When Kalki the Destroyer Descends: Greed, Corruption, War, Destruction, and the Apocalypse

A harbinger of the apocalypse, it is believed that Kalki will bring about the destruction of the world when mankind has completely abandoned religion, “when nothing is known of the techniques of sacrifice, even by word.”

Kalki is the final incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu, who is predicted to come “like a comet and carry a terrifying sword for bringing about the annihilation of the wicked barbarian men at the end of the Kali-yuga” (Sri Dasavatara Stotra, 10th Sloka).

Shops looted and goods burned on the streets in Jakarta, (Public Domain) Kalki as Vajimukha (horse-faced). (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Kali-yuga

According to Hindu belief, universal time is comprised of four great periods, or yugas: Satya-yuga, Treta-yuga, Dvapara-yuga, and Kali-yuga. Currently, humans are living through the Kali-yuga period, which is roughly 432,000 years long. This period began after the Battle of Kuruksetra during the end of the reign of King Pariksit, some 5,000 years ago. Therefore, there are approximately 427,000 years of the Kali-yuga left before Kalki is said to come.