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Vol 02.018 Pre-SaraNAgati Issues
8 February, 1997

In this Issue:
1. Note from the Editor
2. Excerpts from Chapter 21 of "Hinduism Rediscovered"
    on " Evolution and Dissolution of Matter- Space - Time Triad"

1. Note from the Editor

Dear Bhagavatas,
We give below excerpts from Chapter 21 of "Hinduism Rediscovered" dealing with "Evolution and Dissolution of Matter- Space -Time Triad" This issue deals with "TIME"

Dasoham
Anbil Ramaswamy


2. Excerpts from Chapter 21 of "Hinduism Rediscovered" on "Time"

SECTION 4 : TIME
Time or 'KALA' is in its essential nature all pervasive ( Vibhu). It is eternal. It is an accessory to creation and dissolution of the manifest world. This time though existing both in Nitya vibhuti and Leela vibhuti ( which term includes all that lies below and including Brahma's Satyaloka) - is potent only in the latter.

In Vaikunta, ' time stands still ', the Nityasuris and Muktas who enjoy eternal youth never go through the process of aging and are eye witnesses to the sight and enjoyment of the ' eternal day' - '21

"Sada pasyanti soorayah diveeva chakshur atatam' and "Ati Ratram Uttamam Ahar Bhavati "

So, time has no value in Paramapada. In Leela Vibhuti, however, it keeps ticking, like a stop-watch constantly measuring the length of life of all living beings and insentient things that manifest and disintegrate at stipulated intervals as willed by Bhagavan.

This time concept has been considered by Hinduism at two levels, Micro and Macro..

AT THE MICRO LEVEL ( as other religions have done) measuring has been done with the divisions and subdivisions familiar to human understanding. This has been done by Hinduism with an unparalleled precision. The Hindu astronomers could calculate the minutest division of time say from hours to minutes to seconds to what we now understand by such terms as nano seconds etc., AND PREDICT WITH RAZOR SHARP ACCURACY THE EXACTTIMINGS OF EVENTS SUCH AS THE ECLIPSES INCLUDINGTHEIR COMMENCEMENT, TOTALITY AND ENDINGSMILLIONS OF YEARS BACK FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS TOCOME. THAT THEY DID WITH ABSOLUTELY NO INFRASTRUCTURES, NO TELESCOPES NOR OTHER GADGETS BUT BY THEIR TRANSCENDENTAL VISION IS A FACT THATMODERN ASTRONOMERS BOASTING OF SOPHISTICATEDINSTRUMENTS CAN ONLY ADMIRE BUT ARE NOT ABLE TOEMULATE.

AT THE MACRO LEVEL , the calculations spreading endlessly far beyond our imaginative faculties and comprehension are, therefore, mind boggling. But, recent scientific research on the Big bang and other phenomena seem to reaffirm our faith in the veracity and the validity of these macro level calculations also.

Says Mr BASHAM:
"The procession of equinoxes was known and calculated with some accuracy by the astronomers, as were the lengths of the year, the lunar month, and other astronomical constants. These calculations were reliable for the most practical purposes and in many cases more exact than those of the Greco- Roman world. Eclipses were forecast with accuracy and their true causes understood"22

DR. RADHAKRISHNAN observes:
"They measured the land, divided the year, mapped out the heavens, traced the course of Sun and planets through the zodiacal belt, analyzed the constitution of matter, and studied the nature of birds and beasts, plants and seeds".23

THUS, OUR ANCESTORS IN THE HINDU SOCIETY LEFT NOSUBJECT UNINVESTIGATED AND ACTUALLY ARRIVED ATTHE APPROPRIATE CONCLUSIONS WHICH MODERNRESEARCHERS ARE ONLY NOW TRYING TO GRAPPLE WITH.

THE HINDU CALENDAR
The Hindu Calendar is based on a ' Solar - lunar ' projection. The Thithi, Vara, Nakshatra, Yoga and Karana form the five fundamental considerations in the calculation of time.

( The names of these as well as those of months, seasons and years as per the Hindu almanac are given in Annexure 6)

1. Thithi: This is the distance between the Sun and the Moon in the stratosphere representing in terms of time to traverse as the lunar day approximately 30 of which make a lunar month. The month itself is divided into two fortnights of 15 Thithis each and called 'Paksha'.

The period from the full moon day ( Pournami) to the New moon day (Amavasya) is called the 'Krishna Paksha' - dark fortnight. and the period from the New moon to the full moon is called 'Sukla paksha'- the bright fortnight.( Incidentally, the word 'Amavasya' means ' residing together' when the Sun and the moon rise and set about the same time.

Ama means together and Vasya means residing.). The thithi can begin at any time during the solar day. The thithi that is current at the time of Sunrise ( Suryodaya) will be the thithi for that day.

2. Vaara: Vaara or Vasara refers to the day of the week. The days correspond to the days followed in the Western Calendar.

3. Nakshatra: the star ruling over any day is decided by the sojourn of the moon on its journey through the 12 zodiacal spheres in a cyclical manner. The moon sojourns in each sphere for approximately 2 1/2 days so that it would complete the 12 spheres in 30 days. There are 27 stars listed in the almanac, each having 4 quarters (Padas). Thus, there are 27 x 4= 108 Padas which are positioned at the rate of 9 padas in each zodiacal sphere. The moon with its eternal movement traverses each Raasi (as the spheres are called) and comes into contact with the stars. And, for this duration of contact, the relevant star governs the day.

4. Yoga: This Yoga is different from the Yoga we discussed under Karma yoga, Gnana yoga , Bhakti yoga etc. Yoga here refers to the total distance traversed by the Sun and the Moon from any specified point. Like Nakshatra, 27 yogas have been listed

5. Karana : This represents half the period of Thithi which we saw earlier. There are 11 Karanas listed in the almanac. The Sun also moves through these zodiacal Raasis. The Sun sojourns in each Raasi for approximately one month. completing the round in one year.

The other planets also move through these zodiacal stations taking varying lengths of time to traverse each ( e.g.) Jupiter, Rahu and Ketu take about one year while Saturn takes about 2 1/2 years .

6. MASA (MONTHS): There are 12 months as in the Western Calendar

7. RITU (Seasons): Unlike the Western calendar which has only 4 seasons of Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter, the Hindu calendar has 6 seasons of 2 months' duration called 'Ritus':

8. AYANA ( Half - Years): The year is also divided into 2 half - years called Ayanas.:

  1. The period beginning from Makara to the end of Mithuna is called Uttarayana to denote the Sun's movement from the tropic of Capricorn NORTHWARDS to the tropic of Cancer.
  2. The period beginning from Kataka to the end of Dhanus is called Dakshinayana to denote the Sun's movement from the tropic of Cancer SOUTHWARDS to the tropic of Capricorn. This is just another way of saying what is recognized in Western thinking as the earth revolving round the Sun as to receive Sun's light alternatively between the two tropics in a period of 6 months.


9. CYCLE OF YEARS : The Hindu calendar lists a cycle of 60 years from Prabhava to Akshaya

MACRO LEVEL COMPUTATIONS
Now, let us take the Macro level computations. Several technical terms have been used to denote the mega computations of time. like

  1. YUGAS,
  2. MAHAYUGAS,
  3. MANVANTARAS,
  4. KALPAS,
  5. PARARDHA.
  6. PARAM.
We shall try to understand what these mean in an attempt to comprehend the magnitude of the calculations adopted and followed in Hindu Cosmic time panorama.

1.YUGAS AND 2. MAHAYUGAS
The time of one year for humans represents one day for the divine beings. 360 such divine days make one divine year. 12,000 such divine years makes a Mahayuga comprising the 4 yugas of Krita, Treta, Dwapara and Kali yugas. In terms of our human standards the measurement of a Mahayuga will look like this: Kali yuga 432,000 human years (We are said to be in the year 5098 as of 1997,the balance of Kali yuga being 426,902 years more as of April 1997) Dwapara yuga ( Dwa means 2 times, So twice of Kaliyuga )

864.000 human years Treta yuga (Tre means 3 times, So thrice of Kali yuga)
1,296,000 human years Krita yuga ( 4 times of Kali yuga)
1,728,000 human years.
 Total for one Mahayuga  = 4,320,000 Human years or 4.32 million years.

THE LORD IN THE VARIOUS YUGAS

Lord in the Krita Yuga :        Lord  Sri Ranganatha
Lord in the Treta Yuga:         Lord Sri Rama
Lord in the Dwapara Yuga:    Lord Sri Krishna
Lord in the Kali Yuga :           Lord  Srinivasa
3. MANVANTARAS
72 Mahayugas constitutes one 'Manvantara' (i.e.) the life of a Manu, the law giver and also of Indra, the Lord of the Devas and 14 such Manvantaras make one day or Kalpa of the four faced Brahma or 72 x 14 = 1008 Mahayugas. This works out to 4.32m x 1008 = 4354.56 MILLION human years or 4.35456 BILLION human years.

THE 'BIG BANG' SCIENTISTS AVER THAT THE BIG BANGMUST HAVE OCCURED SOME 15 BILLION YEARS BACK ,THAT THE SUN CAME INTO BEING ABOUT 5 BILLION YEARSBACK AND THE EARTH SOME 3 BILLION YEARS BACK.SCHOLORS THINK THAT THIS CONFORMS TO THE HINDUMYTHOLOGICAL RECKONING OF THE CREATION OFHEAVENLY BODIES AND THEIR DISSOLUTION.

4. KALPAS
The Puranas mention the names of 30 Kalpas. We are said to live in the 'Sveta Varaha Kalpa' from the fact that Bhagavan appeared at the beginning of this Kalpa in the form of a white boar and saved the earth from the nether worlds to which an Asura had kidnapped her. The Kalpa just before the present was called 'Padma Kalpa'.

In each of the Kalpas 14 Manus reign. In other words, a Manu holds sway for a period of 72 Mahayugas or Chaturyugas. Of the 14 Manvantaras, so far six Manus have had their reigns.

WE ARE NOW IN 7TH MANVANTARA called 'Vaivaswatha Manvantara' after the name of the current Manu 'Vaivaswatha'. The names of the 6 Manus who ruled BEFORE Vaivaswatha and those who will SUCCEED him in chronological order are as follows:-

  1. Swayambhuva (H.V. 7.8) son of the self born
  2. Swarochishta (Mark P.67.4) son of the self shining
  3. Uthama ( Mark.P 73.13) son of the highest
  4. Taamasa (Mark.P 73.13) son of Darkness
  5. Raivatha (Mark.P 75,73,74) son of wealth
  6. Chaikshusa( Mark.P 76.54) son of vision
  7. VAIVASWATHA( (MARK.P 79.9&10) SON OF BRIGHTNESS
  8. Arka Savarnika ( Mark.P 80.4) related to Sungod
  9. Daksha Savarnika ( Mark.P 94.8) son of rituals
  10. Brahma Savarnika (Mark.P 94.10 to 14 ) son of Brahma
  11. Dharma Savarnia( Mark.P 94.19 & 20) relative of eternal law
  12. Rudra Savrnika( Mark.P 94.25 )son of the destroyer
  13. Deva Savarnika (Mark. P 94.30)son of the shining one and
  14. Indra Savarnika (Mark.P 100.31) son of the mighty Indra
In this Vaivaswatha Manvantara itself
WE ARE IN THE 28TH MAHAYUGA and within that in Kaliyuga. Sri Rama's period is said to have been in Treta yuga of the 5th Mahayuga of this Manvantara. Krishna's period is said to be in the present 28 th Mahayuga itself almost at the end of Dwaparayuga and just immediately before the present Kaliyuga.

THE PRESENT KALI YUGA IS DATED WITH STARTLINGCERTITUDE TO HAVE BEGUN ON FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18,3102 B.C WHICH SOME AUTHORITIES HOLD WAS THEBEGINNING OF THE GREAT MAHABHARATA WAR.

The churning of the milky ocean is said to have happened during the Chaikshusa Manvantara and several other episodes have been identified to have occurred in the various time frames within this scheme.

5. PARARDHAM AND 6. PARAM
Adding 1 day of 4.35456 BILLION human years and 1 night of equal length (i.e.) 4.35456 BILLION human years, Brahma's whole day works out to 8.70912 billion human years. 30 such days make one month for Brahma ( i.e.) 8.70912x 30 =261.2736 BILLION human years.12 months make one year and Brahma is supposed to live for 100 such years which when calculated works out to 261.2736x12x100=313528.32 BILLION human years. This is called 'Param'. Half of it is "Para Ardham" Brahma is supposed to have completed 50 years of his age and he is in his second 50 years or SECOND PARARDHAM ( DWITEEYA PARARDHAM) and has qualified to be enrolled as a divine 'Senior citizen'!.

Posting on Time will continue