A Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology and Religion, Geography, History, and Literature c5.2188

c5.2188

In the epic poems Yama is the son of the Sun by Sanjnā (conscience), and brother of Vaivaswata (Manu). Mythologically he was the father of Yudhi-shṭhira. He is the god of departed spirits and judge of the dead. A soul when it quits its mortal form repairs to his abode in the lower regions; there the recorder, Chitra-gupta, reads out his account from the great register called Agra-sandhānī, and a just sentence follows, when the soul either ascends to the abodes of the Pitris (Manes), or is sent to one of the twenty-one hells according to its guilt, or it is born again on earth in another form. Yama is regent of the south quarter, and as such is called Dakshināsā-pati. He is represented as of a green colour and clothed with red. He rides upon a buffalo, and is armed with a ponderous mace and a noose to secure his victims.