Air Series Part One:Gemini

Air Series

Part One: Gemini

March 17, 2023

In my previous blogs, we explored the Fire and Earth families. We are now moving on to the much different energy of the air family. Imagine in your mind for a moment the difference between Earth and Air. Walking on the solid ground versus a cool breeze blowing through your hair. We can reach down and touch the Earth below our feet, but we can not capture the cool breeze. The elements themselves are very different as are the signs, planets, and houses that they represent. As we have explored, all are necessary and play an important function in our human psyche. Gemini is mutable air.

Mutable signs can shift and change easily. If you can remember this about Gemini, then you are already on your way to understanding this energy! Gemini represents the very important function of communication. Unless you live in complete solitude, you are in constant communication with other living beings. Even if you do live in solitude and never speak to anyone, you still see the world through your own perception. You have your own views in which you navigate the world. It is easy to think of communication as only speaking and listening, but Gemini deals with our perception as well.

Our own perceptions are the reason we talk and listen in certain ways. As Steven Forrest states reiterates in his “Book of Air”, perception is the lens through which you view the world. So where does this perception come from anyway? Of course, a lot of it has to do with the way that we were raised, our childhood conditioning, and what we were taught to believe. But if you are on the evolutionary journey then eventually, we grow older and outgrow some of these things that may have been forced upon us as children. We start to develop our own points of view and our own lens through which we see the world. And the filter of that lens is the Gemini clan. If you talk, listen, communicate, or perceive the world in anyway then you will want to understand your Gemini clan placements. In the world of fast paced communication and social media, I feel that it is worthwhile for everyone to explore their Gemini placements! We could all stand to communicate a little better.

The Twins

The symbol representing the sign of Gemini is the twins. Historically these blogs have not delved too far into mythology, but I encourage you to look up the mythology of Gemini. If you have a strong Gemini influence in your chart, then you will be intrigued by this sort of information. I will spare the rest of you by getting to the point. Traditional pop astrology will often describe Gemini as the “talker”, the chatterbox, the one who just won’t shut up. This may have some truth sprinkled in; however, as someone with strong Gemini influence, I can assure you that this is not always the case (yet here I am writing this blog). Verbal communication or talking is just one small part of the picture. As mentioned in the introduction, there is no communication without perception. When Gemini opens its mind, he or she can rise to the highest energies of this sign.

You have probably experienced being in the company of someone on the lower side of Gemini. This person may have been some type of teacher in your life. Perhaps this person was incredibly intelligent and did know the subject matter that they were speaking on. But, they were simply close minded. They were unwilling to learn anything new from their students. What comes to mind for me are some teachers at the high school level. I got the feeling that many of these teachers really did not feel there was anything they could gain from learning about their students. After all what could a 15 or 16 year old kid possibly teach someone well into their 50s? Perhaps you felt this with your family of origin. It was not long ago that most people carried the mentality that children should be seen and not heard. A more open-minded person understands that our children can in fact become our biggest teachers (and usually are!) Learning should always be a two-way street. Gemini invites you to keep an open mind and view things from the lens of other people’s perspective.

Question Everything

Gemini gets its reputation as “the talker” because of its natural knack towards questioning. How can we gather information or view another person's perspective if we are not constantly asking questions? Gemini is incredibly curious and loves to be surprised by new information. Nothing makes Gemini happier then learning something new and exciting that shocks their old beliefs and forces them to think about what is real. A quick way to make your Gemini energy miserable is to go along with the status quo without ever thinking twice. Again, this brings up a problem that many of us likely faced. We were not always allowed to ask questions. Sometimes for survival or so as not to “rock the boat”, we just went along with whatever the adult in the room had to say. If you are Geminian in nature then this would have been extra difficult for you.

Speaking From the Heart

There are countless examples of people riding high on their natural Gemini clan abilities. Think of any great historical figure who had something to say and seemed to always be able to captivate their audience. Whether you agree with the person or not, you are still intrigued by what they have to say. Some of the greatest historical figures of our time have had the ability to captivate their audience. I will steer away from any type of political reference, but you understand the type I am talking about. When you are in line with your natural Geminian gifts people will listen. Not all of us our meant to be on a stage speaking publicly to thousands of people; however, we all have something to contribute. To some degree we enjoy being taken seriously. If you have ever been laughed at or “booed off stage” then you understand especially well what I am talking about. We all want to be validated, to be seen and to be heard.

Madness

Think about the word madness. What comes to mind for you? What is your own perception of the word madness? For me, this word came up as I was reflecting on the low side of the Gemini energy. My definition of madness is a busy mind, non-stop anxiety, being unable to field information coming in and unable to control thoughts. These are all examples of what can happen when your Gemini gets out of bed on a bad day. Gemini loves to gather information, but in society today we are surrounded by the potential for information overload. We have access to information literally with us almost all of the time. Social media has created another source of information spread. As we know this is not always good, true, or accurate information. All this nonstop information can fry our brains and nervous system. If you have strong Gemini signatures in your chart, then likely you have felt this type of madness show up in your life.

When under stress, Gemini can also tend toward “shapeshifting” or telling people what they want to hear. Gemini may have a difficult time getting clear on their values because their values may always be changing based on the information coming in. The shadow side to this shows up as someone who seems “wishy washy” or unclear about their stance in the world. Furthermore, Gemini can be the expert of the white lie. These white lies are not coming from a place of intentional deceit, rather the fact that Gemini does not like to go too deep. Gemini is up in the head! It can sometimes be easier to tell a white lie then get deep into emotional subjects. If Gemini can avoid deep subjects with a white lie then they may tend to do so, especially under stress.

Mercury

So far, I have only spoken about Gemini. But we know that every sign has a planetary ruler. By now you probably have a good sense of the planet mercury. Mercury is fast moving and makes its orbit around the Sun in just 88 days! Think about if we celebrated New Year's every 88 days! Mercury is a fascinating planet. One side of Mercury is always faced into the darkness of the Galaxy while the other side is always facing the sun. This creates two very different worlds on the same planet. It is no coincidence that this two-sided planet rules the twins.

We can look to someone's Natal mercury to get a better understanding of how they communicate. Staying true to our theme of perception here, we understand this also shows us how this person likely perceives the world. Say for example your natal mercury lies in Scorpio in the 8th house. This one likely shows up as a perception seemingly on the darker end of the spectrum. This person would likely feel very comfortable talking about all things Scorpio including sexuality, death, insert any other taboo topic. if they are speaking about these topics you are likely listening because this person is speaking from their heart AKA their natal Mercury. Force this person to talk about subjects such as climbing the corporate ladder and they may not be as captivating. Mercury gives us the lens in which to filter our Gemini placements.

3rd House

We cannot exclude the third house as part of this discussion on the Gemini clan. Gemini belongs to the 3rd house. If you research anything about the 3rd house, you are likely to come across information regarding speech. Of course we understand that listening and perception go hand in hand with communication so it is not a far stretch to think about the 3rd house as all things communication. This would including reading, writing, teaching, learning and the media. As we have explored in previous blogs, the house sets the stage. The houses represent some kind of behavioral expression. Steven Forrest explains it best in his “Book of Air” when he says something along the lines of “the 3rd house represents the behavioral act of paying attention”. Any planets or strong connections to your 3rd house can provide a lot of information as to the way you perceive the world. There are no mistakes in your birth chart. Even if you have tricky 3rd house stuff remember that the world needs the perception of the cynical Scorpio type just as much as the grounded Taurus type or happy go lucky Leo. How boring would it be if we all had the same perception of the world!

The Medicine

Remember that every sign and house have their opposite. The 3rd house opposes the 9th house. What this means is that they are across from each other on the Zodiac. This opposing axis always reveals the medicine if we are moving too far one way. If you have found yourself on the low side of Gemini in that madness of the mind, white lies and being unclear on your values, then the invitation is to move more into Sagittarian qualities. Because of the constant information coming in, Gemini can tend to be stuck in the “here and now.” Sagittarius invites us to look at the bigger picture. Remember, the best and highest side of Gemini keeps an open mind. A close-minded Gemini has likely drifted a bit too far away from the balancing act of the Gemini/Sagittarius axis.

 Sagittarius loves to travel and explore new experiences. Sometimes this is formal education or travel. What better way to open-mindedness then a willingness to see and learn about the world from other perspectives! High side Sag can also be very clear on their values. Sag loves to have some kind of belief or idea they feel passionate about. Sagittarius wants to understand the deeper meaning behind everything. Remember, Gemini can get stuck in the lower mind. If you find yourself moving too far into the shadow side of Gemini, then these Sagittarian qualities can provide the remedy to the madness.

What Now?

Communication, listening, talking, perception. I encourage you to reflect for a while on these topics. What is your communication style? Do you find yourself talking more than listening? What is the color lens with which you view the world? Do you view the world from more of the dark and stormy perspective? Perhaps you are quite the opposite and you wear more optimistic or rose colored glasses. Remember, in the world of evolutionary astrology there is room for everyone at the table! We need all of these energy types but understanding where Gemini and Mercury show up for you can provide a lot of insight into your perception and also help you avoid the madness that is the never-ending busy mind. Your third house will also provide many clues as to what you need to say to be seen and heard. We all have something to contribute and deserve to be heard! Even if you know very little about astrology you can get a good idea of how you deal with these issues by looking at Mercury/Gemini/3rd house placements in your natal chart. But, it’s complicated and here we have only scratched the surface. A natal chart reading by a trusted evolutionary astrologer would be helpful for a deeper understanding of how this energy shows up for you! Stay tuned for next time as we continue our journey through Air. Next up, Libra!