Cycles of Time: The Hindu Yugas as Recorded in the Akbarnama

The Akbarnama, the grand chronicle of Emperor Akbar's reign penned by his trusted advisor Abu'l Fazl, is far more than just a record of battles and decrees. It's a window into the intellectual landscape of the Mughal court, reflecting Akbar's profound interest in the diverse cultures and philosophies of his vast empire. Within its pages, nestled amongst accounts of imperial history, we find explorations of various belief systems, including a detailed exposition of the Hindu concept of cosmic time cycles – the Four Yugas.

Drawing upon the knowledge of learned Indian scholars, Abu'l Fazl presents the perspective of the 'Brāhma of India' (Brahmins) on the vast, cyclical nature of existence. This isn't just a dry recitation of facts; it's an attempt to understand a worldview fundamentally different from the linear chronologies often found in Islamic and European histories.

The Four Ages: A Descent Through Time

According to this tradition, the world passes through four distinct ages, or Yugas, each with a progressively shorter duration and a decline in human righteousness and lifespan. These ages are:

The Sat Yug: The Golden Age. This era spans a staggering 1,728,000 years. In this time, human conduct is universally righteous. Truth and uprightness are the guiding principles for everyone, regardless of status. The natural human lifespan is an extraordinary 100,000 years.
The Treta Yug: Following the Sat Yug, this age lasts for 1,296,000 years. Righteousness begins to wane slightly, with three-fourths of humanity still adhering to virtuous paths. The natural lifespan decreases significantly to 10,000 years.
The Dwapar Yug: This age continues the decline, lasting 864,000 years. Here, only half of mankind speaks and acts rightly, marking a further departure from the perfect virtue of the first age. The natural lifespan is reduced to 1,000 years.
The Kal Yug: The current age, the Iron Age. Its period is 432,000 years. This is described as a time where three-fourths of mortals follow paths of falsehood and unrighteousness. The natural lifespan is a mere 100 years.

The text notes that at the time of its writing (late 16th century), two thousand and odd years of the fifth āra (spoke in the wheel of time, a Jain concept mentioned alongside) of a larger cycle had elapsed, placing the present firmly within the Kali Yug.

The Breath of Brahmā: Cycles Within Cycles

Beyond these four ages, the Hindu perspective presented includes an even grander scale of time associated with Brahmā, the creator deity. Brahmā is seen as the instrument for the creation and management of the visible and invisible world.

The belief is that a Brahmā lives for 100 years. However, these are not human years. Each of Brahmā's years consists of 360 days and nights. And each single day and night of Brahmā is equivalent to a thousand times the combined duration of the four Yugas (a Mahāyuga). The text mentions that the present Brahmā is considered the thousand and first, and that fifty years and half a day of his life had elapsed.

This concept introduces a scale of time that dwarfs human comprehension, with cycles of creation and dissolution unfolding over periods that approximate eternity.

Preserving Knowledge, Bridging Worlds

Abu'l Fazl's inclusion of these intricate details about Hindu cosmology in the Akbarnama speaks volumes about Akbar's court and his personal philosophy. It wasn't merely about conquest and administration, but also about understanding the diverse intellectual and spiritual traditions of India. By documenting these concepts, Abu'l Fazl helped preserve and disseminate knowledge across cultural boundaries, reflecting Akbar's vision of a more inclusive and intellectually curious empire.

This account of the Yugas and Brahmā's vast lifespan, with its precise (though perhaps symbolically interpreted) numbers, stands in fascinating contrast to the other chronologies mentioned in the Akbarnama, such as the 7,000 years since Adam or the eras based on planetary movements. It highlights the profound differences in how various cultures have perceived and measured the immense sweep of time and the cycles of existence.

Today, reading this section reminds us of the depth of ancient Indian thought on cosmology and the remarkable effort made by figures like Abu'l Fazl to document and understand it, bridging philosophical divides through the power of historical record.