Yama

Yama
/yum"euh/, n. Hindu Myth.
the Vedic god presiding over the underworld.
[ < Skt yama]

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In Indian mythology, the lord of death.

The Vedas describe him as the first man who died. The son of the sun god Surya, he presides over the resting place of the dead. In the Vedas, he was a cheerful king of the departed ancestors, but in later mythology he became known as the just judge who punished the deceased for their sins.

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      in Tibetan Buddhism, one of the eight fierce protective deities. See dharmapāla.

▪ Hindu god
      in the mythology of India, the lord of death. The Vedas describe him as the first man who died, blazing the path of mortality down which all men have since followed. He is the guardian of the south (the region of death) and presides over the resting place of the dead, which is located in the south under the earth. In the Vedas Yama was represented as a cheerful king of the departed ancestors, not as a punisher of sins, but in later mythology he became known as the just judge (Dharmarāja) who weighs the good and evil deeds of the dead and determines their retribution. He is described as majestic in appearance, green, with red eyes and red garments. He carries a mace, which may be ornamented with a skull, and a noose and rides a buffalo. His two four-eyed dogs guard the entrance to his kingdom, and the crow and the pigeon act as his messengers. Yama has also passed over into Buddhist mythology in Tibet, China, and Japan, where he occupies a similar but minor role as the guardian of the abode of the dead.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Yama —    Yama is the Indian god of death and the under world. He is the son of Visvasvat, the Sun. In the VEDAS he is seen as the first mortal to die and thereby becomes king of the world of the dead. According to the Atharva Veda, he is accompa nied… …   Encyclopedia of Hinduism

  • Yama — Yama,   1) buddhistische Mythologie: Herrscher der Höllen und Richter der Toten. Im »Tibet. Totenbuch« tritt er dem Verstorbenen als Verkörperung von dessen Karma gegenüber. Ikonographisch wird er dort als schreckliche, büffelköpfige Gottheit mit …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Yama — Ya ma, n. [Skr. yama a twin.] (Hindoo Myth.) The king of the infernal regions, corresponding to the Greek Pluto, and also the judge of departed souls. In later times he is more exclusively considered the dire judge of all, and the tormentor of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Yama — (Sanskrit, m., यम yama, Enthaltung, Selbstkontrolle) ist die erste Stufe des Raja Yoga (bzw. Ashtanga Yoga oder Kriya Yoga) nach Patanjali und stellt eine Art Verhaltenskodex dar. Die weiteren sieben Stufen des Raja Yoga sind Niyama, Asana,… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Yama [1] — Yama (ind. Myth.), so v.w. Dschama …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Yama [2] — Yama, Stadt, so v.w. Chama …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Yama — Yama, ind. Gottheit, s. Jama …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Yama — Yama, der ind. Todesgott …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • yama — yama·craw; …   English syllables

  • Yama — This article is about the Hindu and Buddhist deity Yama generally. For Yama in the Hindu tradition, see Yama (Hinduism). For Yama in the Buddhist and East Asian tradition, see Yama (Buddhism and Chinese mythology). For other uses, see Yama… …   Wikipedia

  • Yama — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Yama (homonymie). Yama Père Vivas …   Wikipédia en Français

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