Yuga

Introduction

According to the Hindu worldview, history unfolds in a cyclical pattern that proceeds from a golden age to world ages of progressive spiritual decline, and then back to an era of light. These ages are called yugas (yokes), presumably because they fasten beings to the wheel of time (kala-cakra), the flux of condition existence.

YugaThere are four such yugas, which repeat themselves over and over again. In each yuga there is a specific process of self-realization. Currently we are in the Kali-yuga.

Terms and Numbers

  • Base number = 432,000 years
  • Satya Yuga = Base number * 4 = 1,728,000
  • Treta Yuga = Base number  * 3 = 864,000
  • Dvapara Yuga = Base number  * 2 = 1,296,000
  • Kali Yuga = Base number  * 1 = 432,000
  • 1 Yuga Cycle = 10 Yugas (4+3+2+1) * 432,000 years = 4,320,000 years
  • 1 Kalpa = 1000 cycles * 4,320,000 years (per Yuga Cycle) = 4,320,000,000 years

One kalpa is a day of Brahma, and one day of Brahma consists of a thousand cycles of four yugas. Brahma’s lifespan is 100 years of his time.

The 4 Yugas

Satya Yuga

The golden age lasts 1,728,000 years. The average life span at the beginning of the yuga is 100,000 years.

Truth (satya) reigns supreme, and which is also know as krita-yuga because everything in it is well made (krita).

The process of self-realization in this yuga is meditation on Vishnu. God consciousness is at 100% now.

Treta Yuga

The silver age lasts 1,296,000 years. The average life span at the beginning of the yuga is 10,000 years.

The process of self realization is the performance of opulent yajnas (sacrifices). God consciousness is reduced to 75% by now.

Dvapara Yuga

The bronze age lasts 864,000 years. The average life span at the beginning of the yuga is 1000 years.

The process of self realization is the worship of the deities within temples. God consciousness is reduced to 50% by now. 

Kali Yuga

The iron age lasts 432,000 years. The average life span at the beginning of the yuga is 100 years.

The process of self realization is the chanting of the Holy Names of the Lord. God consciousness is reduced to 25%.

Marked by ignorance, delusion, and greed. This is the time we find ourselves in now. By now already 5000 years of Kali yuga have passed and it is predicted that by the end of the yuga people will hardly be older than 20 years and their only food will be meat.

What Happens Next?

It is predicted that at the end of the Kali Yuga, Lord Shiva shall destroy the universe and all the physical body would undergo a great transformation. After such dissolution, Lord Brahma would recreate the universe and mankind will become the ‘Beings of Truth’ once again.

After Brahma’s lifespan of 100 years (of his time), his cosmic death will coincide with the destruction of the Brahmic Egg. This is the moment where our present universe will blink out of existence completely, and Shiva and Shakti will be united once again.

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