Tomorrow's presidential election has me thinking about the Kali Yuga. Kali Yuga is the last of the four “world ages” described in Hinduism’s ancient literature, and although it’s the shortest (only several hundred-thousand-years, or so) it’s generally acknowledged to be the worst. Kali Yuga is a time of pervasive evil, marked by violence and affliction, replete with mistrust and greed. Whenever I explain what little I know about it to someone who has never heard of it, the typical response is grim acknowledgement, something like, “Yeah, that sounds about right.”
But one of my teachers recently shared her delight at living in the Kali Yuga. It had never occurred to me that a person could be glad about taking part in 400,000 years of strife. She brings to mind Mr. Rogers, who tells the story of seeing scary things in the news when he was a boy: “My mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” Like Fred’s mom, this teacher looks for helpers everywhere—and it turns out they are indeed ubiquitous. Yoga instructors and reiki healers, mindfulness apps and self-healing courses, spiritual books and TED talks, even hard-core brain scientists dedicated to research that simply helps understand and reduce stress in the human body…every one of these remedies is part of our Kali Yuga, right there along with all the sin and muck.
But as great as all these helpers can be, sometimes even the "wellness community" itself can tend towards self-indulgence, avoidance, or appropriation. Wickedness pervades, as I mentioned. So where do we go when the Kali Yuga seems inescapable? I suggest we start with acknowledging the fact that this age is, indeed, inescapable (unless you plan on being around in half a million years). Then, I suggest continuing to look for the helpers. Understand that they may not be perfect; in fact, perfection is definitely the enemy of the good. And keep in mind that you yourself might be a helper to someone else. So, take it easy on yourself, as practice.
We do have capacity for more. We are meant to live here and now, in the early days of Kali Yuga. This age is similar to evening, that eerie time when the sun is getting low, and we feel the light forsaking us, shifting and changing places with shadow. We’re left with unadjusted eyes. But if we sit still and hold hands, if we allow the whole depth of night to present itself, we’ll see fireflies and the moon, we’ll hear the sounds of owls and barking dogs. Evening may be endless, but never is it unyielding.
Kali, The Keeper of Time
Thanks, Chris, for sharing this post! If I remember the myth, Durga was losing a battle against a demon who replicated itself whenever it was wounded, and in desperation called forth Kali who consumed all the copies of the demon. The metaphor, it seems to me, is that evil cannot be battled and destroyed, it can only be transformed by making it a part of oneself.