The symbol for Gemini, the 3rd sign of the zodiac, is that of two longer, horizontal lines, lined at the top and bottom by two narrow vertical and parallel lines. This represents the twins of the zodiac, representing the two stars, Castor and Pollux. Ruling planet: Mercury

Gemini Baby – Junior Einstein’s of the Zodiac

Being the parent of a Gemini baby, is a big responsibility and sometimes it will feel as though you really do have twins, so different can the different sides to your little Gemini sometimes be.

This little genius will have you on your toes. Gemini is an Air sign, so rules the mind. This is the smartest of all the signs and there’ll be a mind there, hungry for things to keep it occupied. They’ll bore easily, always needing constant stimulation. They’re likely to master language at a very young age, so make sure their life is rich in literature, right from the very start. If you want to know how old your little Gemini should be when you start bedtime stories, the answer is from day one. They wont understand the words, or see the pictures, but they’re soaking in the tone of the words and the way they dance through their mind.

You’ve got a baby writer and thinker here. By the time your little Gemini is all grown up, they’ll be skilled wordsmiths and communicators. With a mind that is jumping around, seeking information and stimuli, its soaking up information as it goes. This is one little ‘super computer’ you’ve got.

Don’t think you have to treat this baby genius with kid gloves. These are the practical jokers of the zodiac and when it comes to spinning you a line, oh boy, do you need to wake up to these little guys. They’ll pull the wool over your eyes so quick, you won’t even know what’s happened. They’re not deceitful, they just know how to use words to their advantage, which is why they want to learn them so quickly.

This doesn’t mean you have an intellectual on your hand, for Gemini’s crave adventure and play. They’ll happily be playing vanquishing heroes, rather than sitting at the computer.

These are the Twins of the Zodiac and their attention is likely to switch quickly, from one topic to the next. When they’re older, they’ll be able to multi task. Your teenage Gemini really will be able to do his/her homework with the radio blaring, while talking on the phone. They’re able to compartmentalise, having one part of their brain focused on one task and the other, on something else. They’ll be pros by the time they’ve reached puberty, but from day one, they’re practising.

Gemini’s are great travellers and whether its on their own steam, when you’ve left the door open, or with you, they’ll be adventurers from an early age, off on an exploration of discovery.

Your young Gemini will be very dexterous, mastering the keyboard or anything that requires fine motor co ordination. Combined with a fast, quick brain, they’ll soon be on the computer, mastering games for their level. A computer would be a good thing to introduce into your child’s life at an early stage, as computers and your little Gemini are a match made in heaven.

Gemini Baby – The Constellation

The outline in the sky of the constellation of Gemini is that of a perfect rectangle, each vertical side represents a twin. For Gemini is the sign of The Twins. Alpha Gemini (Castor) is at the northern/west head and Beta Gemini (Pollux) is on the southern/east.

In Gemini we don’t meet an animal form, as we did in Aries and Taurus. Here we meet the Twins of Greek Mythology, Castor and Pollux. The fact that this sign has a ‘human’ symbol reflects the fact that we now move away from animal energy, into one of the intellectual mind. This is one of Gemini’s most famous facets.

Castor and Pollux, one mortal one divine, became inseparable and were known collectively as ‘the Dioscuri’. They were great fighters and warriors. Castor was said to have taught Hercules how to fight.

They travelled with Jason as part of the Argonauts and were said to be the protectors of the ‘Argos’. Since that time The Twins have been the patrons or guardians of all seafarers. Twin stars are often depicted on the flags of ancient ships. In 269 BC this image appears on roman coins that have been found. It is this aspect of the Twins that carries on to this day. Gemini is said to be the sign that rules all aspects of travel.

This is reflected in the constellation of Gemini. Each day when the star Castor sets in the west, Pollux follows immediately after and vice versa. When Castor rises in the east, Pollux follows after by his side.

To the ancients, the twins, Castor and Pollux, didn’t rule the constellation of Gemini. They were the twins.

Thus, Gemini represents the duality of the human spirit. Its darkness and its light. Its positivity and its negativity.

In Chinese Astrology it is said that if Mars invaded this constellation, war would ensure. In the east, Gemini was known to the Chinese as ‘yin and yang’.

No matter what the myth or what the culture; Gemini represents twin, mirror, dual or opposing thoughts. In many mythologies, they represent dark and light.

Ancient Astrologers assigned to this constellation guardianship of the hands. It also signified intense devotion, brotherly love, genius and largeness of mind.

Gemini Baby – The Planet

Gemini’s ruling planet is Mercury.

As the planet closest to the Sun, it has the shortest orbit of all the planets. Mercury has always been visible to the naked eye and has been known and recorded since at least the time of the Sumerians (3,000 BC). In ancient Greece it was given two names, as like Venus it rose in both the morning and the evening. In the morning, it was called Apollo and in the evening, Hermes.

The ancients knew that they were the same planet, just as they did with Venus. Like Venus, Mercury governs two signs, Gemini and Virgo.

In ancient times Heraclitus even believed that Mercury and Venus orbited the Sun, not the Earth. This is truly Geminian thinking and intellect, for it was many thousands of years before it was realised that the world was round, not flat.

Mercury is an erratic and eccentric planet, with an orbit that would produce very strange effects if you were able to stand on its surface. At some longitudes, the Sun would appear to rise, stop, reverse up and stop again before resuming its original path towards the horizon, decreasing in size as it went. At the same time, the stars would appear to be moving three times as fast across the sky. If you were standing at other points of the surface of Mercury, you would witness different, but equally bizarre and erratic motions.

As Mercury travels very close to the Sun, it’s often hard to see, although it can be seen with the naked eye.

Gemini Baby – The Messenger

Hermes, Messenger of the Gods, was given rulership of Gemini.

To the ancients though, this wasn’t how they saw it. They saw not a planet, but Hermes himself. With a planet so erratic, no wonder Hermes was such a fickle and unpredictable god.

Mercurial would be the word that would best describe this god. He was impossible to pin down.

Hermes is the God that most resembles the Twins. Born from ‘mother night’ and Zeus, king of the Gods, he is the child of spiritual light and primordial dark. In fact, one of his tasks was to guide souls on their journey to the underworld. His mother, Maia, was a mysterious nymph who gifted her son the arts of magic and divination. Zeus assigned his son the task of Messenger. But you could never trust whether or not the messages he brought were right or wrong, as he loved to play practical jokes and was known as the ‘trickster’.

He is also, however, patron of practical tricks. He wasn’t a god to trust completely. When he was just a baby he left his crib and stole the cattle from his brother Apollo, the Sun God. In order to trick Apollo he wore sandals which faced backwards so that Apollo would look in the wrong direction for the culprit.

When Apollo finally confronted Hermes, he immediately gave Apollo a gift of a tortoise shell lyre and flattered him to such an extent over his singing talents, that his brother forgot all about the stolen cattle. Thus, Hermes rules the gift of communication and in perfect dual fashion, both communication you can trust and that which you can’t. They’re often very smooth talkers.

In the ancient world there would often be statues of Hermes at crossroads, as he was the patron of travellers, wanderers and the homeless.

Gemini Baby – The Season

Gemini is the third sign of the Zodiac and the last sign of the Spring triad.

Gemini is an Air sign and rules the mind.

The hard work had been done by this stage in spring. The days are now much longer than the nights. With the Sun getting higher in the sky, the evenings are longer. This was a time that people sat outdoors in the evening, discussing ideas and plans. The summer solstice was getting closer and there was lightness in the air. People were out and about, walking, appreciating the flowers and the new life emerging. Nature itself was putting on a spectacular display, something Gemini’s like to do.

Being the last month of Spring, this is a mutable sign. That is, its a time of transition. Spring is about to end, but not yet and Summer is about to begin, but not yet. This is a time of discussion and ideas.

There is lightness in the air and everything is buzzing with expectation for the coming season.

To read more about your other children go to BellyBelly’s star signs page : Star signs