Yama is the god of death. I know about an Egyptian god named Anubis, who is God of death as per Egyptian mythology. Both Yama and Anubis are responsible for judging humans after death. Though, Yama is the god of death, he actually rules the hells (there are 7 hells as per Hinduism). Previously I mentioned that Shani Dev and Yama are brothers. While Shani Dev looks after our Karma while we are alive, his brother Yama is responsible for purging our souls in afterlife to make sure that no bad deed gets unpunished. This is why Yama is also called ‘Dharma-Raaj’.
As per Hindu scriptures, when a human dies, the soul goes through some stages of purging. Then they should reach the assembly of Yama, where the god performs his duties. Yama’s personal secretary is Chitragupta, who constantly keeps a balance sheet of our good and bad deeds. After the soul appears in front of Yama Raaj, Chitragupta narrates the karmic life of the soul so that Yama can take a decision whether the soul is holy or not. If the soul is holy, it can go to paradise namely the abode of Shiva or Vishnu etc and enjoy. Otherwise, it will be sent to one of the 7 hells based on the severity of its bad karma during human-life. After completion of punishment, he sends the soul once again on earth to live life in a better way.
Yama has a sister named Yami. Once they had a big argument and Yami cursed Yama to go to hell. Yama was the first living entity to step into hell, and this is how he became the ruler of hell. However, Yami became sad when Yama was absent and cried a river- which is Yamuna in today’s India. Anyway, Yama came to know about his sister’s situation and came to Yami. Yami knew that now it is not possible for Yama to permanently come back to human realm. She tied a red string on Yama’s wrist so that Yama always remembers him. Yama also promised to protect her from negative forces. This was the first Raakhi or Raksha-Bandhan, a festival that celebrates the sacred relationship between sisters and brothers. While a sister wishes for good health and prosperity of a brother, the brother pledges to protect the sister. Another significance of the Rakhi is that Yama, after receiving the Rakhi, declared that any brother who would claim to protect his sister after wearing a rakhi, would get long life. So, this festival is also celebrated to keep death away from family.
Beautiful stories related to Rakhi are present in our history. Once Krishna’s hand/finger got cut and Draupadi tore a piece of her cloth and tied onto that to stop bleeding. Krishna remembered that instance and protected her while bastra-haran. While, Parvati was performing penance to get Shiva as husband, she offered a Rakhi to Vishnu and asked him to remove any obstacle from her path. Moreover, in modern times, before the Hidaspes war, Alenxander’s wife Roxana [AP1] sent a Rakhi to Porus, requesting him to not harm her husband, and Porus accepted her wish [the foreign narrative of Porus losing to Alexander is false]. A unique celebration of Rakhi-Bandhan happened in 1905, where Rabindranath Tagore protested Banga-Bhanga (partition of Bengal into West Bengal and Bangladesh). In this celebration, Hindu and Muslim people tied Rakhi to each other, wishing the strengthening of Indian brotherhood.
In India, Yami and Yama are also relevant in a festival called Bhai-Phota/Bhatri-Twitiya (in West Bengal) or Bhai Bij (in Maharashtra), Bhai Tika (in Nepal), Bhai-Duj (In other places). The Bengali poem related to Bhai Phota goes like this-
‘ভাইয়ের কপালে দিলাম ফোঁটা, যমের দুয়ারে পড়ল কাঁটা।
যমুনা দেয় যমকে ফোঁটা, আমি দিই আমার ভাইকে ফোঁটা॥
যমুনার হাতে ফোঁটা খেয়ে যম হল অমর।
আমার হাতে ফোঁটা খেয়ে আমার ভাই হোক অমর॥‘
Translation: ‘I am giving a dot (of Sandalwood/ Sweet Curd) on my brother’s forehead; Yama’s path is thus becoming full of obstacles. Yamuna/Yami gives a dot to Yama, I also give a dot to my brother. Upon receiving the dot from Yami/Yamuna, Yama became immortal. May my brother also be immortal after receiving dot from me’.
Sisters usually chants this mantra thrice while touching the ring finger of left hand onto brothers’ forehead, giving the sandalwood dot. The festival usually comes right after Kali Puja festival; Kali Puja happens in New Moon night. Bhatri-Dwitiya is celebrated 2 days after Kali Puja. It is interesting, how, we humans have found out ways to celebrate even the god of death in a positive way!!
Yama’s worshipping is not done because he is the ruler of the dead. To avoid sudden death, Shiva’s Mrityunjay yagna or chants can be performed. While people perform Kailash parikrama (revolving the Kailash Mountain), they visit a place called Jam Dwar. It is said that, here, in a temple, Yama’s puja should be done because purging of soul is necessary before going near God.
I have kept Yama as ‘Death’ because he signifies transition of our human life-cycle. Also, he signifies resolutions and promises as good karma.
Upright meaning
In tarot, the Death card is often associated with transformation, change, and endings. When the card is upright, it generally signifies positive traits such as transformation, change, and the end of a cycle. The upright Death may represent a person who is experiencing a significant transformation or who is letting go of something in order to make room for something new.
Reverse meaning
On the other hand, when the Death card is reversed, it may indicate negative traits such as resistance to change, stagnation, or a fear of endings. The reversed Death may represent a person who is struggling to let go of something or who is resisting change, or who is trapped in a stagnant situation. It could also suggest a need to face fears and embrace change in order to move forward.
[AP1]https://www.siliconindia.com/news/general/untold-mythological-tales-about-raksha-bandhan-nid-152509-cid-1.html