I am a Toddler in the area of Bhagavad Gita. I wish to write this blog as i wanted to express my opinion on some of the areas preached by Mahabaratha. My opinion might be new to someone and repetitive to others but it is my choice to post my opinion in this blog about the 4 yugas and 4 gunas of people.It has been quite frequent among people in India that if any Bad happens to them they will either blame others or fate at the same time if some thing worse happen to others they console others stating that it is kali yuga anything can happen. I have heard these kind of chit chats among the environment which i have grown but never have i paid attention to what kali yuga is ? nor to what other yugas exists but recently these topics were of my interest.
For people who do not know, it was said that one yuga cycle constitutes of 4 different yugas and they are
1. Krita Yuga / Sathya Yuga
2. Treta Yuga
3. Dwapara Yuga
4. Kali Yuga
Now having known about the four yugas we might want to dig a bit to know the significance of each yuga and its consequences.
Kritha Yuga
It was believed that in Krita yuga there were no effigy for god and people were worshiping deities in the form of fire. In this yuga people were able to do anything at their will and the bull of dharma which symbolises morality was said to stand on its 4 legs which constitute truth, penance, charity and yagna. The color of supreme soul in this yuga was believed to be of white.
Treta Yuga
It was believed in this yuga that people started to worshiping by creating effigy for gods and also the bull of dharma was said to stand on its 3 legs. Though it is not clear from my references which of morality is reduced. I believe that the quality of morality which reduced was penance. The color of the supreme soul in this yuga is believed to be red.
Dwapara Yuga
It was believed that people of this yuga started to classify the dharma into 4 different parts viz Rig, Yajur, Sama, Atharva. The bull of dharma was believed to stand on its 2 legs. Based on my understanding the quality of morality reduced at this yuga is truth. The color of the supreme soul in this yuga is believed to be yellow
Kali Yuga
We are believed to be part of this kali yuga and it was said that people will lose most of their virtue and will be wicked and was believed to be the birth place of chaos. In this yuga the bull of morality is said to stand in its 1 leg and my understanding was that in this yuga the morality loses the quality of charity. The color of supreme soul in this yuga is black.
People were supposed to be classified as 4 based on their gunas and births. They are
1. Brahmanas - Ascetics
2. Kshatriyas - Warriors
3. Vaishyas - Buisness man
4. Sudras - Servants
Okie with this basic idea about the 4 yugas and 4 gunas of people I will project my thoughts about these classification as believed in Hindu mythology was created by God.
As I see, In Krita yuga people lived prosperity and attained the supreme soul which was believed their highest virtue, True it is and I also believe that at this phase of yuga there were no classification among people based on gunas as people were able to do anything at their will there might not be a need for sudras and since people were not after money and were devoid of wishes there need not be any vaishyas and since people were with full qualities of morality there might not have been necessary for people to rule so there might not be kshatriyas as well. Leaving Brahmanas who I believe to be the only category of people existed in krita yuga and devoted themselves to austerities and achieved the eternal Bliss.
As time moves on people started becoming greedy and selfish. They wanted to posses most of the earths valuable things and thus they were classified depending on their wishes and achieved what they want in the righteous way. Since people wanted to own themselves there arise dispute among them and to control them and lead them not away from righteous path we needed kshatriyas and for owning themselves they were in need of money and so people started buisness and hence came vaishyas and since people were deviated from the path of morality they no longer were able to do anything at their will and hence came sudras. Now the question might arise based on what qualities a person might be born as a kshatriyas, brahmanas, vaishyas and sudras. Its definitely a million dollar question for which my quest still continues. but based on what i understood. It all depends on the length of your attachment to the earthly elements.
Now what made them different in Dwapara yuga ? I believe that though people wish to own themselves in Treta yuga they were trying to achieve in the right way and in dwapara yuga people started practising cunning ways to achieve what they wanted and their main motivation was said to achieve what they want no matter whether they follow the path of virtue.
In the kali yuga people started going from worse to worst and they started to wish for anything and everything. atleast inearlier yugas people followed wicked ways to achieve their acceptable wishes but in the kali yuga people converted everything into acceptable and every way into morality and thus performing all the sin.
If we closely observe the tranistion of people, I would like to point out in all the yugas it is people who changed not the virtue not the morality not the path of dharma. I believe even in this kali yuga there is possibility that people can follow the qualities of morality but many of us excuse ourself stating that it cannot be achieved in this time period but as said in ancient eras the yugas were cyclic and after the kali yuga it is going to be Krita yuga again. Also as per Hindu mythology there will be kalki incarnation of Lord vishnu to bring back everything in order and my belief is that as i stated earlier if people started believing that they can follow the way of morality and try to follow the same we can assume that kalki is incarinated.
I would like to quote this famous text from bagavad gita before concluding.
"Yada Yadahi Dharmasya Glanirbhavati bharata
Apurthanamadarasya Thadatmanam Srujamyaham
Parithranaya Sadhunam Vinasayacha Dushkrutham
Dharma Samsthapanardaya Sambavami Yuge Yuge"
As said above these things which is likely to take place in all the yuga cycles
