Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 16
Kāla-cakra and the Motions of the Sun, Moon, Stars, and Grahas
Bhāgavata Jyotiṣa Framework
तत उपरिष्टाद्योजनलक्षद्वयात्प्रतीयमान: शनैश्चर एकैकस्मिन् राशौ त्रिंशन्मासान् विलम्बमान: सर्वानेवानुपर्येति तावद्भिरनुवत्सरै: प्रायेण हि सर्वेषामशान्तिकर: ॥ १६ ॥
tata upariṣṭād yojana-lakṣa-dvayāt pratīyamānaḥ śanaiścara ekaikasmin rāśau triṁśan māsān vilambamānaḥ sarvān evānuparyeti tāvadbhir anuvatsaraiḥ prāyeṇa hi sarveṣām aśāntikaraḥ.
Situated 1,600,000 miles above Jupiter, or 12,000,000 miles above earth, is the planet Saturn, which passes through one sign of the zodiac in thirty months and covers the entire zodiac circle in thirty Anuvatsaras. This planet is always very inauspicious for the universal situation.
FAQs
In Canto 5, Chapter 22, Śukadeva describes Saturn (Śanaiścara) as moving very slowly—staying thirty months in each zodiac sign—and notes that he is generally a cause of aśānti (disturbance) for most beings.
Because he “moves slowly” (śanaiḥ—slowly; cara—moving). The verse highlights this by stating he remains thirty months in each rāśi before proceeding.
The verse encourages humility and steadiness: when disturbances arise (whether seen as karmic or circumstantial), one can respond with patience, dharma, and devotion rather than fear—using challenges as prompts for inner discipline and remembrance of the Lord.