Shani (Sanskrit: शनि, Śani) refers to planet Saturn, and is one of the 9 heavenly objects known as Navagraha in Hindu astrology. Shani is depicted as a male deity in the Puranas, whose iconography consists of a dark (black) figure carrying a sword (or another weapon) and sitting on a buffalo (or crow or vulture). He is considered inauspicious, bringer of bad luck, a deity who gets mad easily and one who takes thorough revenge for whatever made him upset. In medieval Hindu literature, inconsistent mythologies sometimes refer to him as the son of Sun and Chayya (shadow), or as the son of Balarama and Revati. His alternate names include Ara, Kona and Kroda.