Hindu units of time: Difference between revisions

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Old Indian measures are still in use today, primarily for religious purposes in Hinduism and Jainism. They also are employed in the teachings of Surat Shabda Yoga. Check the talk page for possible mistakes in this wiki.

Time

The Hindu metrics of time (Kaala Vyavahara) can be summarized as below.

Sidereal metrics

a paramanu (परमाणु) is the normal interval of blinking in humans, or approximately 4 seconds
a vighati (विघटि) is 6 paramaanus, or approximately 24 seconds
a ghadiya (घटि) is 60 vighatis, or approximately 24 minutes
a muhurta is equal to 2 ghadiyas, or approximately 48 minutes
a nakshatra ahoratram (नक्षत्र अहोरत्रम्) or sidereal day is exactly equal to 30 muhurtas (Note: A day is considered to begin and end at sunrise, not midnight.)

Small units of time used in the Vedas

a trasarenu is the combination of 6 celestial atoms.
a truti is the time needed to integrate 3 trasarenus, or 1/1687.5th of a second.
a vedha is 100 trutis.
a lava is 3 vedhas.[1]
a nimesha is 3 lavas, or a blink.
a kshanas is 3 nimeshas.
a kashthas is 5 kshanas, or about 8 seconds.
a laghu is 15 kashthas, or about 2 minutes.[2]
15 laghus make one nadika, which is also called a danda. This equals the time before water overflows in a six-pala-weight [fourteen ounce] pot of copper, in which a hole is bored with a gold probe weighing four masha and measuring four fingers long. The pot is then placed on water for calculation.
2 dandas make one muhurta.
6 or 7 dandas make one yamah, or 1/4th of a day or night.[3]
4 praharas or 4 yamas are in each day or each night.[4]

Lunar metrics

a tithi (also spelled thithi ) or lunar day is defined as the time it takes for the longitudinal angle between the moon and the sun to increase by 12°. Tithis begin at varying times of day and vary in duration from approximately 19 to approximately 26 hours.
a paksa (also paksha) or lunar fortnight consists of 15 tithis
a masa or lunar month (approximately 29.5 days) is divided into 2 pakshas: the one between new moon and full moon is called gaura (bright) or shukla paksha; the one between full moon and new moon krishna (dark) paksha [5]
a ritu is 2 masa
an ayanam is 3 rituhs
a year is 2 Aayanas [6]

Tropical metrics

a yaama (याम) is 7½ Ghatis (घटि)
8 yaamas 1 half of the day(either day or night)
an ahoratram is a tropical day (Note: A day is considered to begin and end at sunrise, not midnight.)

Yugas

Years are grouped into yugas (ages):

**The Four Yugas**
1,728,000 (= 4x) solar years	Satya Yuga
1,296,000 ( = 3x)solar years	Treta Yuga
864,000 ( = 2x)solar years	Dwapar Yuga
432,000 ( = x) solar years	Kali Yuga

[7]

One cycle of the above four yugas is one mahayuga (4.32 million solar years)
A manvantara consists of 71 mahayugas (306,720,000 solar years)
After each manvantara follows one Sandhi Kala of the same duration as a Krita Yuga (1,728,000 = 4x solar years). (It is said that during a Sandhi Kala, the entire earth is submerged in water.)
A kalpa consists of a period of 1,728,000 solar years called Adi Sandhi, followed by 14 manvantaras and Sandhi Kalas.

A day of Brahma equals

(14 times 71 mahayugas) + (15 times 4x solar years)

= 994 mahayugas + (60 x solar years)

= 994 mahayugas + (6 times 10 x ) solar years

= 994 mahayugas + 6 mahayugas

= 1000 mahayugas

as is confirmed by the Gita statement "sahasra-yuga paryantam ahar-yad brahmano viduH", meaning, a day of brahma is of 1000 (maha-)yugas.

Thus a day of Brahma, kalpa, is of duration: 4.32 billion solar years.

Two kalpas constitute a day and night of Brahma; the life cycle of Brahma is one hundred years of Brahma, or 311 trillion years. We are currently in the 51st year of the present Brahma and so about 155 trillion years have elapsed since He took over as Brahma.

The current Kali Yuga (Iron Age) began at midnight 17 February / 18 February in 3102 BC in the proleptic Julian calendar.

External links

One Cosmic Day of Creator Brahma

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 {{unreferenced}}
-Old [[India]]n [[ancient weights and measures|measures]] are still in use today, primarily for religious purposes in [[Hinduism]] and [[Jainism]].  They also are employed in the teachings of [[Surat Shabd Yoga|Surat Shabda Yoga]].
+Old [[India]]n [[ancient weights and measures|measures]] are still in use today, primarily for religious purposes in [[Hinduism]] and [[Jainism]].  They also are employed in the teachings of [[Surat Shabd Yoga|Surat Shabda Yoga]].  Check the talk page for possible mistakes in this wiki.
-This wiki is in dire need of cleanup and factual checking (forgive this unorthodox addition).  According to [[Alan Watts]], an interpreter of Eastern religions andd professor of Theology, this wiki has it wrong.  The kalpa is the primary unit of measurement in Hinduism, and it lasts 4,320,000 Earth-years.  According to Watts, there are two types of kalpa:  [[Manvantara]] and [[Pralaya]].  Manvantara is the period of time in which the universe is manifested, and Pralaya is the period of time when the universe is un-manifested; when the Godhead does not dream but is aware of its own nature.  These are called, respectively, the days and the nights of the [[Brahman]], and this goes on forever.
 ==Time==