Shani Dev is one of the most popular deities that the Hindus pray to ward off evil and remove obstacles. Shani is represented as having a dark complexion and is said to be the son of Surya, the sun god, and Chaya, the servant whom his wife Swarna surrogated. He is the brother of Yama, the god of death and is believed by many to be an avatar of Shiva.
Shani (Sanskrit: शनि, Śani), or Śanaiśchara, refers to the planet Saturn and is one of the nine heavenly objects known as Navagraha in Hindu astrology. Shani is also a male deity in the Puranas, whose iconography consists of a handsome figure carrying a sword or danda (sceptre), and sitting on a crow.
He is the God of Justice in Hindu religion and delivers results to all, depending upon their thoughts, speech and deeds (karma). He also signifies spiritual asceticism, penance, discipline and conscientious work. He married twice, first being Neela, goddess of sapphire, and Manda, who cursed him due to a reason
Shani is a deity in medieval era texts, who is considered inauspicious and is feared for delivering misfortune and loss to those who deserve it. He is also capable of conferring boons and blessings to the worthy, depending upon their karma.
In medieval Hindu literature, he is inconsistently referred to as the son of Sun and Chhaya (shadow), or as the son of Balarama and Revati. His alternate names include Ara, Kona and Kroda. As per the Hindu texts, ‘peepal’ or fig tree is the abode of Shani (while other texts associate the same tree with Vasudeva).
In 2013, a 20-foot-tall statue of Lord Shani was established at Yerdanur in the Mandal of Sangareddy, Medak district, nearly 40 kilometres from Hyderabad city. It was carved from a monolith and weighs about nine tonnes.
Courtesy: Wikipedia
