By Samuel Gugliotta
For Variety

THERE are complex moods, states of mind, which in modern jargon, we give the name of “depression,” or in colloquial parlance, a person just might say, “Man, I’m feeling down today. Really out of it...leave me be.”
Such moods may come in all degrees of intensity and duration; from a debilitating illness lasting years, to more normal periods of grief attendant upon some loss or disappointment.
Advances in the medical and psychological professions have been essential in alleviating the suffering and saving lives of those with chronic or even mild mental illnesses. I by no means wish to belittle the medical approach and its necessity. However, there are other approaches to depression which may be surprising and worthwhile to consider.
In his by now classic work, “Care of the Soul,” the author, Thomas Moore, entitles his chapter on depression, “Gifts of Depression.” How is it, then, that something so painful and benumbing could at the same time be considered a “gift?”
Moore notes that in ancient times, the complex of conditions we now denote by the clinical word “depression” was more usually denoted by the words “sadness” or “melancholy.” It was associated with the god or planet Saturn. Someone who predominantly gave the impression of sadness and seriousness was called a “child of Saturn,” and today we still use the expression, “a saturnine personality.”
Saturn was considered a cold, distant, dry, dark planet, and an old man and leader of the “good old days.” He was also known as a god of wisdom and reflection. According to Moore, we should try to ignore the negative connotations of Saturn (or depression) and listen to messages it is trying to bring us; those truths which are usually kept hidden in the darkness as we try to fill our lives with a constant barrage of barren entertainment and futile busyness in order to avoid the deeper issues of life — like our mortality, our purpose of being, or the emptiness we may feel or ignore deep within. We may attempt to hold onto youth too long, or to drown in alcohol and drugs in the attempt to avoid Saturn’s truth as long as possible.
According to Moore, Saturn is one of the natural faces of the soul. Life is not all rainbows, and naivete will only lead one to failure in the face of the hard truths of being. Saturn asks us to stop and reflect; to be alone with ourselves and thoughts. When we do this we may grow up a bit, giving weight, shape and substance to our soul or personality. Usually, what we think best about ourselves turns out to be our worse fault; some attachment to childhood we must give up. Most of all, when we listen to Saturn we develop compassion and strength to stand up to our conceptions of responsibility and righteousness.
One of our greatest leaders, Abraham Lincoln, was often in Saturn’s dark company. Joshua Shenk’s notable book, “Lincoln’s Melancholy” is subtitled, “How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness.” In coming to terms with his dark moods, inviting their wisdom, he saved a country from falling apart.
Even though we may view depression as a gift and a mystery in our growth to a life that is spiritual or the suffering that may lead one closer to their true self, we cannot deny its painful aspects: when one loses all hope or belief in any future. In this regard one needs to know there are alternative ways of healing and maintain the hope that the depression will lift. Saturn’s festival was called the Saturnalia. It was the time of harvest, the end time and the celebration of a new beginning.
Puzzle
1) If you take one of the planets in our solar system, change one of its letters, then you can rearrange those letters to get another planet. What are the two planets?
Answer to last week’s puzzle
1) M =1, D=2, O=3, I =5, A =6, N=7.