Shani -the Lord of Justice is son of Surya and his wife Chhaya ; hence also known as Chayyaputra. He is the elder brother of Yama, the Hindu god of death, who in some scriptures corresponds to the deliverance of justice. Surya's two sons Shani and Yama give us the results of one's deeds through one's life through appropriate punishments and rewards; Yama grants the results of one's deeds after death.
It is said that when Shani opened his eyes as a baby for the very first time, the sun went into an eclipse, which clearly denotes the impact of Shani on astrological charts. He is known as the greatest teacher and well wisher for the righteous.At the same time He punishes those who follow the path of evil, betrayal, backstabbing and unjust revenge. He is dark in colour, clothed in black; holding a sword, arrows and two daggers .His 'vahan' is a crow. As protector of property, Shani is able to repress the thieving tendencies of birds.
There is another story.The legend has it that when Shani was born, Surya his father was not too happy.He said,' How come, he is so dark.He cannot be my son'. Shani did not like His father's remark.
From then on wards, Surya & Shani are at logger heads with each other.It is not that the Father & Son do not like or love each other but the ego hassle remains.
Strange -but true, there is always an element of defiance in a son towards his father.
Shani Jayanti the birth anniversary of Lord Shani falls on the Amavasya (New Moon Day) of Jyeshta month of Hindu calendar.
We celebrated it recently.
In our routine lives, there is a great importance of the kindness and the power of God Shani. Shani occupies the seventh place among the nine planets which govern the world. This is viewed as unlucky in conventional astrology. As per 'Khagol Shastra', the distance of Shani from the earth is 9 crore miles. Its radius is about one billion and 82 crore and 60 lakh kilometers. And its gravitational force is 95 times higher than that of the earth. Planet Shani takes 19 years to complete one revolution around the Sun. The astronauts have viewed the Shani's colours as beautiful, strong, influencing and eye-catching. It has twenty two satellites in its ring.
Shani's gravitational power is more than that of the Earth's. Therefore, when we think good or bad , these thoughts , reach Shani by the strength of his power. In astrological terms, the bad influence is considered as unlucky. But the result of good deeds will always be good. God Shani is a friend and not a foe as generally considered. And for those who indulge in evil deeds, He is their enemy.
As regards the birth of Shani, there is one more story.
"God Surya was married to Daksha Kanya Sadnya. Sadnya could not tolerate the radiance of God Surya. She used to feel that by doing penance she could increase her brilliance. Or, by the power of her penance, she could diminish the glare of God Surya. But for God Surya, she was a spouse worshipping wife. From God Surya, she had three children. One was Vaivastahva Manu. The second was Yama Raj. And the third was Yamuna. Sadnya loved her children very much. But, she was very upset with the radiance of God Surya. One day, she thought that she would separate from God Surya, go to her parents' home and undertake great penance.
By strength of her penance, Sadnya created a 'Chaya' (shadow) of herself and named her Suvarna. And, and then the shadow of herself became Suvarna. After handing over the children to Chaya, Sadnya told her that Chaya would thereafter play the role of womanhood and nurse her three children. She told her if any problem arose, she should call her and she would come rushing to her. But she cautioned her that she must remember that she was Chaya, not Sadnya, and nobody should know this difference.
Sadnya handed over her responsibilities to Chaya and went away to her parents' place. She went home and told her father that she could not stand the radiance of God Surya. And therefore, without telling her husband she had come away. Listening to this, her father scolded her very much and told her that without being called, if the daughter returns home, both - she and her father would be cursed. He told her to go back to her home immediately. Then, Saudnya got worried. So, Sadnya went to the dense jungles in Uttar Kurukshetra and took repose there.
She was fearful of her safety in the jungle because of her youthfulness and beauty. And she changed her form into that of a mare so that none could recognize her and started her penance. Elsewhere, the union of God Surya and Chaya begot three children. God Surya and Chaya were happy with each other. Surya never doubted anything. The children of Chaya were Manu, God Shani and Putri Bhadra (Tapti). "
There is yet another story.And it goes like this:- 'The creation of God Shani was the result of Maharishi Kashyap's great 'yagna'. When God Shani was in the womb of Chaya, Shiv Bhaktini Chaya was so engrossed in penance of God Shiva that she did not even care for her food . She prayed so intensely during her penance that the prayers had a profound influence on the child in her womb. As a result of such a great penance of Chaya, without food and shade in the blazing sun, the complexion of God Shani became black. When God Shani was born, Surya was surprised to see his dark complexion. He began to doubt Chaya.
From birth itself, God Shani had inherited the great powers of his mother's penance. He saw that his father was insulting his mother. He saw his father with a cruel gaze. As a result his father's body was charred black. The horses of God Surya's chariot stopped. The chariot would not move. Worried, God Surya called out to God Shiva. God Shiva advised God Surya and explained to him about what had happened. That is, because of him that the mutual respect of mother and child had been tarnished .
God Surya accepted his fault and apologized. And regained his earlier glorious looks and the power of his chariot's horses. Since then, God Shani became a good son to his father and mother and an ardent disciple of God Shiva.
So Shani is always GOOD.Be rest assured !!