Lord Yama's identity I've been reading up on cosmology and am curious if Lord Suyama of Yama heaven and Lord Yama as judge of the recently deceased are the same figure. The latter is often said to reside in either the hell or preta realms, but since he is also a vaimanikapreta, I can't help but wonder if his time in the higher planes equates to this third level of heaven. Or are the same names simply coincidence?

Any thoughts/sources are much appreciated.
According to Theravāda perspective, Lord Yama is considered to be a vemānika-asura who sometimes enjoys all the pleasures of heaven, in a celestial mansion and at other times experiences the fruits of his kamma by being the king in hell (niraya). Lord Yama belongs to the Cātummahārājikā deva (god) category. So according to my knowledge, lord Yama and lord Suyama of Yama are two devas.
When sentient beings appear near the hell gates, hell-wardens (nirayapalas) seizing them by the arms present them to king Yama. According to &quot;Devaduta Sutta: The Deva Messengers&quot;, he always try to remember the good deeds one did in his/her previous existence. He does not order hell-wardens to punish the sentient beings in the hell. So, he is a good king.
For more information please read this.
Note: This is what I understood. I may be wrong but not Dhamma.