What Spiritual Age is Our World In? - Understanding the Yuga Cycle

Our solar system moves through the surrounding cosmos on an elliptical orbit around a central star. Yogic writings indicate that this central star is highly spiritual and is the seat of creative power and universal magnetism. As such, the relative distance of our solar system in relation to this central star has significant spiritual and worldly influence.

According to Sri Yuketswar, the cycle takes 24,000 years to complete a full rotation around this central star. When our Sun (and hence the Earth) is closest to the central star, it is under the highest spiritual influences. This is when the greatest spiritual potential occurs. Then as the sun continues its elliptical orbit, the Sun moves further away from the central star and ultimately reaches its furthest point, where we experience the lowest level of spiritual influence.

In this diagram, you can see the elliptical orbit. At the top, we are in closest proximity to the central star. Here we have the advantages associated the spiritual energies being closest and most intense. The orbit continues (clockwise in this diagram) in a 12,000 year descending cycle as we slowly move further away from the central star. Following this is a 12,000 year ascending arc that brings us back to the closest point in the orbit.

The yogic writings divide this complete orbit into ages that help to describe the conditions and potentialities for each time.

Beginning at the top most point, we will move through the ages to see the potentialities gained and lost. At the beginning of the Descending Satya Yuga stage, we are at our greatest potential and as we begin moving further away, we begin to lose the capabilities and powers that we had.

The Descending Satya Yuga lasts 4,800 years. Sri Yukteswar states that "the intellect of man lost altogether the power of grasping spiritual knowledge." As we move further away during Descending Treta Yuga lasts 3,600 years where "the intellect gradually lost all power of grasping the knowledge of divine magnetism. During the 2,400 years next following, while the sun passed through the Descending Dvarpa Yuga, the human intellect lost its power of grasping knowledge of electricities and their attributes. Descending Kali Yuga follows for 1,200 years where "the intellectual power of man was so much diminished that it could no longer comprehend anything beyond the gross material creation."

This 12,000 year cycle took us from our greatest spiritual potential to the darkest period where we are not aware of anything other than the physical creation. The arc then turns back upward where we begin to regain abilities. Sri Yukteswar says that during the ascending arc, we gain the following:

• Ascending Kali Yuga - "the human intellect was so dense that it could not comprehend the electricities."

• Ascending Dvarpa Yuga - "the intellect can comprehend the fine matters or electricities and their attributes which are the creating principles of the external world."

• Ascending Treta Yuga - "the human intellect becomes able to comprehend the divine magnetism, the source of all electrical forces on which the creation depends for its existence"

• Ascending Satya Yuga - mental virtue "completes its full development; the human intellect can comprehend all, even God the Spirit beyond this visible world"

This completes the full 24,000 year Yuga Cycle where we now have returned to the point nearest the central star, having gained our greatest spiritual potential. By Sri Yukteswar's calculations, we are presently in Ascending Dvarpa Yuga that began in 1699. Therefore, we are 324 years into our present stage with a duration that will last until 4099.

Everyone on Earth is the recipient of a specific set of energy for that given time. In this moment, we have certain potentialities, and yet others remain largely out of our grasp. The most advanced among us can overcome the limitations of a given age, as they have transcended time and space. But these energies form the basis for our world (both spiritual and material). I encourage you to explore these concepts and see what you might discover.