Saturn in Krittika Nakshatra (Shani in कृत्तिका)

Krittika, the 3rd of the 27 nakshatras, covers 26°40′ – 40°00′ of the sidereal zodiac, across the boundary between Aries and Taurus. Krittika is ruled by the Sun, so Saturn in Krittika stands in the Sun’s star.

Saturn and the Sun count each other an enemy, so in Krittika the graha and the lord of its star agree about each other. The other two nakshatras the Sun rules, Uttara Phalguni and Uttara Ashadha, put Saturn under the same star lord.

Saturn in Krittika, Pada by Pada

By rashi, Saturn in Krittika is debilitated in pada 1 (Aries) and in a friend's sign in padas 2, 3 and 4 (Taurus), because Krittika crosses from Aries into Taurus. By navamsa the four padas fall in Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. Saturn’s strongest navamsas in Krittika are padas 2 (Capricorn, in its own sign) and 3 (Aquarius, in its own sign), and its weakest are padas 1 (Sagittarius, in a neutral sign) and 4 (Pisces, in a neutral sign).

Neither Saturn’s deepest exaltation (Libra) nor its deepest debilitation (Aries) degree falls inside Krittika, and Saturn’s moolatrikona lies outside it as well, so in Krittika the rashi and navamsa verdicts above are the whole of Saturn’s dignity.

When Saturn Is in Krittika, 2026–2028

Saturn does not enter Krittika at any point between 1 January 2026 and 1 January 2029. It stands in Purva Bhadrapada when the table opens and in Ashwini when it closes, having visited 5 of the 27 nakshatras, and from Ashwini Krittika is 2 nakshatras further on. So Saturn in Krittika is, for these years, a birth-chart placement and not a transit anyone can wait for.

Inside Krittika: what the tables locate there for Saturn

The retrograde table runs from 2024 to 2031, wider than the ingress table, and it places two of Saturn's stations in Krittika. On 6 September 2029 Saturn stations retrograde inside Krittika, in pada 2. On 2 February 2031 Saturn stations direct inside Krittika, in pada 4. At a station Saturn’s motion is at its slowest, so these are the days it is most nearly still in Krittika.

Krittika as the Setting for Saturn

In the nakshatra tables Krittika’s deity is listed as Agni and its symbol as razor; its gana is Rakshasa, and the muhurta texts put it in the Mishra class (mixed). Those belong to Krittika whichever graha is in it, and they are read on the Krittika page. What changes with Saturn is everything above: the dignities in Aries and Taurus, the relation to the Sun, and the dates. None of it is a prediction for anyone born with Saturn in Krittika; the house it occupies and the dasha running decide what the placement does in a chart.

Related Placements

The sign-level reading is on Saturn in Aries and Saturn in Taurus; Saturn in all 27 nakshatras is on the Saturn nakshatra table. For the nakshatras themselves, see the 27 nakshatras guide and astrology for beginners.

The Other Grahas in Krittika