Who is Lord Kalki – lesser-known facts?
Lord Kalki is yet to be born says the Puranas. According to Hinduism, Lord Vishnu took rebirth on earth several times to destroy evil and restore peace. Hindu epics and Puranas say Lord Kalki will be born as the tenth incarnation of Lord Vishnu to restore peace on earth.
But when and where he will be born? Is he already existing? What is his mission? And many such lesser-known facts are discussed in this article. Continue reading to learn more.
Relation among Four ages and Lord Vishnu:
According to the Puranas, there are four ages (yugas) that cycle like the yearly calendars.
First was Satyayuga in which Dharma (righteousness) was 90% and adharma (wickedness) was 10%. Followed by Tretayuga where dharma and adharma were 70% and 30% respectively. Then came Dwaparayuga, during that age, the aforesaid two were 60% and 40% respectively. Now, at present in Kaliyuga dharma is just 30% and adharma is 70%. Though in the beginning righteousness and sinfulness were in a certain percentage, as the years passed percentage of wickedness was increasing. As the righteousness was going down, Lord Vishnu took birth in different incarnations to kill evil.
In Satyayuga Lord Vishnu took the first six incarnations. In Tretayuga, the seventh incarnation of Vishnu as Rama killed Ravan. Later in Dwaparayuga, the eighth incarnation, Lord Krishna destroyed adharma. In the present Kaliyuga the tenth and final incarnation, Kalki is believed to be born. A shloka in Srimad Bhagavad Gita by Lord Krishna
परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम्।
धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय संभवामि युगे युगे।
It means whenever dharma declines and adharma rules, I (the Lord) will take birth to re-establish uprightness.
Who is Lord Kalki? Where and when he will take birth?
As said, Kalki is the final incarnation of Lord Vishnu who is yet to be born, says the Puranas. Some scriptures say Kaliyuga lasts for 4,32,000 years. According to studies by eminent scholars, approximately 5000 years have passed after the great war Kurukshetra. That is there are still around some 4,27,000 years left in Kaliyuga. By the end of Kaliyuga, Kalki is believed to take birth to end adharma, usher people towards dharma, and restart Satyayuga. This exists until the Mahapralaya (great dissolution of the universe) occurs, says the Puranas.
अथासौ युगा संधायं
दस्यु प्रयेसु राजसु
जनित विष्णु यससो
नाम्ना कल्किर् जगत् पतिः
The above-mentioned Shloka from Vishnu Purana talks about Kalki’s birth. It says Kalki will be born to a Brahmin couple Vishnuyasha and Sumathi in the Shambhala region. This Shambhala region is in present-day Uttar Pradesh says some studies. Whereas, a few studies say this place is hidden in mountain ranges of the Himalayas, somewhere near Nepal. However, the confusion wouldn’t be cleared any day soon. Puranas represent Kalki as a Brahmin warrior with a blazing fiery sword in hand seated on a white flying horse. The name of that horse would be Devadatta. Kalki will also have 3 brothers namely, Kavi, Pragya, and Sumantrak. Padma, the incarnation of Devi Lakshmi will be the wife of Kalki.
Mission of Lord Kalki:
At the end of Kaliyuga (present age), the percentage of righteousness becomes lesser. People will develop selfishness, arrogance, greed, and many such negative qualities. As these qualities increase, obviously, the rate of righteousness drops down. The Purana also says the mission of Kalki is to kill the demon named Kali and destroy adharma.
A demon does not necessarily have to have the ugly body, big canines, and weapons in hand as we imagine. All the bad qualities in humans are representations of demonic virtue. When this demonic virtue raises and integrity vanishes, Lord Kalki appears to destroy the wickedness and restore uprightness in the Universe.
Chiranjeevi’s awaiting Kalki avatar:
It’s not only humans awaiting Kalki avatar, the seven immortals right from Satyayuga are also awaiting the same. These chiranjeevis are as follows: Hanuman, Parashuram, Ashwathama, Veda Vyasa, Vibheeshana, Raja Bali Chakravarthi, and Krupacharya. The Puranas say that when Kalki arrives, these immortals join hands with him to demolish adharma and re-establish dharma. Alongside, Parashuram who was the Guru of Bhishma, Dronacharya, and Karna in Dwaparayuga will also guide Kalki in Kaliyuga says the epics.
Signs of Kaliyuga approaching the end:
The scriptures predict the signs of Kaliyuga coming to an end. Then, the qualities like truthfulness, tolerance, strength, politeness, mercy, memory, etc. will decline. A person’s good behavior and good birth will be based on wealth alone. Power will be considered for implementing law and justice. Business success will be by hoodwinking. Spirituality will diminish. A person without money will be considered unholy. Hairstyles describe beauty. The filling tummy will become the main goal of life. People will suffer from excess cold, wind, rain, and snow. Life span will decrease to about 50 years. All the creatures will reduce in size. Rulers will be thieves. At that time, the Lord takes birth and protects righteousness. After killing the evils, the people will experience the fragrance of pure sandalwood paste taking their minds towards purity and dharma says the epics.
This article contains only the predictions from various manuscripts of Hindu mythology. Though these are all predictions the present situation acts as proof of those writings. As described in the Puranas, humans are forgetting the path of Vedas and spirituality day by day. Maybe Kaliyuga will come to an end and the age of dharma will resurgence in the cosmos.