Yama.

God of Death, Underworld and Spirits

Painting of the dikpala Yama.
Affiliation Deva,Raja
Abode Naraka
Planet Pluto
Weapons Lasso, Mace
Mount Water Buffalo
Personal Information
Parents Surya and Sangya
Siblings Manu and Yami
Greek equivalent Hades

According to the Vishnu Purana, Yama is the son of sun-god Surya[4] and Sandhya, the daughter of Vishvakarma. Yama is the brother of Sraddhadeva Manu and of his older sister Yami, which Horace Hayman Wilson indicates to mean the Yamuna.[5] According to the Vedas, Yama is said to have been the first mortal who died. By virtue of precedence, he became the ruler of the departed,[6] and is called "Lord of the Pitrs".[7]

Mentioned in the Pli Canon of Theravada Buddhism, Yama subsequently entered Buddhist mythology in Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism as a dharmapala under various transliterations. He is otherwise also called as "Dharmaraja".

In Hinduism,[8] Yama is the lokapala ("Guardian of the Directions") of the south and the son of Brahma. Three hymns (10, 14, and 35) in the 10th book of the Rig Veda are addressed to him. He has two dogs with four legs and wide nostrils guarding the road to his abode (cf. hellhound). They are said to wander about among people as his messengers.[9] He wields a leash with which he seizes the lives of people who are about to die. He is also depicted as riding a buffalo.[citation needed]

According to Hindu mythology, Yama is the son of Surya and Saranyu. He is the twin brother of Yami, brother of Shraddhadeva Manu and the step brother of Shani.

In Buddhism, Yama (Sanskrit: ) is a dharmapala (wrathful god) said to judge the dead and preside over the Narakas ("Hells" or "Purgatories") and the cycle of rebirth.

The Buddhist Yama has however, developed different myths and different functions from the Hindu deity. He has also spread far more widely and is known in every country where Buddhism is practiced, including China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, Bhutan, Mongolia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos.

Naraka in Hinduism serves only as a temporary purgatory where the soul is purified of sin by its suffering. In Hindu mythology, Naraka holds many hells,[11] and Yama directs departed souls to the appropriate one. Even elevated Mukti-yogyas and Nitya-samsarins can experience Naraka for expiation of sins.

Although Yama is the lord of Naraka, he may also direct the soul to a Swarga (heaven) or return it to Bhoomi (earth). As good and bad deeds are not considered to cancel each other out, the same soul may spend time in both a hell and a heaven. The seven Swargas are: Bhuvas, Swas (governed by Indra), Tharus, Thaarus, Savithaa, Prapithaa, and Maha (governed by Brahma).

Naraka is usually translated into English as "hell" or "purgatory". A Naraka differs from the hells of western religions in two respects. First, beings are not sent to Naraka as the result of a divine judgment and punishment; second, the length of a being's stay in a Naraka is not eternal, though it is usually very long. Instead, a being is born into a Naraka as a direct result of his or her previous karma (actions of body, speech and mind), and resides there for a finite length of time until his karma has exhausted its cumulate effect.

The idea of Naraka in Sikhism is like the idea of Hell. One's soul, however, is confined to 8.4 million life cycles before taking birth as a human, the point of human life being one where one attains salvation, the salvation being sach khand. The idea of khand comes in multiple levels of such heavens, the highest being merging with God as one. The idea of Hell comes in multiple levels, and hell itself can manifest within human life itself. The Sikh idea of hell is where one is apart from naama and the Guru's charana (God's lotus feet (abode)). Without naama one is damned. Naama is believed to be a direct deliverance by God to humanity in the form of Guru Nanak. A Sikh is hence required to take the Amrit (holy nectar/water) from gurubani, panj pyare (khanda da pahul) to come closer to naama. A true Sikh of the Gurus has the Guru himself manifest and takes that person into sach khand.

Mandarin Diyu, Japanese Jigoku, Korean Jiog, Vietnamese a ngc literally "earth prison", is the realm of the dead or "hell" in Chinese mythology and Japanese mythology. It is based upon the Buddhist concept of Naraka combined with local afterlife beliefs. Incorporating ideas from Taoism and Buddhism as well as traditional religion in China, Di Yu is a kind of purgatory place which serves not only to punish but also to renew spirits ready for their next incarnation. This is interchangeable with the concept of Naraka.

In Japanese mythology, Enma-O or Enma Dai-O (Great King Enma) judges souls in Meido, the kingdom of the waiting dead. Those deemed too horrible are sent to Jigoku, a land more comparable to the Christian hell. It is a land of eternal toil and punishment. Those of middle note remain in meido for a period awaiting reincarnation. Others, of high note, become honored ancestors, watching over their descendants.