The effect of Shani.

Shoud we fear it? Or embrace it?

The other day I read this line: Shani is the lord of dominance, distress, depression, disease, and disaster. The post below was triggered by that line.

I am not much into astrology, but have a mild curiosity on this topic and so read things and enjoy comparing what astrologers say with experiences that I have had, in my life.

Saturn or Shani is a planet feared by many. However I have a different perspective on Saturn and would like to share it here.

We are all spiritual beings, even if we don’t know it… we have taken birth to wade through the muck of conditioning and attachments, to break through the mask we hide behind, to get in touch with our true self; the self that is beautiful and created in the image of the divine.

The process of letting this mask drop is not easy, because we have to let go of all the things we believe we are… and like it or not, we judge ourselves more harshly than anyone else. We’d rather hide behind a mask than face ourselves.

This fear of facing ourselves keeps us bound. Over years the fears and the mask grow, entangling us in a web of lies and deception, moving us further and further away from our beautiful self.

Shani/Saturn in our first house serves to wake us up.  When we are comfortable with the way our life is progressing, we don’t go searching for the path to inner peace, as we are happy within our comfort zones, content with the outer world, hiding behind our masks.

The first house in astrology is about “you”, who you are. When Shani is in your first house it forces you to see who you are.

It’s not pleasant because it will bring out the worst we can be and none of us want to see that, we have worked so hard to create a beautiful mask and hide behind it… we are comfortable there, safe from our true self.

Shani is there to remove that mask. It will break down all the false sense of security, control, attachments and beliefs and force us to see through them.

That’s why it has a bad reputation.

However, in reality it is a positive destruction, a destruction that will reveal our true self so we can see how close to the divine we truly are. Shani is like Shiva, he destroys, but his destruction is not the end, it is a destruction that makes room for something new.

Accepting Shani’s presence in our first house as a blessing rather than a curse, knowing “this too shall pass and will only make me stronger”, makes our journey that much easier.

MaYa – Destroy the mask

I created this painting, called MaYa, of the beautiful mask we hide behind… the one that the Divine will destroy with the help of Shani in our first house.