Yama is the god of death, belonging to anearly stratum of Vedic mythology. In Sanskrit, his name can beinterpreted to mean "twin".[1] In the Zend-Avesta he is called"Yima".[2] According to the Vishnu Purana, his parents are thesungod Surya[3] and Sanjna, the daughter of Visvakarman, sometimescalled "Usha". He is the brother of the current Manu Vaivasvathaand of his older sister Yami, which H. H. Wilson indicates to meanthe Yamuna river.[4] According to Harivamsa Purana her name isDaya.[5] In the Vedas, Yama is said to have been the first mortalwho died. By virtue of precedence, he became the ruler of thedeparted,[6] called "Lord of the Pitrs".[7] There is aone-of-a-kind temple in Srivanchiyam, Tamil Nadu, India, dedicatedto Yama.[citation needed]

Mentioned by the Buddha in the Pali canon, Yama subsequentlyentered Buddhist, Chinese, Tibetan, Korean, Vietnamese, andJapanese mythology as a wrathful god under varioustransliterations. He is otherwise also called as "Dharmaraja".