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Line 8: − + − Mahabharata, the major text on Indian polity, also deals with the creation of the universe, of the division of the movement of the Universe into specified periods called the Yugas. + − === Yuga ===+ − An epoch. One of the four large periods into which the basic Chaturyuga cycle is divided. Also see Chaturyuga, above. Now content from this book Chaturyuga could be under this article of Yuga itself − + − The basic Indian cycle of creation and destruction. According to the puranas and the astronomical texts one Chaturyuga consists of 43,20,000 solar years. Thousand Chaturyugas form a Kalpa, which is the larger cycle of creation and destruction, and is seen as a day of Brahma. The four Yugas comprising the Chaturyuga are: Krita, Treta, Dvapara and Kali. + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + − + + + + − + − + − + − + − − प्रथमं श्वेतकल्पस्तु द्वितीयो नीललोहितः। − − वामदेवस्तृतीयस्तु ततोराथन्तरोऽपरः ।। २९०.३ − − रौरवः पञ्चमः प्रोक्तः षष्ठो देव इति स्मृतः। − − सप्तमोऽथ बृहत्कल्पः कन्दर्पोऽष्टम उच्यते ।। २९०.४ − − सद्योऽथ नवमः प्रोक्तः ईशानो दशमः स्मृतः। − − तम एकादशः प्रोक्तः तथा सारस्वतः परः ।। २९०.५ − − त्रयोदश उदानस्तु गारुड़ोऽथ चतुर्दशः। − − कौर्मः पञ्चदशः प्रोक्तः पौर्णमास्यामजायत ।। २९०.६ − − षोड़शो नारसिंहस्तु समानस्तु ततोऽपरः। − − आग्नेयोऽष्टादशः प्रोक्तः सोमकल्पस्तथापरः ।। २९०.७ − − मानवो विंशतिः प्रोक्तस्तत् पुमानिति चापरः। − − वैकुण्ठश्चापरस्तद्वल्लक्ष्मीकल्पस्तथापरः ।। २९०.८ − − चतुर्विंशतिमः प्रोक्तः सावित्री कल्पसंज्ञकः। − − पञ्चविंशस्ततो घोरो वाराहस्तु ततोऽपरः ।। २९०.९ − − सप्तविंशोऽथ वैराजो गौरि कल्पस्तथापरः। − − माहेश्वरस्तु स प्रोक्त स्त्रिपुरो यत्र घातितः ।। २९०.१०<ref>Matsya Purana ([https://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A3%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D/%E0%A4%85%E0%A4%A7%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%83_%E0%A5%A8%E0%A5%AF%E0%A5%A6 Adhyaya 290])</ref> Line 83:
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Kala (Samskrit : कालः) means "time period" in a broad sense, Kala is kshayakari (exhausting) or vriddi kari (flourishing). Firstly Kala, refers to the inexorable flow of both creation and unfolding of the universe and its subsequent destruction, in time cycles of huge dimensions. Secondly, Kala refers to the shorter and relative time periods on earth, the days and nights, paksha, masa (months), ayana (uttarayana and dakshinayana), samvatsara (year) and this leads to the bigger units of yugas which again refer back to the cycles of srishti (creation) and kshaya (decay) that the universe passes through.<ref>Narayanacharya, K. S. (2011). ''Veda Sanskritiya Parichaya''. Hubli:Sahitya Prakashana.</ref>
Kala (Samskrit : कालः) means "time period" in a broad sense, Kala is kshayakari (exhausting) or vriddi kari (flourishing). Firstly Kala, refers to the inexorable flow of both creation and unfolding of the universe and its subsequent destruction, in time cycles of huge dimensions. Secondly, Kala refers to the shorter and relative time periods on earth, the days and nights, paksha, masa (months), ayana (uttarayana and dakshinayana), samvatsara (year) and this leads to the bigger units of yugas which again refer back to the cycles of srishti (creation) and kshaya (decay) that the universe passes through.<ref>Narayanacharya, K. S. (2011). ''Veda Sanskritiya Parichaya''. Hubli:Sahitya Prakashana.</ref>
== Kala and Universe ==
== कालः सृष्टिः च ॥ Kala and Universe ==
Kala as related to the Universe refers to the theories of creation, the cosmogenesis.
Kala as related to the Universe refers to the theories of creation, the cosmogenesis.
Shri. Dharampal rightly explained the influence of Kala on the Chitta (manas) or the psyche of people of Bharatavarsha as follows<ref>Dharampal. (2000) ''Dharampal Collected Writings. Volume 5 : Essays on Tradition, Recovery and Freedom.'' Goa : Other India Press</ref><blockquote>''The universe once created passes through a number of cycles of growth and decay, and at the end is drawn back into Brahman. This cycle of creation of the universe from Brahman and its disappearance into Him is repeated again and again according to the predefined flow of time. Within this large cycle, there are a number of shorter cycles, at the end of each of which the universe gets destroyed, and created again at the beginning of the next. Thus the universe keeps on passing through repeated cycles of creation and destruction, and there are series of cycles within cycles.''</blockquote><blockquote>''The terms ‘creation’ and ‘destruction’ are probably not wholly appropriate in this context. Because, at the time of creation, it is not something external to Him that Brahman creates. He only manifests Himself in the varied forms of the universe, and at the end He merely contracts those manifestations into Himself, and thus there is in reality nothing that gets created or destroyed. The universe, in a sense, is a mere play of Brahman, a cosmic game of repeated expansion and contraction of the ultimate essence of the universe. But it is a game that is played according to well defined cycles of time. The universe is play, but the play is not arbitrary. Even Brahman is governed by kala. He manifests and contracts according to a definite flow of time that even He cannot transcend.''</blockquote><blockquote>''Every Indian is probably aware of this Indian view of the universe as the play of Brahman. Every Indian is also aware of the supremacy of kala in this play. Many Indians may not know the very detailed arithmetic of the various cycles of time that is given in the Puranas. But the thought that the universe is a play that had no beginning and will have no end, and that this play of Brahman proceeds according to the inexorable flow of kala, is deeply etched on the chitta of the people of India.''</blockquote>
Shri. Dharampal rightly explained the influence of Kala on the Chitta (manas) or the psyche of people of Bharatavarsha as follows<ref>Dharampal. (2000) ''Dharampal Collected Writings. Volume 5 : Essays on Tradition, Recovery and Freedom.'' Goa : Other India Press</ref><blockquote>''The universe once created passes through a number of cycles of growth and decay, and at the end is drawn back into Brahman. This cycle of creation of the universe from Brahman and its disappearance into Him is repeated again and again according to the predefined flow of time. Within this large cycle, there are a number of shorter cycles, at the end of each of which the universe gets destroyed, and created again at the beginning of the next. Thus the universe keeps on passing through repeated cycles of creation and destruction, and there are series of cycles within cycles.''</blockquote><blockquote>''The terms ‘creation’ and ‘destruction’ are probably not wholly appropriate in this context. Because, at the time of creation, it is not something external to Him that Brahman creates. He only manifests Himself in the varied forms of the universe, and at the end He merely contracts those manifestations into Himself, and thus there is in reality nothing that gets created or destroyed. The universe, in a sense, is a mere play of Brahman, a cosmic game of repeated expansion and contraction of the ultimate essence of the universe. But it is a game that is played according to well defined cycles of time. The universe is play, but the play is not arbitrary. Even Brahman is governed by kala. He manifests and contracts according to a definite flow of time that even He cannot transcend.''</blockquote><blockquote>''Every Indian is probably aware of this Indian view of the universe as the play of Brahman. Every Indian is also aware of the supremacy of kala in this play. Many Indians may not know the very detailed arithmetic of the various cycles of time that is given in the Puranas. But the thought that the universe is a play that had no beginning and will have no end, and that this play of Brahman proceeds according to the inexorable flow of kala, is deeply etched on the chitta of the people of India.''</blockquote>
== Kalapramanam ==
== कालप्रमाणम् ॥ Kalapramanam ==
Kalapramana or the duration of time and measurements, are variously described in different texts. The calculations are based on nakshatras, suryodaya, chandra (moon), planetary transits for earthly time measurements. Thus we have nakshatramana, sauramana, chandramana etc ways to measure time. Astronomy and Astrology texts such as Surya Siddhanta, deal extensively with the topic of time and its calculations ranging from less than a second to trillions of years.
Manusmrti, Vishnu purana, Bhavishya purana, and Mahabharata, also deal elaborately with the creation of the universe, of the division of the movement of the Universe into specified periods called the Yugas.
=== Chaturyuga ===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Kala as in Vishnu Purana
!Unit
!Definition
|-
|
|
|-
|
|
|-
|
|
|}
{| class="wikitable"
!Unit
!Definition
!Relation to SI units
|-
!Truti
|Base unit
|≈ 35.5 µs
|-
!Tatpara
|100 Truti
|≈ 3.55 ms
|-
!Nimesha
|30 Tatpara
|≈ 106.7 ms
|-
!Kāṣṭhā
|30 Nimesha
|≈ 3.2 s
|-
!Kalā
|30 Kāṣṭhā
|≈ 1.6 min
|-
!Muhūrta
|30 Kalā
|≈ 48 min
|-
!Nakṣatra Ahorātram (Sidereal Day)
|30 Muhūrta
|≈ 24 h
|}
=== Krita Yuga ===
=== युगम् ॥ Yuga ===
An epoch. One of the four large periods into which the basic Chaturyuga cycle is divided, it forms the basic Indian cycle of creation and destruction. According to the puranas and the astronomical texts one Chaturyuga consists of 43,20,000 solar years. Thousand Chaturyugas form a Kalpa, which is the larger cycle of creation and destruction, and is seen as a day of Brahma. The four Yugas comprising the Chaturyuga are: Krita, Treta, Dvapara and Kali.
==== Krita Yuga ====
The first Yuga of the Chaturyuga cycle. In this Yuga Dharma represented by the bull supporting the universe stands securely on all four legs. The four legs of Dharma are said to be Satya, Ahimsa, Daya, Dana, truth, non-injury, kindness and generosity, respectively, in rough translation. According to the calculations of the Puranas, the length of the Krita yuga is 17,28,000 years. But with the passage of time, the universe starts getting more and more complex. The innate order starts getting disturbed. Dharma starts getting weakened. And, towards the end of Krita, the creator has to take birth on earth in various forms to re-establish the dharma.
The first Yuga of the Chaturyuga cycle. In this Yuga Dharma represented by the bull supporting the universe stands securely on all four legs. The four legs of Dharma are said to be Satya, Ahimsa, Daya, Dana, truth, non-injury, kindness and generosity, respectively, in rough translation. According to the calculations of the Puranas, the length of the Krita yuga is 17,28,000 years. But with the passage of time, the universe starts getting more and more complex. The innate order starts getting disturbed. Dharma starts getting weakened. And, towards the end of Krita, the creator has to take birth on earth in various forms to re-establish the dharma.
=== Treta Yuga ===
==== Treta Yuga ====
The second Yuga of the Chaturyuga cycle. In this Yuga the bull representing Dharma stands on three feet.
The second Yuga of the Chaturyuga cycle. In this Yuga the bull representing Dharma stands on three feet.
=== Dvapara Yuga ===
==== Dvapara Yuga ====
The third of the four yugas of the Chaturyuga cycle. In this Yuga the bull representing dharma, that holds the earth, is left with only two feet. Dvapara in the current Chaturyuga begins with the ascendance of Srirama and ends with the ascendance of Srikrishna from the earth.
The third of the four yugas of the Chaturyuga cycle. In this Yuga the bull representing dharma, that holds the earth, is left with only two feet. Dvapara in the current Chaturyuga begins with the ascendance of Srirama and ends with the ascendance of Srikrishna from the earth.
=== Kali Yuga ===
==== Kali Yuga ====
The fourth and the last Yuga of a Chaturyuga cycle. The current Kaliyuga began with the ascendance of Srikrishna from the earth after the Mahabharata war more than 5,000 years ago. Indian astronomical texts fix the time and date of the onset of current Kaliyuga either at the midnight of February 17/18 or the sunrise of February 18 of 3102 B.C., which is the Chaitra Sukla Pratipad of Vikrama Purva 3045 by the Indian calendar.
The fourth and the last Yuga of a Chaturyuga cycle. The current Kaliyuga began with the ascendance of Srikrishna from the earth after the Mahabharata war more than 5,000 years ago. Indian astronomical texts fix the time and date of the onset of current Kaliyuga either at the midnight of February 17/18 or the sunrise of February 18 of 3102 B.C., which is the Chaitra Sukla Pratipad of Vikrama Purva 3045 by the Indian calendar.
=== Kalpa ===
=== Kalpa ===
Period of one thousand Chaturyugas, forming a day of Brahma. A Kalpa is divided into 14 Manvantaras, and there is a Manu, the patriarch, of each of the 14 Manvantaras. The largest Indian time cycle is that of 100 years of the life of Brahma, which is called a Para and half of it is Parardha. Currently we are in the Vaivasvata Manvantara, the seventh Manvantara of the Svetavaraha Kalpa, which is at the beginning of the second Parardha, or the fifty-first year of the current 100 year cycle of Brahma. According to Matsya purana, Kalpas are
Period of one thousand Chaturyugas, forming a day of Brahma. A Kalpa is divided into 14 Manvantaras, and there is a Manu, the patriarch, of each of the 14 Manvantaras. The largest Indian time cycle is that of 100 years of the life of Brahma, which is called a Para and half of it is Parardha. Currently we are in the Vaivasvata Manvantara, the seventh Manvantara of the Svetavaraha Kalpa, which is at the beginning of the second Parardha, or the fifty-first year of the current 100 year cycle of Brahma.
== Madhu Vidya and Kala ==
== Madhu Vidya and Kala ==
Saptayanjanthi rathame eka chakram eko ashvo mahati saptanama thrinabhi chakramajara manrvamam yathrema vishwabhuvanani tasthuhu Ruk Samhita 1.104.2.
Saptayanjanthi rathame eka chakram eko ashvo mahati saptanama thrinabhi chakramajara manrvamam yathrema vishwabhuvanani tasthuhu Ruk Samhita 1.104.2.
Surya’s chariot has got one wheel with 7 horses or one horse having 7 names. That’s how this chariot is driven. This ratha or chariot has got 3 navels. This chariot is the chariot which no one can face. It’s inexhaustible. Entire lokas are completely dependent on this. It’s a very interesting description. Everyone knows that the horses of the Sun god, they drive the chariot. Everyone knows this (this could be 7 days of week or the 7 colors of the sun rays coming from sun god or surya can also be called as horse) Yajanvalkya was given Veda instructions by sun god in the form of Vaji, the horse. Therefore Sukla Yuju Samhitha is called Vajasaneyi samhita. In the kala swarupa, samvatsarais nothing but the body of the horse. Ushase is head, Surya is his eyes and this beautiful description is given in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad ushyava ashwase medhasyasiraha it is explained in the beginning of the chapter. The Ashwamedha Yaga has a special esoteric meaning. If sun god himself is one horse, because there are 7 days in the week and those days have different names that clearly indicates that there are no 7 horses, but one horse with 7 kinds of concepts. The sapta rasmi extracts juice for him. He is always glorified with sapta rushis. That’s how the esoteric meaning is given and that is the description in Nirukta Vyahyan 4.22. Smavatsara and yajna kaala swarupa
Surya’s chariot has got one wheel with 7 horses or one horse having 7 names. That’s how this chariot is driven. This ratha or chariot has got 3 navels. This chariot is the chariot which no one can face. It’s inexhaustible. Entire lokas are completely dependent on this. It’s a very interesting description. Everyone knows that the horses of the Sun god, they drive the chariot. Everyone knows this (this could be 7 days of week or the 7 colors of the sun rays coming from sun god or surya can also be called as horse) Yajanvalkya was given Veda instructions by sun god in the form of Vaji, the horse. Therefore Sukla Yuju Samhitha is called Vajasaneyi samhita. In the kala swarupa, samvatsarais nothing but the body of the horse. Ushase is head, Surya is his eyes and this beautiful description is given in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad ushyava ashwase medhasyasiraha it is explained in the beginning of the chapter. The Ashwamedha Yaga has a special esoteric meaning. If sun god himself is one horse, because there are 7 days in the week and those days have different names that clearly indicates that there are no 7 horses, but one horse with 7 kinds of concepts. The sapta rasmi extracts juice for him. He is always glorified with sapta rushis. That’s how the esoteric meaning is given and that is the description in Nirukta Vyahyan 4.22. Smavatsara and yajna kaala swarupa
== Verses and Meanings ==
According to Matsya purana, Kalpas are<blockquote>प्रथमं श्वेतकल्पस्तु द्वितीयो नीललोहितः। वामदेवस्तृतीयस्तु ततोराथन्तरोऽपरः ।। २९०.३</blockquote><blockquote>रौरवः पञ्चमः प्रोक्तः षष्ठो देव इति स्मृतः। सप्तमोऽथ बृहत्कल्पः कन्दर्पोऽष्टम उच्यते ।। २९०.४</blockquote><blockquote>सद्योऽथ नवमः प्रोक्तः ईशानो दशमः स्मृतः। तम एकादशः प्रोक्तः तथा सारस्वतः परः ।। २९०.५</blockquote><blockquote>त्रयोदश उदानस्तु गारुड़ोऽथ चतुर्दशः। कौर्मः पञ्चदशः प्रोक्तः पौर्णमास्यामजायत ।। २९०.६</blockquote><blockquote>षोड़शो नारसिंहस्तु समानस्तु ततोऽपरः। आग्नेयोऽष्टादशः प्रोक्तः सोमकल्पस्तथापरः ।। २९०.७</blockquote><blockquote>मानवो विंशतिः प्रोक्तस्तत् पुमानिति चापरः। वैकुण्ठश्चापरस्तद्वल्लक्ष्मीकल्पस्तथापरः ।। २९०.८</blockquote><blockquote>चतुर्विंशतिमः प्रोक्तः सावित्री कल्पसंज्ञकः। पञ्चविंशस्ततो घोरो वाराहस्तु ततोऽपरः ।। २९०.९</blockquote><blockquote>सप्तविंशोऽथ वैराजो गौरि कल्पस्तथापरः। माहेश्वरस्तु स प्रोक्त स्त्रिपुरो यत्र घातितः ।। २९०.१०<ref>Matsya Purana ([https://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A3%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D/%E0%A4%85%E0%A4%A7%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%83_%E0%A5%A8%E0%A5%AF%E0%A5%A6 Adhyaya 290])</ref></blockquote>
== References ==
== References ==