Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Hinduism and Tribal Religions pp 1–3Cite as

KaliYuga

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:

  • 78 Accesses

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Indian Religions ((EIR))

The term Kali Yug is a combination of the terms “Kali” and “Yug” in the Hindu mythology where the word “Kali” denotes the demon Kali who represents quarrel and contention. The nemesis of Kali is Kalki. Hindu mythology believes that toward the end of Kali Yug, Kalki will return riding on a white horse to battle with Kali and his destructive forces. The world will suffer a fiery and violent upheaval that will destroy all evil, and a new age (the Satyug, of the following Mahayuga) will begin. The word “Yug” refers to a period of time. A broad description of the Kali Yug appears in the Mahabharata as well as in the Laws of Manu apart from the works of renowned astronomers of ancient India such as Aryabhatta.

The Hindu mythology describes time to be cyclical and is divided into four periods called:

  1. 1.

    Satyug

  2. 2.

    Dwapar Yug

  3. 3.

    Treta Yug

  4. 4.

    Kali Yug

There have been around 30 ancient cultures which have also spoken about such division of time. Kali Yug is the last division of periods of time,...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Further Reading

  1. Alberuni’s India, Chapter XLII. BiblioBazaar (April 4, 2010), Charleston, North Carolina, USA

    Google Scholar 

  2. Burgess E (2010) Chapter 1, Phanindralal gangooly. In: Sûrya-Siddhânta: a text-book of Hindu astronomy, p 41

    Google Scholar 

  3. Hancock G (2003) Underworld: the mysterious origins of civilization. Three Rivers Press, New York, pp 82–83

    Google Scholar 

  4. Kak S (2000) On the chronological framework for Indian culture. Indian Council Philos Res:1–24

    Google Scholar 

  5. Misra BD (2012) The end of the Kali Yuga in 2025: Unraveling the mysteries of the Yuga cycle. http://www.bibhudevmisra.com/

  6. Paramhansa Yogananda. Autobiography of a Yogi. Self-Realization Fellowship (April 22, 2014), Los Angeles, p 167

    Google Scholar 

  7. Sri Yukteswar (1894) The Holy Science, Martino Fine Books (August 2, 2013), Eastford, p xi

    Google Scholar 

  8. Steinmetz D, Selbie J. Chapter 2, The Kali Yugas. In: The Yugas, Original edition (August 16, 2011), Commerce. Crystal Clarity Publishers, California

    Google Scholar 

  9. Swami Kriyananda. Chapter 5, Dating it all. In: The Hindu way of awakening. Crystal Clarity Publishers, California

    Google Scholar 

  10. The Mahabharata, Book 3: Vana Parva, Tirtha-yatra Parva, SECTION CXLVIII, Kisari Mohan Ganguli, tr. [1883–1896], from https://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m03/index.htm

  11. Tilak LBG (1903) The arctic home in the Vedas, Messrs. TILAK BROS, Gaikwar Wada, Poona City

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Foothill College, Los Altos Hills, CA, USA

    Mona Rawal

Authors
  1. Mona Rawal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mona Rawal .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Anthropology, The University of North Texas Dept of Anthropology, Denton, TX, USA

    Pankaj Jain

  2. The Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA, USA

    Rita Sherma

  3. Jamia Millia Islamia, Centre for the Study of Comparative Reli Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India

    Madhu Khanna

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Nature B.V.

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Rawal, M. (2019). KaliYuga. In: Jain, P., Sherma, R., Khanna, M. (eds) Hinduism and Tribal Religions. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_237-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_237-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Religion and PhilosophyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Humanities

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation