A Series of Lessons in Gnani Yoga: The Yoga of WisdomAtkinson, William Walker
Religion
A Series of Lessons in Gnani Yoga: The Yoga of Wisdom
Atkinson, William Walker
Yoga, Jñana
The Yogi Teachings are that all Time is manifested in Cycles. Man calls
the most common form of Cyclic Time by the name of "a Day," which is
the period of time necessary for the earth's revolution on its axis.
Each Day is a reproduction of all previous Days, although the incidents
of each day differ from those of the other--all Days are but periods of
Time marked off by the revolution of the earth on its axis. And each
Night is but the negative side of a Day, the positive side of which is
called "day." There is really no such thing as a Day, that which we
call a "Day" being simply a record of certain physical changes in the
earth's position relating to its own axis.
The second phase of Cyclic Time is called by man by the name "a Month,"
by which is meant certain changes in the relative positions of the moon
and the earth. The true month consists of twenty-eight lunar days. In
this Cycle (the Month) there is also a light-time or "day," and a
dark-time or "night," the former being the fourteen days of the moon's
visibility, and the second being the fourteen days of the moon's
invisibility.
The third phase of Cyclic Time is that which we call "a Year," by which
is meant the time occupied by the earth in its revolution around the
sun. You will notice that the year has its positive and negative
periods, also, known as Summer and Winter.
But the Yogis take up the story where the astronomers drop it, at the
Year. Beyond the Year there are other and greater phases of Cyclic
Time. The Yogis know many cycles of thousands of years in which there
are marked periods of Activity and Inactivity. We cannot go into detail
regarding these various cycles, but may mention another division common
to the Yogi teachings, beginning with the Great Year. The Great Year is
composed of 360 earth years. Twelve thousand Great Years constitute
what is known as a Great Cycle, which is seen to consist of 4,320,000
earth years. Seventy-one Great Cycles compose what is called a
_Manwantara_, at the end of which the earth becomes submerged under the
waters, until not a vestige of land is left uncovered. This state lasts
for a period equal to 71 Great Cycles. A _Kalpa_ is composed of 14
Manwantaras. The largest and grandest Cycle manifested is known as the
_Maya-Praylaya_, consisting of 36,000 _Kalpas_ when the Absolute
withdraws into Itself its entire manifestations, and dwells alone in
its awful Infinity and Oneness, this period being succeeded by a period
equally long--the two being known as the Days and Nights of Brahm.
You will notice that each of these great Cycles has its "Day" period
and its "Night" period--its Period of Activity. and its Period of
Inactivity. From Day to Maya-Praylaya, it is a succession of Nights and
Days--Creative Activity and Creative Cessation.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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