In Vedic astrology, the name of the planet Saturn is Shani. Shani means `slow mover’ in Sanskrit and it was derived from the word ` Sanischara’. The word `shun’ is from Shani and it means not to pay attention to something or care less about something. Saturn, therefore, represents the idea of being unaware or ignorant. The same notion can be extended to mean losing the consciousness of the physical or material world around us.
In this dimension, Saturn indicates a life of deep spirituality, self-denial, less involvement and loss of interest in accumulating the mundane things of this world. As a malefic Graha, Saturn controls the two sidereal signs of Aquarius and Capricorn and he is considered high in Libra but low when in the opposite sign of Aries.
Saturn is referred to as Karaka because he indicates long life, sorrow, misery, discipline, old age, and death. He is also a sign of ambition, restriction, delays, responsibility, integrity, leadership and authority, and wisdom due to experience. Going further, Saturn signals self-denial, lack of interest in the things of the world, spirituality, organization, hard work, reality and time.
The most potent place on the chart for Saturn is the seventh house and the Kendra’s otherwise called Angles. He holds a lot of benefits particularly for the movements of Taurus and Libra. He is also Airy or Vata and is associated with gems like all black stones, blue sapphire, and lead. The direction attributed to Saturn is west, while Saturday is his day and his age of full maturity is 36 years. According to Vedic myth, Saturn is the son of the Sun, a son who came from his shadow wife named Chaya. As the story goes, Sajana, the first wife of the Sun, was angry with Saturn and struck him in his foot, injuring him in the process which resulted in lameness and limping when he tries to walk. This is the reason Saturn remains the slowest among all the Grahas.
Saturn or Graha Sanischara, also known as Manda, is believed to have a negative influenced on people when it holds some specific positions in the horoscope of someone such as Saade Sati and Ashtama Shani which both mean 7 ½ years and Saturn in the 8th house 2 ½ years. Saturn is the Lord of Makaram and Kumbam and considered the slowest planet because it takes about 2 ½ years for Saturn to complete each Rasi and 30 years to finish a cycle. Saturn bestows a lot of benefits to his faithful worshippers, especially when they make prayers out of sincerity.
There is a very interesting legend about the power in the worship of Shani. This story is told over and over during offering or worship of this deity.
The story was about a king who invited merchants from all places and told them that he would buy all the goods they were unable to sell. The merchants were all happy when they heard the words of the king. A blacksmith, therefore, brought an image of Saturn carved out of iron and the king readily purchased it and with great devotion, placed it in his palace. Many of the gods were unhappy due to the action of the king and in the night, while the king looked on, a shining woman walked out of the king’s palace. When the king made an inquiry, he discovered that it was Lakshmi and her reason was that she could not share the same room with Saturn.
Bhaivabh, a male image, and god of prosperity moved out later, too. He was followed by Dharma, the god of religion, Dheriye, the god of patience, Kshama, the god of pardon, and all the remaining gods who went out of the house of the king. When it was the turn of the god of truth, Satya, the king cried out that he had faith in Satya and would not be bothered if other gods left his home.
Satya was touched by the king’s plea, therefore he could not think of leaving such a man. Outside the house, all the other gods waited for Satya to come out, but he did not go out to them. Feeling uncomfortable and incomplete without Satya, Dharma went back into the palace. In the same way, all the gods and what they represented went back into the king’s house. They explained to the king that it was his devotion to Satya that moved their hearts to return. They further made him know that no king would really live a happy life without all of them together. From this singular act of devotion to Satya (truth), the gods of wealth (Lakshmi) and Saturn (Shani) decided to stay together, adding more benefits to worshippers.
However, there is a different version of the legend of Saturn and it is documented in another scripture.
According to this legend, the nine planets once had a dispute over who was the greatest among them all. When the issue could not be resolved amicably, they decided to seek the intervention of the bewildered king of gods, Indra. Being unsure of how to best handle the matter, he suggested they meet the helpful and kind king Vikramaditya.
After thinking deeply for a while, king Vikramaditya asked that seven seats be arranged in a row. The first seat was made of gold and the last was carved out of iron. He then requested the deities to take their respective seats. Knowing that the iron seat was his and that he was considered the least among gods, Saturn laid a curse on Vikramaditya and declared:
“It is the portion of Surya to spend one month on one zodiac, and the moon two days. Mangal or Mars stays for a month and a half, Brihaspati, which is Jupiter, spends thirteen months, Budha (Mercury) and Shukra or Venus take one month each. Ketu has only eighteen months, while I, Saturn, spend thirty months on just one zodiac. Due to my strong influence and extensive power, many gods have suffered at my hand. I banished Rama and Lakshmana and I made Ravana suffer a great defeat in which he lost his dynasty to destruction. A king should, therefore, learn to fear my anger. King Vikramaditya responded, “I shall courageously face whatever comes my way.”
Not long after, a merchant who sold beautiful horses arrived at Ujjain which was the capital of Vikramaditya. All the people in the king’s court admired his horses and encouraged the king to pay a visit to the merchant. When the king did as they suggested, he liked a particular horse and decided to ride it. As he sat on the horse, it flew with the king into the forest with no one to accompany him. He found himself in a strange land and was tired, hungry and thirsty. He begged a rich merchant to take him in and was accepted because the merchant saw he was a good man.
When it was night, Vikramaditya was astonished to see the pearl on a necklace hanging on a peg being swallowed by the peg itself. In the morning, the necklace was nowhere to be found, so the merchant reported the incident to the kotwal and the king’s hands and legs were cut off. Handicapped, helpless and hopeless, a kind oil crusher showed pity to the king. He asked him to help in crushing oil by sitting on the crusher and making sure the bull is moved properly.
King Vikramaditya usually sang a song, so one day the princess of that kingdom was attracted by the song which he sang. After finding out who it was through her maidens, the princess fell in love with him and decided to marry him. Her parents objected to the unusual marriage because Vikramaditya was handicapped.
At night, Shani appeared to King Vikramaditya while he slept on his matrimonial bed. He told him that his suffering was due to the king’s decision that he, Saturn, was the least of the gods. Vikramaditya pleaded for forgiveness, worshipped and begged for Saturn’s blessings. Also, he told his bride the story of his life and why he had suffered so much. Saturn changed his mind, blessed Vikramaditya’s marriage and also restored his limbs. Consequently, the rich merchant sought him and invited him to his home once again. In the presence of all and to the surprise of everyone, the lost necklace came out of the peg. Ashamed of what he had done, the merchant asked for pardon and also gave Vikramaditya his daughter in marriage. Finally, he and his two brides went back to Ujjain and were given a great reception.