Jyestha or Jyeshtha (Sanskrit: ज्येष्ठा, Jyeṣṭhā, "the eldest" or "the elder") is the Hindu goddess of inauspicious things and misfortune. She is regarded as the elder sister and antithesis of Lakshmi, the goddess of good fortune and beauty. Jyestha is associated with inauspicious places and sinners. She is also associated with sloth, poverty, sorrow, ugliness and the crow. She is sometimes identified with Alakshmi, another goddess of misfortune. Her worship was prescribed for women, who wished to keep her away from their homes.