since any misfortune he brings will
last for fourteen years—a figure
doubtless drawn from the fourteen
years of Saturn’s orbit. During the
weekSaturn presides over Saturday,
considered by far the most inauspi-
cious day of the week. On this day
people refrain from numerous activi-
ties and also commonly perform rites
of protection, such as giving alms
(dana) as a way to give away any
potential misfortune.
Satyabhama
In Hindu mythology, one of the wives
of the god Krishna, when he has
assumed his kingly station as the
ruler of Dwaraka.
Satyagraha
(“Holding Fast to the Truth”)
Organized campaign of nonviolent
resistance or non-cooperation as a
political tool, a technique best refined
by Mohandas K. Gandhi. For Gandhi
himself, the basis of this technique
was rooted in his commitment to the
truth and his conviction that his oppo-
nents could be swayed by the power of
truth, if it was put before them.
Gandhi’s satyagraha campaigns would
begin by publicly pointing out the
injustice in question, in the hope that
this alone could lead to the matter
being rectified. If nothing was done, a
campaign would then begin, but the
adversary would always be informed
of what was to happen next. The real
goal was not to humble the adversary
but to persuade the other party to see
the rightness of one’s position and to
accept it. The most important thing of
all was to retain one’s own commit-
ment to the truth and never to com-
promise it, even if doing so could gain
one some immediate advantage. For
Gandhi, in the end the truth was the
only thing that mattered, and winning
or losing could only be measured inso-
far as one kept this in perspective.
Satyakama
(“He whose desire is truth”) Legendary
figure in the early speculative text
Chandogya Upanishad, renowned for
his adherence to the truth. Desiring to
take initiationas a celibate student
(brahmacharin), Satyakama asks his
mother about his extended family, so
that he can have this information to give
his teacher. His mother Jabala replies
that she does not know who his father is
and tells him to take her name, and call
himself Satyakama Jabala. Satyakama,
when asked by his teacher Gautamato
tell about his family roots, tells the
whole story. Impressed by his honesty,
Gautama initiates him at once. This
story is often cited in modern times, to
emphasize the importance of one’s
actions over one’s birth.Satyanarayan Vrat
Religious observance that may be
observed any day of the month but is
most commonly performed on the day
of the full moon. The presiding deityis
Vishnu, worshiped in his form as
Satyanarayan (“Lord of Truth”). The rite
is believed to destroy evil and to pro-
mote the prosperity of its sponsors
(those who hire a brahminto perform
the rite), its performers, and even its
hearers. The rite’s major features involve
modification of diet and worship, the
two general characteristics of most
Hindu religious observances. On the day
this rite is performed, the observant
must keep a strict fast (upavasa) until
the ceremony is over. A pavilion is pre-
pared in which an image of Satya-
narayan is installed and worshiped (part
of the worship includes reading the rite’s
charter myth), and after which prasadis
given to all those present.Satyavan
In Hindu mythology, the husband of
Savitri, a woman famous both for her
devotion to her husband and for her
cleverness in outwitting Death to regain
her husband after he dies.Satyavan