When did the Kali Yuga start?

Nikhil Mishra, 23 March 2018

Hare Krsna
Humble obeisance unto feet of Guru and Gauranga.

I was reading book ” KRSNA”. In chapter 52, it is stated that King Muchukunda after coming out of cave realised that current yuga was kaliyuga. Therefore he decided to go to badrikashram.

but i had heard that kaliyuga started when King Parikshit left his body.

i think that king muchukunda episode had happened before mahabharat and king Parikshit time was after Mahabharat.

so how to understand when kaliyuga started? Kindly put some light in this matter.

Sincerely
nikhil

Eshwar rao javvadhi, 23 March 2018

Hare Krishna Prabhuji,
Please accept My dandavat pranams
All glories to srila prabhupada
all glories to sri guru and gauranga.

My Answer is subjected to seniors corrections prabhuji.

As far as My knowledge is concern, King Muchukunda after fighting a war on behalf of demigods he was very tired and he slept in that cave for a very long time by which the yuga got changed.

Kali yuga started after the death of parikshat maharaja.

Thank you
your servant
Isvara Puri Dasa

Nikhil Mishra, 23 March 2018

yes prabhu ji..he was asleep for long. later woke up by kalyavan and thus angered king muchukunda turned kalyavan into ashes just by mere glacing.
but as i could understand reading upto this chapter 52 , this pastime of Lord is enacted before mahabharat began. thats why i amconfused.
hare krsna

Mahabhagavat Das SDA, 24 March 2018

Dear Sriman Nikhil,

Hare Krishna!

You are referring to this passage from the Krishna Book, Chapter 52:

” When Mucukunda, the celebrated descendant of the Ikṣvāku dynasty, was favored by Lord Kṛṣṇa, he circumambulated the Lord within the cave and then came out. On coming out of the cave, Mucukunda saw that the human species had surprisingly been reduced in stature to pygmy size. Similarly, the trees had also been far reduced in size, and Mucukunda could immediately understand that the current age was Kali-yuga. Therefore, without diverting his attention, he began to travel north. “

The Krishna Book is a summary of the 10th Canto of Srimad Bhagavatam – when summarizing, it may be necessary to leave out certain details or be unclear about specifics even though the essence was not lost in Srila Prabhupada’s summarization.

On the cosmic scale changes between ages appear like quick cutoffs, but when we are looking at it from our scale, changes happen relatively gradually. Even though there is certainly a specific cut-off time for yugas, the changes are gradual – for example, we are currently in the first 500 years of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Golden Age that will last for another 9500 years… but the full descriptions of this Age are not immediately manifested. So does that mean the Golden Age has not begun? No, not at all.

Elsewhere it is stated that as long as Sri Giri Govardhan is still visible above the ground, the effects of Kali Yuga will not be fully manifested, By Sri Govardhan’s potency… so does that mean that Kali Yuga has not started?

Also, the first years of the Dvapara yuga were not like the last years of Dvapara yuga, for example – it was not homogenous that one fine day everything suddenly changed.

From descriptions of our parents and grandparents, we can understand that times have indeed changed – what was once considered rude is today considered gentlemanly, for example.

For example, an extract from the chapter summary of SB 10.52, is as follows

” King Mucukunda, shown mercy by Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, offered obeisances and circumambulated Him. The King then left the cave and saw that humans, animals, trees and plants were all smaller than when he had fallen asleep. From this he could understand that the Age of Kali was at hand. Thus, in a mood of detachment from all material association, the King began worshiping the Supreme Lord, Śrī Hari.”

The specific verse is SB 10.52.2:

saṁvīkṣya kṣullakān martyān
 paśūn vīrud-vanaspatīn
matvā kali-yugaṁ prāptaṁ
 jagāma diśam uttarām

” Seeing that the size of all the human beings, animals, trees and plants was severely reduced, and thus realizing that the Age of Kali was at hand, Mucukunda left for the north.”

In the previous verse 10.52.1:

śrī-śuka uvāca
itthaṁ so ’nagrahīto ’nga
 kṛṣṇenekṣvāku nandanaḥ
taṁ parikramya sannamya
 niścakrāma guhā-mukhāt

” Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: My dear King, thus graced by Lord Kṛṣṇa, Mucukunda circumambulated Him and bowed down to Him. Then Mucukunda, the beloved descendant of Ikṣvāku, exited through the mouth of the cave.”

King Muchukunda was personally graced by Sri Krishna, and was highly intelligent.

We can see that he did not want to get infected by the dark effects of the Kali yuga and departed immediately to purify and meditate and be Krishna conscious.

Intelligent man, King Muchukunda, compared to me, who inspite of first-hand observing the ill effects of this age, haven’t fully removed material desires from my heart!

Sincerely,
Mahabhagavat Das

Rahul Mangla, 24 March 2018

Hare Krishna!

It all happened during end of dvaparyuga, when effects of kaliyuga started appearing. We can understand it to be during overlap period ie. dvaparyiga ending and kaliyuga about to start.

Others please may correct.

Sincerely,
Rasika Krishna Das

Nikhil Mishra, 24 March 2018

Hare Krishna
Thank you all devotees and specially Mahabhagvat prabhu for detailed answer and giving me further knowledge regarding relation between Sri GovardhanJi and intensity of kaliyuga.
Translation of following verse written in your mail clears doubts in my mind where it is stated that “Age of Kali was at hand”.
-The specific verse is SB 10.52.2:

saṁvīkṣya kṣullakān martyān
 paśūn vīrud-vanaspatīn
matvā kali-yugaṁ prāptaṁ
 jagāma diśam uttarām

“Seeing that the size of all the human beings, animals, trees and plants was severely reduced, and thus realizing that the Age of Kali was at hand, Mucukunda left for the north.”

thank you so much
your servant
Nikhil

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