Yama (Hinduism)

Yama
Death
Devanagari	यम
Affiliation	Deva
Abode	Naraka
Planet	Pluto
Mantra	Om Surya puthraya Vidhmahe MahaKalaya Dheemahi Thanno Yama Prachodayath
Weapon	Danda
Mount	water buffalo
Greek equivalent	Hades

In Hindu Religion, Yama (Sanskrit: यम), is the lord of death. In the Rigveda, he is mentioned as one who helped humankind find a place to dwell, and gave every individual the power to tread any path to which s/he wants. In Vedic tradition, Yama was considered to be the first mortal who died and espied the way to the celestial abodes; thus, as a result, he became the ruler of the departed. Yama's name can be interpreted to mean "twin", and in some myths he is paired with a twin sister Yami.

Yama is associated with various roles in Hinduism that are not always consistent throughout the stories. Sometimes, he is the lord of justice and is associated with Dharma, such as in the Brahma Purana; in other Puranas, Yama has no association with Dharma at all. .

Yama is also found in Buddhist texts. The Buddhist Yama, however, has developed different myths.

Yama is the deity of death in Hinduism. In Hindu Puranic scriptures, those who assist him in his work are Kala (time), Jwara (fever), Vyadhi (disease), Krodha (anger) and Asuya (jealousy). He is one of the Lokapāla and represents the south cardinal direction. In different texts, Yama can be referred to as the god of justice, as the deity Dharma, or a completely different figure altogether.

In the Katha Upanishad, Yama is portrayed as a teacher to Nachiketa, the legendary little boy, and their conversation evolves to a discussion of the nature of humans, knowledge, Atman (soul, self) and moksha (liberation).

In the Epic Mahabharata, he is the father of Yudhishthira (also known as Dharmaraja), the oldest brother of the five Pandavas (Karna was born prior to Kunti's wedlock, so technically Karna is Yudhishthira's older brother) and is said to have incarnated as Vidura by some accounts in the Mahabharata period.

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