Is being born in Kaliyug a misfortune?
Seeing the tribulations in our present day society, people often say, "it is ghor Kaliyug" means "Kali yug has reached its peak". And these words seems to be validated by the news on TV, newspapers etc. So are we unfortunate to be present be living in such a time?
Before we talk about Kaliyug, let us first understand what is Kaliyug?
According to the scriptures, time is divided into various eras called yuga. Each of these yuga have their own peculiar characteristics.
We are presently in the era of Kali, hence this era is called Kaliyug. This era is characterized by the deterioration in spiritual and ethical values, hence is also referred to as the Dark age or Iron age.
The first of the four era’s is called Satyuga. It is characterized by the presence of all four pillars of dharma.
At the onset of Kaliyug, three of those pillars were already destroyed and only truth is left.
Truth also continues to deteriorate over the course of Kaliyug and towards the end, ultimately truth also meets its sad demise. In this age, irreligion manifests itself in the form of anger, passion, ego and intoxication.
Due to lack of austerity and purity, virtues like self-control, forgiveness, generosity, benevolence etc. fall to very low levels. Further, due to lack of virtuousness, violent traits such as cruelty, aggression, oppression, causing harm to others and other social ills begin to rise. And the four pillars of irreligion take firm root.
झूठ हिंसा तृष्णा अरु गोविंद राधे । द्वेष, अधर्म चार पद हैं बता दे ॥
jhūṭha hiṁsā tr̥ṣṇā aru goviṁda rādhe । dveṣa, adharma cāra pada haiṁ batā de ॥
In the Shrimad Bhagawat, the great sages, referred to as the Shaunak and other Parmahans sages explain the state of people in Kaliyug to Soota Ji Maharaj
प्रायेणाल्पायुषः सभ्य कलावस्मिन्युगे जनाः ।
मन्दाः सुमन्दमतयो मन्दभाग्या ह्युपद्रुताः ॥
भाग.1.1.10
prāyeṇālpāyuṣaḥ sabhya kalāvasminyuge janāḥ ।
mandāḥ sumandamatayo mandabhāgyā hyupadrutāḥ ॥
bhāga.1.1.10
"In Kaliyug, in general, people will have a short life span. Laziness and poor intellectual capabilities, will bring about misfortune and lead to inauspicious results".
As we can see, the life span of human beings in Kaliyug is less than 100 years. Occasionally, people may live to be 100 years, but that is rare and hence considered an exception rather than the norm. Attention span of people is getting shorter. Memory is also failing. Instructions given a few minutes is many a times slips out of the memory
So, amongst all the four yugas, Kaliyug is considered to be the worst (or dark) age. However, despite the negative aspects of Kaliyug, we do not need to loose heart, as there is a ray of hope. God our eternal father and well-wisher, through His utmost grace and mercy has paved a very easy path for God realization during this age.
Shrimad Bhagavat Mahapuran provides the assurance. Although, life in Kaliyug is tainted by a multitude of vices, yet Kaliyug is endowed with one great quality, which hides all those faults and makes it desirable. That quality being
कलेर्दोषनिधे राजन्नस्ति ह्येको महान् गुण: ।
कीर्तनादेव कृष्णस्य मुक्तसङ्ग: परं व्रजेत् ॥
भा 12.3.51
kalerdoṣanidhe rājannasti hyeko mahān guṇa: ।
kīrtanādeva kr̥ṣṇasya muktasaṅga: paraṁ vrajet ॥
bhā 12.3.51
“only by chanting the divine names of Shri Krishna along with loving mental remembrance, one can cross the ocean of the material world and from that moment on attain the divine abode for eternity”.
In each Yug, there are different ways of realizing God. Furthermore, the Bhagwat says:
कृतेयद्ध्यायतोविष्णुम्,त्रेतायांयजतोमखैः।द्वापरेपरिचर्यायाम्,कलौतद्धरिकीर्तनात॥
भाग. 12.3.52
kr̥teyaddhyāyatoviṣṇum,tretāyāṁyajatomakhaiḥ।dvāpareparicaryāyām,kalautaddharikīrtanāta॥
bhāga. 12.3.52
- in Satyug, one can realize God by performing thousands of years of severe austerities;
- in Tretayug, one can realize God by performing yagya (fire sacrifices) with full faith as per the perfect and precise injunctions given in the Vedas;
- in Dwaparyug, one can realize God, by offering selfless service to the saints;
- In Kaliyug, one can realize God, merely by chanting His name with a pure heart.
Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj has shed light on another great quality of Kali yuga, which is extremely beneficial to all spiritual aspirants. Due to this quality even great paramhans desire to descend on earth at this time.
The benefit of performing devotion for the mentioned time in the respective yugas is equal
In other words God-realization in this Kali yug has been made the easiest.
God is fully aware of the constraints imposed upon the souls by Kaliyug, which includes a short lifespan, limited mental capabilities, impious environments etc., which limits their ability to perform devotion. So, the ever-merciful Lord makes it easy for the souls to attain God-realization simply by chanting His names and glories.