Keys to the Yugas or Cycles of the Ages - Page 3 PDF  | Print |  E-mail
Written by David Frawley (Pandit Vamadeva)   
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I believe that this addition of the subyugas explains a lot historically.

For example, the Satya Subyuga of the Descending Kali Yuga from 600 – 200 BCE was the main period of religious and philosophical development in the ancient world, particularly through the the Indians, the Chinese and the Greeks, when Vedantic, Buddhist, Taoist and Greek philosophies were at there highest. This would agree with it being the Satya or spiritual portion of the descending Kali Yuga.

The Satya subyuga of the Ascending Kali Yuga from 1200 – 1600 AD marked the High Middle Ages, the Renaissance and Reformation in which there was also a development of knowledge in Europe. This would agree with it being the Satya or spiritual portion of the ascending Kali Yuga.

The Descending Dwapara Yuga and its Satya subyuga (2900 – 2100 BCE), Treta subyuga (2100-1500 BCE) and Dwapara subyuga (1500 – 1100 BCE) correspond fairly well with the Old, Middle and New Kingdoms of ancient Egypt. These are the usual periods given by scholars for their main flourishing. After 1100 BCE, the civilization of ancient Egypt declined severely.

In this regard, it is important to note that the current Kali subyuga of the Dwapara Yuga that runs from 1900 - 2100 AD explains our continued global problems even though Dwapara proper has already begun. These problems will probably not be resolved until 2100 AD when the Kali subyuga ends and the Dwapara subyuga of Dwapara Yuga begins.

Presently we stand only slightly more than half way through the Kali subyuga of Dwapara Yuga. The question is whether the second half will be as destructive as the first half.

So the good news that Sri Yukteswar taught, that we are in Dwapara Yuga, needs to be tempered with the fact that we are also in its Kali subyuga. This means that some of the negative influence of the previous Kali Yuga will remain. These are reflected in our current ecological crisis and in the problem of religious fundamentalism and terrorism.

We must also recognize that Dwapara Yuga itself is not a spiritual age like Satya Yuga. It is an age of subtle materialism that brings some development over the gross materialism of Kali Yuga. But the powers that Dwapara develops from electricity to nuclear and the mass media create their challenges as well, along with their more dangerous weapons and possibility of a greater civilizational collapse. The beginning of Dwapara Yuga can result in wars and disasters greater than Kali Yuga because the energies and weapons are stronger! 

We should additionally note that the cycle of the yugas does not proceed in a uniform way but through a series of transformations, which can have a destructive side. Often the forces of darkness increase or amass before they are eliminated or cast out. So struggles between the powers of light and the powers of darkness can heighten even in an era of generally increasing light, such as we see today.