Saturn: The Planet and Its Meanings in Astrology Astronomical Data Slowest planet, moving through zodiac in 29 years and 157 days. Mean speed is 2 minutes and 1 second per day. Greatest North latitude: 2 degrees 48 minutes. Greatest South latitude: 2 degrees 49 minutes. Rules Capricorn and Aquarius. Exalted in Libra. Fall in Aries. Detriment in Cancer and Leo.
General
Saturn is the “Greater Malefic,” bringing “destruction, ruin, death, grief, mourning, weeping, crying, and ancient things.” [The Beginning of Wisdom, Ibn Ezra, trans. Epstein]. Very cold and very dry. Masculine, diurnal, earthy planet. Hard, heavy and short.
Human Faculties: Thought. Retentive power. Sleep. Hearing.
Body Parts/Humors
Black bile, earth, sometimes crude phlegm. Hair, nails, skin, feathers, wool, bones, marrow and horn. The spleen. Right ear. Buttocks, podex (anus), bowels, penis, back, height, knees. Bladder.
Illnesses Senility/debility, insanity, tremors, plague, hemorrhages, leprosy, leg disease, chronic illnesses. All cold and dry illnesses. Illnesses of the right ear, teeth, four-day fevers, consumption, palsy, vain fears and fantasies, apoplexy.
Age :Old age, the end of life.
Appearance Ugly, tall, wizened, sour face, large head, eyebrows joined (the unibrow!), small eyes, wide mouth, thick nose, lips, and teeth, downcast look, much black hair (all over), short neck, coarse hand, short fingers, awkward figure, legs crooked, big feet. Foul smell. Swarthy, rough skin, between black and yellow in color. Moves slowly. Often coughing. Fat stomach, gluttonous, big shoulders. Oriental – straight posture, medium skin tone, hairy chest, medium sized eyes. Shorter than when occidental. Occidental - thin, straight hair, cold and dry. Black lean, less hairy. Near extremes of latitude - fat, fleshy Little latitude - leaner South latitude - fleshy but quick in movement North latitude - hairy and fleshy
Human Conditions
Exile and poverty, wealth acquired by trickery, failure in business, vehemence, confusion, seeking solitude and isolation, enslaving others by violence or treachery, fraud, weeping, wailing and lamentation. Sickness, affliction, poverty, death, disease of internal organs, gout. Controlling others and winning.
Behavior When Dignified
Truth-telling, grave, trusty, contemplative, taciturn, astute, keeps his word, deep-thinking, knows secrets and worships God, studious and solicitous, austere, patient, reserved.
Behavior When Ill-Dignified Fearful, timid, anxious, envious, sluggish, hater of women, malicious, suspicious, miserly, malevolent plotter, sullen and proud, melancholy, unwilling to believe good of anyone, engrossed in his own affairs and consequently indicates discord, and either ignorance or intelligence, but the ignorance is concealed. Never happy. Anger, worry, covetousness, habitual liar with little use.
Countries and Cities India, Zanzibar, Abyssinia, Egypt, “Ethiopia between the West and South,” Yemen, Arabia and Nabatea. Bavaria, Saxony, Ravenna, Austria (region of Styria, cap. Graz), Romandiola (region in northern Italy, cap. Ravenna), Constantia (seaport in Romania), Ingoldstadt in Germany.
Places
Wild and barren mountains. Subterranean canals and vaults, wells, old places, desolate places, places where wild beasts dwell, deserts, stables for mount animals. Caves, pits, prisons, all uninhabited places. Cemeteries. Mines, woods, obscure valleys, holes, dirty and stinking muddy places. Outhouses, sewers, toilets.
Ethnicities and People Jews and Berbers. Fathers, grandfathers, older brothers and slaves. Owners of estates, kings’ intendants, religious people of various sects, devotees, wicked people, bores, the overworked, eunuchs, thieves, the moribund, magicians, demons, ghouls and those who revile them. Old people. The dead.
Religions Jews and those who dress in black. Monks, Jesuits, sectarians.
Occupations
Building, paymaster, farming, reclaiming land and distribution of water, fraudulent transactions, apportioning money and heritages, grave- and ditch-digging, selling things made of iron, lead, bone, hair, copper, black slaves, captivity, torture. Slavery, thieves, robbers, those who handle waste. Digging, breaking stones, going through things of the dead. All inferior work, and work that is hard with little reward. Serfs, beggars, day-laborers. Miners, potters, plumbers, brick-makers, chimney sweeps, sextons, scavengers, gardeners, candle-makers, dyers of black cloth, shepherds. Sailors.
Animals
Black animals, subterranean animals, elephants, camels, hogs, wolves, monkeys, oxen, goats, horses, bears, hares, moles, sheep, ermine, sable, weasel, cat, mouse, jerboa, large black snakes, scorpions, crocodiles, toads, basilisks, all poisonous insects, fleas and beetles. Aquatic and nocturnal birds, ravens, swallows and flies. All large birds with long necks, like ostriches. Eagles and vultures, birds with strange voices, bats. Owl, peacock, crane, grasshopper, thrush, blackbird, lapwing. All harmful creatures, and those that creep and crawl. Eels, tortoises, shellfish.
Trees, Plants, Fruits and Vegetables
Oak-gall tree, carob tree, acorn, bramble, all plants with thorns but no fruit, citron or myrobalan tree, olive tree, willow, turpentine tree, castor-oil plant, pine tree, cypress, yew, polypody, rue, senna, capers, tamarind, all those with disagreeable-smelling or –tasting fruit, and those with hard shells. Sesame. Millet. Aloe. Pepper, belleric myrobalan, olives, medlars, bitter pomegranate, lentils, linseed, hempseed. All black plants. Bearsfoot, starwort, wolf-bane, hemlock, fern, black and white hellebore, finger-fern/ceterach, clotbur, burdock, parsnip, pulse, vervain, mandrake, poppy, moss, nightshade, bythwind, angelica, sage, box, tutsan, orage, spinach, shepherd’s purse, cumin, horsetail, fumitory.
Taste:Unpleasant, astringent, highly acid.
Color:Dark black, black with yellow, leaden, dusty.
Clothing:All heavy clothing, cloaks and woolen items.
Metals: Litharge, iron slag, rusty iron, black lead.
Stones:Hard stones, black stones, blue and black stones, the lodestone, all heavy black rocks. Sapphire, lapis lazuli.
Days, Nights and Hours: Saturday and Wednesday night.
Geographical Direction: East.