Are we Living in the Kali Yuga?
What does this mean?
Yuga in Hinduism refers to an epoch or era within a four age cycle. The ancients understood time as a circle, not linear, and the circle of ages are known as the yugas. The first age within this cycle is known as the Satya Yuga, Satyug, or Kṛta Yuga.
This is referred to as the golden age, the age of purity and righteousness. A time of justice, peace and happiness, there is no vanity or evil and people are virtuous and wise. Selfishness, hate and fear are unknown and everyone practised yoga for spiritual understanding. The world soul was white and truth reigned supreme.
The second age of humanity in the cycle is known as the Treta Yuga. Treta means ‘a collection of three things’ in Sanskrit and is called so because, during the Treta Yuga, there were three incarnate avatars of Vishnu that were seen, the fifth (Vamana), sixth (Parashurama) and seventh (Rama).
The Treta Yuga is known as the silver age. Through this time the worlds soul becomes red, and the power of man declines. We become more materialistic, less spiritually inclined, often breaking out in wars. Climate change forms deserts and oceans, agriculture and mining rise along with elements of control over society.
Thirdly, we have the Dwapara Yuga, which in Sanskrit means “two ahead” putting the yuga (planetary age) in third place. This is known as the bronze age and the age of energy. The worlds soul becomes yellow. There is rapid development in mankind’s knowledge, understanding that all matter in atomic form is but expressions of energy and vibratory force. Mankind is more courageous and competitive, typically engaging in penance and charity. Divine intellect ceases to exist, and people live more deceitfully, plagued by disease and desire.
Next, we have the Kali Yuga, the iron age and last of four stages in the cycle. The age of darkness, when the world’s soul is black in hue. Disease, anger, disaster and fear of scarcity dominate. Lust is viewed as socially acceptable and sexual intercourse seen as the central requirement of life. Vows are performed and broken promptly after. Addiction to intoxicating drinks and drugs rise and people openly display animosity. War is rife, family values barely exist. Materialism, consumerism and selfishness are a part of ordinary life, while goodness and virtue have all but disappeared. People are more ignorant, having a false sense of pride and never happy or satisfied.
Looking into each of the different yugas, we can easily associate ourselves with being in the Kali Yuga. Anyone can see that everything around us is corrupt, polluted and commercialized. Modern society continues falling apart in some of the most democratic countries around the world.
The food that we consume, the water we drink and the air that we breathe is neither good nor pure. Reported or not, somewhere in the world, we are always at war. Everything from education to pharmaceuticals and the system as a whole is largely false, where misinformation occupies the minds of the mass population.
In notable addition, it has been stated many times recently, that our planet is presently in the midst of its sixth mass extinction of plants and animals (the sixth wave of extinctions in the past half-billion years).
So, with an unfavourable view looking at everything through an eye that is focused on all the bad happening in the modern world. We can easily set aside all the extraordinary beauty there is and perceive merely what is described to represent the Kali Yuga stage in mankind’s evolution.
The duration of the yugas are still quite controversial, the likes of Wikipedia state that the durations are as follows:
- Satya Yuga equals 1,728,000 Human years
- Treta Yuga equals 1,296,000 Human years
- Dvapara Yuga equals 864,000 Human years
- Kali Yuga equals 432,000 Human years
This is according to one Puranic Astronomical Estimate, whereby Puranic Chronology provides a timeline of Hindu history according to the scriptures.
However, Sri Yukteswar, author of the book “The Holy Science” published in 1894. Broke away from typical Hindu tradition in eloquently stating that earth is not in the age of Kali Yuga, but has advanced to Dwapara Yuga. His logical proof was soundly based on an alternative perspective of the precession of the equinoxes. This is the phenomenon whereby the sun on the day of the equinox (the day when the night and day are the same in length) rises in different constellations, overtime working its way through all twelve signs of the Zodiac.
The ancients broke down the precession into two parts, twelve thousand years ascending and twelve thousand years descending, where everything gets better or worse for mankind. This potentially could explain why civilizations rise and fall and why we see ample evidence of advanced cultures in a time when mankind was supposed to be primitive.
The calculations of Sri Yukteswar total twenty-four thousand years and show the duration of the yugas as:
1. Satya yuga-4800
2. Treta yuga-3600
3. Dvapara yuga-2400
4. Kalyuga-1200
Sri Yukteswar calculated that the last Dwapara Yuga ended in 700BC, shortly after the passing of Krishna. According to his calculations, we passed through both descending and ascending Kali Yugas from 700BC to 1700AD. Then into the ascending Dwapara Yuga transition in 1700AD and into Dwapara proper in 1900AD and this yuga will end in 4100AD.
If these calculations are accurate then, that would place us in the age of energy and by looking around us there is overwhelming proof that this is the case.
In the last 118 years, there have been technological innovations of considerable significance. From the Vacuum cleaner in 1901 to Radar, Sonar, Nuclear power, Internet, Personal computers, Mobile phones and Electric cars. Computing, Quantum computing, Artificial intelligence, Serverless computing, Deep learning, Augmented reality, Distributed ledger technology and more.
The amazing Indian yogi, mystic, and author Sadhguru also supports the notion that we are currently living in the Dwapara Yuga energy age.
Regardless of the age that the earth and the human race are living in, we are a species heavily influenced by energies and forces both known and unknown.
It is easy to look at the state of certain happenings in the modern world and associate ourselves with living in the Kali Yuga stage of evolution. This may also contribute to people adopting a defeatist attitude and believe there is nothing we can do to improve anything.
However, whether you believe any of this or not, the message is clear that within all these cycles exists an ongoing human evolution, a spiral of spiritual growth.
Western culture is based upon Greco-Roman influences which go back to 500 BCE, leading our beliefs to be completely different than what they are today. Presently we can see practices like yoga and meditation going more mainstream throughout the western world.
This shows that slowly we are ascending to a more superior level of consciousness. There is the underlying belief that we are more than what we have been taught. We are undoubtedly spiritual beings experiencing this human form.
If this belief continues to grow, then one day in the very far future mankind may yet again have the opportunity to experience the golden age of the Satya Yuga.
If not, if the yugas are nothing more than fascinating stories passed down from the ancients. Then at least the gradual growth in the modern belief that we are more than what we have been taught. That we are spiritual, will hopefully and eventually allow us to live in a more harmonious and loving way.
