Bhagvad Gita

King of Aryavarta (Land of Aryans), Bharat, who conquered all land known to be inhabited by Aryans stretching from the Himalayas to the Vindhya, laid the foundations of the nation called "India". In fact, the name of India in Hindi "Bhaarat" comes from his name "Bharat". Bhaarat literally means "from Bharat".

Though Kings are universally known to establish dynasties, with their sons getting the rule, and their sons of sons getting the rule thereafter, making kingship a family tradition.

However, Bharat thought differently. He deemed none of his nine sons worthy of inheriting the crown. He thought of the entire public living in his kingdom as his sons and daughters. Therefore, he decided to appoint someone not related to him by blood as the successor of the crown, on the basis of the candidate's abilities rather than his birth.

This is the first known instance towards "democracy" in history of mankind - letting the public rule the kingdom.

Why did Bharat do that?

Bharat thought that man's actions (karma - कर्म) are more important than his birth (janma - जन्म). Before his time, janma and karma were thought to be separate, distinct entities that would never meet. However, Bharat blurred the boundaries between janma and karma, something never heard of thousands of years back. Bharat defied all established norms of transfer of power in kingships, and his decision proved good for the nation for several generations. India continued to be one nation, ruled by powerful kings through full sovereignity.

In the present situation: Politicians let their sons become politicians in India, and they win votes from the public "in the name of" their father. Film stars let their sons and daughters become film stars, sometimes without any talent, while deserving actors have to suffice by being part of TV shows. A step in backward direction?

The Bhagvad Gita is an epic book, not just because it's a great treatise on God's speech with a Man, but also because it holds the substance of truth for the current generation. For some, it's a "fortune telling" book.

The scripture has clearly defined the state of human morality and actions (karma) with time. There are four stages of time, and each stage sees degradation of human morality. The appalling injustice and shocking news you see and hear every day was predicted in this more than 5000 year old book. According to the book, we are now living in an age called "Kali Yuga", and its characteristics are described as under:

Rulers will become unreasonable: they will levy taxes unfairly. Rulers will no longer see it their duty to promote spirituality or to protect their subjects: they will become a danger to the world. People will start migrating seeking countries where wheat and barley form the staple food source.

Avarice and wrath will be common, men will openly display animosity towards each other. Ignorance of Dharma will occur. Lust will be viewed as being socially acceptable. People will have thoughts of murder for no justification, and they will see nothing wrong with that mind-set.

People will be inclined to follow false sciences. Family murders will also occur. People will see those who are helpless as easy targets and remove everything from them.

Many other unwanted changes will occur. The right hand will deceive the left and the left the right. Men with false reputation of learning will teach the Truth and the old will betray the senselessness of the young, and the young will betray the dotage of the old. Cowards will have the reputation of bravery and the brave will be enervated cowards. People will not trust a single person in the world, not even their immediate family. Even husband and wife will find contempt in each other.

In the Kali Yuga even pre-teenage girls will get pregnant. The primary cause will be the social acceptance of sexual intercourse as being the central requirement of life.

It is believed that sin will increase exponentially, whilst virtue will fade and cease to flourish. People will take vows only to break them soonafter.

Alongside death and famine being everywhere, men will have lustful thoughts and so will women.People will without reason destroy trees and gardens. As previously mentioned, men will murder. There will be no respect for animals, and also meat eating will start.

People will become addicted to intoxicating drinks. Men will find their jobs stressful and will go to retreats to escape their work.

Gurus will no longer be respected and their students will attempt to injure them. Their teachings will be insulted and followers of Kama will wrest control of the mind from all human beings.

As the sin increases exponentially, so will the incidence of divine justice and wrath.

Doesnt' that sound remarkably familiar to what we see and hear in our daily lives?

I'm just curious as to how long it'll last, and how will it end.

Towards the end of this yuga, Kalki will come riding on a white horse to battle Kali and his dark forces. The world would suffer a fiery end where all evil will perish. And in turn will start a new age, the age of Satya Yuga.

when flowers will be begot within flowers, and fruits within fruits, then will the Yuga comes to an end. And the clouds will pour rain unseasonably when the end of the Yuga approaches.

We might have already seen few thousand years in Kali Yuga (The Dark Age), and much more remains to be seen. 432,000 years! That's long!

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kali_Yuga

Hi

Welcome to the blog of Gita and Karma. This blog is about the teachings from the Indian scripture of Bhagvad Gita, spoken some 5000 years ago by the supreme Lord Krishna, a direct descendant of God on earth. We, the contributors, will try our best to post regular information from the scripture everyone can use in their daily lives, in very simple language. Feel free to ask questions and make comments.

Thanks!