains elusive despite our deepest prayers and intentions. The best I can do for the sake of my soul and my children, I just remind myself to keep my side of the street clean, though not always successfully.
My second marriage ended differently. Though we weathered the storm of separation with its inevitable pain and chaos, time transformed our ending into something gentler. A decade later, we still share birthday wishes and carry a quiet reverence for our short, shared chapter. Perhaps this is what gracious completion looks like - when even failure can hold beauty.
The fear of failure runs deep in all of us, but its grip on me manifests in paralyzing moments of doubt - freezing me when outcomes seem uncertain. Most visceral is my constant dread of job loss, a fear I've inherited through my Latino heritage, passed down like an unwanted family heirloom. In every position I've held, this shadow has loomed over me, whispering warnings of disaster that never came to pass. Though I've never actually been fired, this revelation brings its own haunting question:
Have I been playing it safe all along? Have I let this ancestral fear limit my horizons, keeping me tethered to comfortable certainties rather than reaching for bold possibilities?
Loneliness and isolation hide in failure's darkest corners, stirring our primal fear of tribal rejection. I know these depths intimately - those moments when no one seems to understand and you lose your sense of purpose and meaning. In this crushing solitude, I reach toward Spirit, the Universal Mind that binds us all. These moments of divine connection remind me that isolation exists only as illusion and we are all connected to one another whether we like it or not.
But that interconnection burns. When I witness humanity's darkest acts, I resist our unity. How can THAT connect to ME? How can I share essence with those who unleash unspeakable deeds? Still, beneath my resistance, truth persists.
Some shadows can be taken to extremes.
Remember that each shadow also has a reactive and a repressive nature. They can both show up in your life, though we will tend to one more than the other.
You can find out what the repressive and reactive nature of your shadows are in the Gene Keys book, or by upgrading to an Annual Membership which includes a Gene Keys reading with me and where I will introduce all of these to you.
Reactive Nature of Shadow of Purpose
The reactive nature of the shadow of failure is disjointed; largely because one of the side effects of failure is isolation and the fear of isolation. When you cut yourself off from God, the rest of the world. You start to believe the lie that you are all alone.
As an Enneagram 8, I've always been the fixer, the defender, the one who steps up when everything's falling apart—whether it's a messy house no one else seems to notice or life's bigger disasters. This compulsion to be the strong one, to believe no superhero is coming to save the day, has shaped everything—maybe even destroyed two marriages and affected how I raised my kids (hello, helo). But lately I'm wondering: is it really only and always up to me?
When I'm convinced I'm the only one who'll fix things—whether it's an actual mess or an emotional cleanup—I spiral into overdrive until I burn out completely. Yes, even relationships can burn you out. But here's my wake-up call: maybe by always jumping in first, I never gave anyone else the space to step up? I have been guilty of this with my team at work, to sometimes disastrous consequences.
This feeling that I have to do everything, that I'm alone in the fight, has left me fragmented. And while no one might physically swoop in to rescue me, sometimes messes are not mine to sweep up. Full stop. It's that familiar panic rising—the scent of failure getting too close.
What’s the Way out of Failure’s Reactive Nature?
The way out is to recognize when I am feeling this way and then lean into it, with love. To remember that I am not alone. That no one is. There is a flow to life, and the times when I feel disjointed could be time when I have fallen out of sync with the stream, got stuck in a rock somewhere along the banks. So the way out of this is by looking for the flow and going with it once I find it.
Repressive Nature of the Shadow of Purpose
The repressive nature of failure breeds fundamentalists—those who clutch the past like a shield, fighting change with closed fists and closed minds. They build echo chambers of sameness, choking out new life in their desperate grasp for certainty. While I see this clearly in others, my shadow dances differently—more reactive than repressive. Yet in moments of fear, I too can become that fundamentalist, gripping what no longer serves. Be that physical things, relationships, clothes, or beliefs. This awareness now lets me catch myself whenever I cling to the status quo, even when it's hurting me, others, or humanity itself. It may take me a while to realize it, or for others to call it out in me when they see it, but knowing I have this tendency has proven useful if also painful.
I've learned to dance with failure gracefully, about 70% of the time. But corporate life makes this dance rigid—legal speak replacing human truths like "I wanted this to work" or "I have no more rope to give." We hide behind platitudes to preserve bridges that perhaps should burn. Like that toxic job where I was failing—I smiled and waved goodbye with words that weren't mine, preserving a bridge I'd never want to cross again.
Failure, like all shadows, wears different masks to different eyes. Some say there are no failures, only lessons. But I believe the only true failure is the failure to live, the untaken leap, the dream left dormant. The failure isn't in trying and falling—it's in never daring at all.
This is why I chose the Awakening Executive path—could we bring soul back to our workplaces? Could we release people with dignity, speak with authenticity, and finally drop our professional masks?
Imagine workplaces where authenticity isn't just a buzzword on a mission statement, but the very air we breathe. Where ending a working relationship doesn't mean crafting defensive legal shields, but having honest conversations that honor both the journey shared and the paths that must diverge.
Picture leadership meetings where vulnerability isn't seen as weakness, but as the cornerstone of true strength. Where executives can say "I don't know" without fear, where tears aren't hidden behind bathroom doors, and where meditation rooms are as common as meeting rooms. Where profit and purpose dance together rather than wage war.
Envision a corporate culture where failure is not a word that sends legal teams scrambling, but an acknowledged step in every innovation journey. Where "I made a mistake" is met with "What did you learn?" rather than a note in your personnel file. Where performance reviews discuss not just metrics, but meaning—not just output, but impact.
Consider a world where layoffs, when necessary, are handled with the same care as hiring. Where we don't hide behind cold emails and security escorts, but offer ceremonies of completion, celebrating contributions and supporting transitions. Where former employees become alumni, not adversaries.
Dream of businesses where spirituality isn't a whispered word, but a recognized source of creativity and resilience. Where taking time for personal growth is as valued as professional development. Where we can speak of energy, intuition, and purpose without being labeled "soft" or "unprofessional."
This is the revolution of the Awakening Executive—not just to change how we work, but to transform why we work. To create organizations that serve as vessels for human potential rather than just profit centers. Where success is measured not just in quarterly earnings, but in lives touched, spirits lifted, and legacies created.
This isn't just about making work more comfortable—it's about making it more human. About creating spaces where we can bring our whole selves, where our work becomes a path of awakening rather than a source of soul-sleep. Where every meeting, every decision, every transition becomes an opportunity for growth, connection, and conscious leadership.
This is the future of business—not just conscious capitalism, but awakened organizations. Where we recognize that the most powerful business strategies come not from suppressing our humanity, but from embracing it fully. Where we understand that soul and success aren't competitors, but companions on the journey to creating something truly extraordinary.
The Gift of Preservation:
As you sink deeper into your Purpose's shadow, its gift emerges like a sunrise—effortless, inevitable. Richard Rudd calls this the inner turning. Preservation becomes a sacred duty: to protect what you truly love, what deserves to endure. Through this, the shadow's suffering dissolves. That fragmented feeling melts away as all my parts rejoin life's flow, merging once again with the whole.
Within the ring of illusion, preservation's gift seeks to shatter the false—the Maya, the Matrix, all that isn't real. But am I brave enough to let myself be shattered in the process?
The questions echo: What am I here to preserve? What deserves to survive? What will I save, and what will I transform in service of what I love?
During this meditation on my sphere of purpose, I uncovered an old recording of my life's mission—written and recorded March 24, 2017, before Human Design or Gene Keys ever entered my consciousness. See below.
As this 7 year old statement can attest, these systems don't need to be "known" to be lived—there it was in my mission statement from 8 years ago: Intelligence as my life's work, facilitating growth and awakening, liberating people to discover who they really are. Even the spiral of growth was there, though I called it a staircase back then. Hearing this recording today reminds me:
when fear makes me want to hide, sharing this work IS exactly what I'm meant to do. I'll put it out there; you decide what to preserve.
Preservation threads through my life in unexpected ways. I value quality, not luxury—my well-used Le Creuset dutch oven, proper kitchen knives, this desk I write on. While I didn't succeed in teaching my kids Spanish, I preserved our Latin American essence through food—Cuban dishes, arepas, lomo saltado—and a love for cultural exploration over tourist traps. I preserved family legacy through our cookbook, first created with my grandmother in 2005, recently updated with my cousin in 2024 for a new generation.
Professionally, preservation guides me through adaptive reuse architecture. While everyone talks about building green, the most sustainable building is the one already standing. Updating facades and interiors while honoring original design—that's preservation in action.
Initially, "preservation" as a life purpose seemed underwhelming compared to loftier gifts like altruism or idealism. But now I see its quiet power.
What's your Gift of Purpose? How does it manifest in your life? I'd love to hear your story.
Siddhi of Purpose: Veneration
Siddhis—especially those in our "unconscious" spheres—are elusive territory. Since the left side of the Gene Keys profile represents the unconscious, others often recognize these traits in us before we do. Our subconscious knows, but our conscious mind might resist or dismiss them. This is why being witnessed through this journey can be so transformative. (If you're interested in exploring this in a safe, supportive environment, reach out about the next workshop.)
The Siddhi represents a Gene Key's purest expression—its true nature in the 5th dimension. These enlightened states usually come in flashes, perhaps during meditation or moments of grace.
While contemplating Veneration, I discovered its root in Venus, unleashing a cascade of connections. Beyond the Roman goddess of love and her astrological significance, Venus has been quietly guiding my path since 2021. That year, drawn to explore chakras, I focused on the heart chakra—Venus's domain. My lifelong love of red began shifting toward green, particularly that muted army shade paired with rose pink. Turns out earth tones of pink and green greatly complement my eye color and skin tone, so I have embraced green (and pink) in my wardrobe, my iPhone, my aesthetic choices, discovering how it brought out my eyes.
Simultaneously, rose began appearing everywhere in my life—rose salve, tea, oil, incense. Even on my recent trip to Ireland while shopping for locally made gift items, led me to a Wild Irish Rose candle. Later, I learned Venus is symbolized by the wild rose, her colors are pink and green, and she rules the heart chakra. These synchronicities confirm I'm exactly where I need to be: helping others discover the Venus Sequence and this path of grace and healing.
What’s great about Venus and Veneration is that it is also tied to the ancestral lines, especially that of the mother. And, course, it ties beautiful with the Venus Sequence itself. As this portal opens for me with this Siddhi.
What synchronicities and double meanings are you finding with your Siddhi or Purpose?
The Line of the Sphere of Purpose
Finally, we reach the line—a crucial element that gives personality to the Gene Key archetype. It reveals how your shadow and gift manifest in daily life. Lines themselves carry shadows and gifts, too, describing specific behaviors and tendencies. This makes them particularly powerful in self-discovery, which is why I've saved them for last.
You can find your line placement in your hologenetic profile on genekeys.com. For deeper understanding of your line's meaning, you'll need either the complete Gene Keys course, which is available on the Gene Keys web site under courses, or guidance from a Gene Keys guide (which I am honored to offer).
My line is 4—the politician and nurturer. A line's shadow reveals how we mask hurt or fear. For line 4, this manifests as aloofness and coldness. The repressive nature shows up as emotional numbing, something I battle daily. As a water sign, I feel deeply—even absorbing others' emotions. I learned to numb early for survival, but recently discovered that not all feelings I carry are mine. Venus teaches us to keep our hearts open while witnessing pain, without drowning in it. This is a process that is always evolving within me.
The reactive side of line 4 appears as preemptive rejection—cutting people off before they can reject you. This pattern has played out across all my relationships: romantic, familial, professional, and social. Rejection has been my life's recurring theme. I mentioned earlier about quitting jobs before getting fired, or only going for relationships where I felt safe and could not be rejected. Settling for mediocrity. Always playing it safe.
But life has a way of teaching through opposites. This very wound of rejection, this pattern of self-protection, carries within it a profound gift: the capacity to nurture. The inner strength manifests as gentleness with myself, while the outer strength enables deep connections with others. (It's why I started this Substack—seeking my tribe, craving connection despite the challenges of post-Covid life and constant work-related travel.)
The line's highest potential gives me both the desire and ability to help others accept themselves fully.
How did this sound to you?
What is the highlighted truth, if any, that you saw with this post?
Thank you for reading this far!
Carolina
PS:
If you want to dive deeper, book a Gene Keys Reading with me here.
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