The Beginning of Kali Yuga: Parikshit's Curse and the Rise of Darkness

A word commonly heard by us is “Kaliyuga”, like Kaliyuga is a time of anarchy and unjust actions, no one cares for others in this Kaliyuga and so and so. So, this might stir your curiosity that what exactly is Kaliyuga.  The concept of Yugas is mentioned at various places in Hindu mythology such as in puranas or in Mahabharata. Yugas can be defined as large periods of time. There are four Yugas which form Chaturyuga or Mahayuga, and they occur as repeating cycle, i.e. after the fourth yuga the first yuga starts again. One complete cycle of all four Yugas also known as Mahayuga spans for 4.32 million years, and after 1,000 Mahayugas, Brahma’s one day ends. These Yugas progressively decline in virtue and length.

The four yugas are Satya Yuga (Krita Yuga)  i.e. The Age of Truth,  Treta Yuga i.e. The Age of Sacrifice, Dvapara Yuga  i.e. The Age of Doubt and Kali Yuga i.e. The Age of Darkness.

The Kali Yuga last for 432,000 human years and we are currently about 5,000 years into it. According to Hindu scriptures in Kaliyuga the dharma is the weakest and it depicted as a bull, stands on only one leg. Human life in Kaliyuga is shorter, filled with greed, deceit, war, and ignorance. Kali yuga also called iron age began after Lord Krishna left the Earth.

So having known all that, the next stir in the pond of curiosity comes from the question how this Kaliyuga came to a start? According to Hindu scriptures, Kali Yuga began at midnight on 17/18 February 3102 BCE, immediately after when Lord Krishna departed from Earth for his divine abode.

Kaliyuga marks the final and darkest of the four Yugas in Hindu cosmology. The stories of beginning of Kaliyuga are related to Pandava descendant King Parikshit. King Parikshit was the grandson of Arjuna and the last great king of the Kuru dynasty.  He was a just and lawful king. Once King Parikshit while on a visit to his pupil met a bull (personification of Dharma) with three broken legs being beaten by a dark figure. This dark figure was Kali itself personified. The three broken legs of the bull (Dharma) represented austerity, cleanliness, and compassion and implied that these virtues are not present in humans anymore. The fourth unharmed leg represented truth. Kali was harming the bull and the cow, so King Parikshit took his weapon in his hands to stop and punish Kali. Enraged King Parikshit was prepared to kill Kali, but kali begged for mercy, and said that he is only there to fulfil his destiny and Parikshit being a king needs to let him have a place to reside in the new Yuga.  King Parikshit thought for a while and allowed Kali four abodes initially, which were:  Places of gambling (Dyutam), Places of drinking (Pānam), Places of illicit sex (Striyah) and places of animal slaughter (Himsa).

Kali requested one more abode beyond the four, as he argued that the four abodes granted by King Parikshit were already impure. Hesitantly, King Parikshit  permitted Kali to reside in gold (Suvarana). This was a strategic win for Kali as gold symbolized greed, pride, and materialism and could easily become the gateway to the other four vice because gold  could fund gambling, afford to buy alcohol, and fulfil lust. By allowing Kali to dwell in gold, people became vulnerable to corruption, ego, and attachment, even the righteous ones especially when obsessed with wealth and materialism. This permission to let Kali dwell in the gold marked the beginning of the subtle, inner corruption of the Kali Yuga—not just external sin.

As the wheel of destiny and cosmic plans were already turning one day King Parikshit unknowingly wore a gold crown that had been unjustly acquired from the late king Jarasandha. This immoral act of participation in an unjust act, though unknowingly, allowed Kali to subtly influence King Parikshit’s mind. Some time passed. Kali, who was the embodiment of the age of darkness, knew that directly he could not overpower King Parikshit because the king was too righteous, and too vigilant. Being a conniving one, Kali played the long game. One day, King Parikshit went out with his entourage to jungle for recreation and somehow got separated from them and began looking for a way out. While thirsty and wandering, King Parikshit reached the hermitage of Sage Samika, where the Sage Samika was deep in meditation. When the king called out to him, he did not respond. Agitated and under the sway of Kali, the king felt that the Sage was ignoring him and to mock and humiliate the sage, the king placed a dead snake around the sage’s neck. This infuriated the sage’s son, Shringi, who himself was a powerful sage and he cursed King Parikshit to die within seven days by the bite of the serpent king Takshaka. The King Parikshit accepted the curse, and renounced his throne. He spent his final days listening to the Bhagavata Purana, which was narrated to him by Sage Shuka, and helped him in attaining spiritual liberation.

After the death of King Parikshita Kaliyuga grew in leaps and bounds. The Kali yuga or the  “Age of Darkness” or “Iron Age”, as described in Hindu scripture, is an era characterised by moral decline, materialism, spiritual Ignorance and unnecessary conflicts and chaos. But, Kali yuga is not simply a period of hopelessness and despair. In spite of its darkness, Kali Yuga offers a unique chance for liberation through simple acts of devotion, especially chanting the names of God. It is prophesied that the Kali Yuga will end with the arrival of Kalki, the final avatar of Vishnu, who will restore dharma and begin a new Satya Yuga, completing one Mahayuga.

Kids can be simply explained that Kali Yuga is  like the “winter” of time, the time when people forget to be kind, honest, and loving. Even though Kali yuga is a tough time, it teaches us how important it is to be good and do good to others even when others are not following the same. By telling the truth, helping others, and remembering God, one can be the hero of these bad times. 

Many more such interesting and thought-provoking stories which also imbibe spiritual knowledge to kids can be taught to them through interactive stories and animations. Bambinos Bhagavat Gita classes which are available in both one on one and group classes format. 

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