Shani (Saturn) in Other Cultures

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sanghita0000

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Posted: 7 years ago

Shani is the most important of the Nine Planets not only in India but also in other cultures also.

Chaldeans , Babylonians and Assyrians called him Sun of the night. Shani is the brightest planet in the sky. Western alchemist called him the Black Sun. The Greeks knew him as Kronos (he who gives the measures = the originator of Time), Chronos (Time), and Cronos (the crow god), the crow being much used in Divination and being symbol of long life, in both Italy and Greece. Western psychological explanations of Shani's importance concentrate on his distance from the rest of the solar system.Ancient Chinese and Japanese culture designated the planet Saturn as the Earth Star. This was based on Five Elements which were traditionally used to classify natural elements.In ancient Hebrew, Saturn is called 'Shabbathai'. Its angel is Cassiel. Its intelligence or beneficial spirit is Agiel (layga) and its spirit (darker aspect) is Zazel (lzaz).In Ottoman Turkish, Urdu and Malay, its name is 'Zuhal', derived from Arabic.In ancient Roman mythology,the god Saturnus, from which the planet takes its name, was the god of the agricultural and harvest sector.

Ptolemy, a Greek living in Alexandria, observed an opposition of Saturn, which was the basis for his determination of the elements of its orbit.

Beginning on December 17 each year, during the festival known as the Saturnalia, the Golden Age was to be restored for seven days. All business stopped and executions and military operations were postponed. It was a period of goodwill, devoted to banquets and the exchange of visits and gifts. A special feature of the festival was the freedom given to slaves, who during this time had first place at the family table and were served by their masters.Saturn (Cronus) is often depicted carrying a sickle like Father Time.

According to legend, Cronus , the ruling Titan , came to power by castrating his Father Uranus. His wife was Rhea. There offspring were the first of the Olympians. To insure his safety Cronus ate each of the children as they were born. This worked until Rhea, unhappy at the loss of her children, tricked Cronus into swallowing a rock, instead of Zeus. When he grew up Zeus would revolt against Cronus and the other Titans, defeat them, and banish them to Tartarus in the underworld. Cronus managed to escape to Italy, where he ruled as Saturn. The period of his rule was said to be a golden age on Earth, honored by the Saturnalia feast.