Secrets of Lord Shani | Guru Gaurav Arya | Book Review

SUBJECT: 4.5/5
WRITING: 3/5
OVERALL: 3/5

What many of my readers don’t know is that I am a keen student of astrology. The study of Vedic astrology is a subject in which I have developed a gradually increasing interest over the last couple of years. In my attempt to understand the various planets and their effect on our lives, I am constantly upgrading my knowledge by watching relevant videos, reading books and articles, and doing a lot of self-study and practical real-life analysis.

It was in this endeavour, that I was looking for a short read on Vedic astrology on my Kindle Unlimited catalog when I chanced upon Guru Gaurav Arya’s short read on Shani Dev. Eager to discover new information about the Lord and how he affects us, I quickly downloaded the book and sat down to read.

Read on to know more about the book, Secrets of Lord Shani and about my experience of reading it.

Some introduction about Shani Dev

For the uninitiated, Lord Shani is the God of Justice. In Hindu dharma, he is known as the karmaphalaadhikari or the dandadhikari as he is the deity in charge of the fruits of our karma. He is the great discipliner and he doesn’t like injustice, thereby by the powers bestowed upon him, he gives us the good or bad results of our previous karmas.

It is because of these powers and the nature of the deity that he is also feared by many, and rightly so. However, there are many misconceptions about the Lord that need to be dispelled.

Introduction to the author

Guru Gaurav Acharya is an Indian astrologer and researcher who has been practicing astrology since the year 2007. In addition to astrology, he is also a paranormal expert and an occult master and has authored two books, Shree Shani Samhita and Yantra Tatvam. He is also the recipient of multiple awards in the field of astrology including Jyotish Shree in 2017, and Jyotish Vibhushan in 2018, both awarded by the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand.

What is the book all about?

The author in the introduction of the book lets us know what to expect from reading it. He mentions that it is imperative for us to learn about the deity or Shakti that we are worshipping. One should have complete knowledge as a little knowledge is always a dangerous thing. In this regard, some of the topics that the book aims to cover are –

• What is the meaning of Shani?
• Why is his colour black?
• Why is his symbol black?
• Why is the God offered mustard oil?
• Why is Shani Dev considered the God of Kaliyuga?

Topics in detail

The book starts with a basic introduction of Shani Dev and an introduction of his family members and then goes on to explain why he is called Shani and then goes ahead to list the 108 names of the Lord and their meanings. While some of the information is readily available online and known to many, this was my first reading of the 108 names of the Lord.

Further, each of these names has been explained in brief along with their meanings. Another piece of information that was new to me was about the nine different vehicles of the Lord, each of whom he uses for a specific purpose. These include a wide variety of animals and birds from the more popular crow to the lesser-known donkey, from the regal lion to the magnificent swan.

Other chapters cover different topics like the concept of Shani dev worship in the night, Lord Shiva being the guru of Lord Shani, the concept of offering mustard oil to the Lord, Lord Shani’s birth from fire, the secrets behind the four arms of Shani Dev, etc.

The writing and review

While no doubt there is a great deal of information to be learned from the book, I truly wish it could have been done much better with some good editing. The information provided is good and not readily available to access on public platforms. The images and illustrations also aid in the understanding of the concepts however some of the illustrations are rather amateurish. The writing is decent but lacks proper structure and finesse.

Overall, the book is a short read and helpful to anyone looking for additional information on Lord Shani Dev.

Can’t wait to read it? Buy your copy of Secrets of Lord Shani using the link below.