The Cycles of Time Which Govern Humanity

Knowing the Cycles of Time, a Necessity

Night in the Middle of the Day!

Let us imagine that we are in a town in Germany, Great Britain or France in the middle of July. So it is summer — a perfectly normal one with lots of sunshine. And while walking in the street at around ten o’clock in the morning, a man comes up to you and tells you that night will fall at midday on that same day. However, you know that no eclipse has been mentioned in the news. Will you believe this man, or will you regard him as a joker? Naturally, if you have your wits about you, you will realize that he is only joking, for there is no reason at all why night would fall at midday in the middle of summer in western Europe. You know through what you have learnt and different experiences that night will only fall at about 10 pm. at that time of year.

In the same way, if you know the different cycles of time very well, you will not let yourself be charmed or disturbed by the siren songs which have been coming around regularly for the last decades stating that the end of the world is nigh. These ideas have been enjoying renewed popularity in recent years because of the world crisis, with its disasters of all sorts, which humanity is undergoing at the present time. In fact, for those who know the exact cycle of time we are in right now, the declaration that the end of the world is at hand is just like saying that night is going to fall at midday in western Europe in the middle of July. It is quite simply a joke! What is sure is that there can be no no end of the world in our time unless man, having gone mad, decides to destroy the planet himself. But by cosmic time, we are very very far away from the date which Nature has programmed for this event.

Man_Towards_the_Infinite Painting Nicomedes Gomes On the other hand, some people assert obstinately that because we are now entering the zodiacal Age of Aquarius (era of about 2,300 years in length) there will soon be brotherhood among men all over the world. Those who affirm such things have not taken into account the great cycle the planet is going through at the present time, but only consider this short Aquarius cycle which, besides, comes back quite often (about every 25,000 years, which is very insignificant considered on a cosmic scale). When the sun comes out on a winter’s day in a temperate country, will it be as hot as in summer? Indeed not! With this winter sun one feels just a little bit better but one does not have the same feeling of well-being as in summer. Consequently the new Age of Aquarius which we are now entering will surely bring better understanding among men, but we will still be very far from the ideal situation.

A Good Compass

We can now understand through these examples that knowing the cycles of time is like having a good compass when starting off on a long voyage. It is the same as knowing the seasons when one is a farmer.

Indeed, although these cycles of time are so numerous, they each have their own particular influences on the consciousness of human beings, on their physical bodies, their subtle bodies as well as on their civilization. In short, each cycle influences man’s life and behaviour in a particular way. In the same way, these cycles also influence everything in Nature in a precise way. All this is due to the particular type of cosmic, solar and planetary energies which characterise them and influence all that exists. Great Beings and certain Masters whose task it is, therefore take advantage of these particular energies to help carry out God’s plan concerning humanity’s evolution as well as all aspects of human civilization as best as they can.

Depending on the cycle humanity is going through at the time, these Great Beings adapt the methods they use with their disciples and with men in general to help them go in the same direction as these energies and so get as much benefit as possible from the ones which are available. For example, this is the main reason why so many types of yoga exist — each one being adapted to a particular period of humanity’s history. It is the very principle of fair winds with respect to sea and air navigation. However, divine law is such that man keeps his free will and consequently can accept or refuse to cooperate with the Great Beings and the Masters who implement God’s Plan. Accepting or refusing to cooperate with the divine Plan is one of the key factors in the evolution of humanity.

In this series of articles, we will limit our study to an overview of these time cycles which are truly a primordial factor in humanity’s development. This will be based on the cycles of time as given in Hindu teachings according to ancient books, of which the most famous is Surya Siddhanta.

Summary of this Page

It is indispensable for everyone to know the different seasons which characterize the year. Indeed, this allows us to be prepared for the natural events ahead (e.g. heat in summer or cold in winter). In the same way, it is essential to know the cycles of time which come around regularly in the life of humanity. This enables us to know the stage we are going through and what is expected of each person and humanity as one body as far as the evolution of consciousness is concerned. This also allows us to know what is possible and what is not in this domain, for each cycle of time is a particular season in the very long history of humanity.

Continued in Part 2:   The Very Long Days of Brahma