Here’s the history of the Computation of Puranic Time

The Computation of Puranic Time is a complex and extremely intriguing field of study which have seen many scholars and academics alike from respected universities and schools publish noticeable research work. Vedic Science has seen many interested followers, believers, and academics filter through decades of research and scribes to find the origin and the path which Puranic Time follows.

As complex as the Computation of Puranic Time may seem, years of dedicated literary work have given us a better understanding of the foundation of how each Puranic time unit works. Recent interest in the field has sparked an influx of researchers dedicating their time studying its intricacies which in time has given the Computation of Puranic Time a less complex approach.

In the article below we’ll briefly look at the history of the Computation of Puranic Time.

What is the Computation of Puranic Time?

To fully understand the above mentioned, we will first need to review the four Yugas – Satya (Kṛta), Tretā, Dvāpara, and Kali. These can be understood as the four seasons, each of these Yugas plays out in chronological cycle, one after the other.

The four basic Puranic time units have additional time units which it derives from – these are:

Chaturyugas                           Manvantaras                           Kalpas

To make better sense of this, each Yuga runs for a specific duration of years and has several transition years between each unit. These are respective to each Yuga and constitutes a Devas.

The first literary works on the Computation of Puranic Time

The first known literary work that mentioned the values and explanatory insights on Puranic Time was published in 1840 by Oxford University. Between 1832 and 1860, H.H. Wilson was Boden Professor of Sanskrit at the university and conducted significant research and worked on translations on the Viṣṇu Purāṇa.

The findings penned down by Wilson brought closer attention to the overall complexity of Puranic Time units, more so, it created speculation in the academic world on how these time units are measured and portrayed in human years. With this in mind, it’s important to mention that many experts have suggested that there is no doubt in the number of years that are assigned to each Purāṇic time unit.

With this noticeable mention, it has cleared the air of any speculation, more so, regarding Puranic dates and major events in the history of the Earth, the Solar System, and the Universe can now be better understood and aligned with each time unit. Although many skeptics and non-believers have doubted the study and practice of Puranic Time, these findings have given it a more appealing façade and considerate approach.

Finding the path into the past

In more recent years, closer to the mid and the end of the 20th century a group of scholars have noticed a rise in academic works mentioning the Computation of Puranic Time Units. Most importantly, literary works have been hyper-focused on the factor of 360 which is the conversion to Bhū-maṇḍala.

Turning the clock back 360 years would result in time units occurring before 1840. Most Puranas and Yuga which we have mentioned were only dated from 1840 onwards. Further complications such as the existence of radiometric dating which only came to life in 1903. More importantly, it’s good to consider that research and findings on the rate of expansion of the Universe were only mentioned a few years later in 1920.

Although these complexities have seen many skeptics take an interest, denying the reality of Puranic time units – understandably, Puranic chronology agrees with scientific methods and findings after all.

Story by Virginia Sagal