Yama

About Yama

Yama rides a black buffalo, dark-skinned with red eyes, carrying a noose to draw out the soul and a danda (rod of justice). He was the first human to die, and in the Rigveda he becomes king of the ancestors — the one who first walked the path others must follow. Born of Surya the Sun and Saranyu, his twin sister is Yamuna, the river. In the Katha Upanishad he teaches the boy Nachiketa the secret of the Self across three boons. As Dharmaraja he judges each life, aided by his scribe Citragupta in the city Samyamani. Sisters honour brothers on Yama Dwitiya (Bhai Dooj), recalling Yamuna's welcome of him.