- PII
- S0869-54150000392-4-1
- DOI
- 10.7868/S50000392-4-1
- Publication type
- Article
- Status
- Published
- Authors
- Volume/ Edition
- Volume / Issue 4
- Pages
- 124-139
- Abstract
- The article examines the periodization of an individual’s life in the Kalacakra teaching (Buddhist Tantra teaching which appeared in India in the beginning of the 11 th century). This periodization is founded on the conception of ten incarnations (Avatara’s) of the god Visnu: fish, terrapin, wild boar, man-lion, dwarf, Parasu-rama, Rama, Krsna, Buddha, Kalki. Ten periods of the human life correspond to the cycle of existence of the Universe (four yuga’s). The study draws on Sri-kalacakra-nama-tantra-raja (short version of basic text of the Kalacakra teaching), Vimalaprabha (a commentary to this text), and a commentary to Vimalaprabha by the famous Tibetan scholar Bu ston (1290-1364). The periodization of the human life in the Kalacakra teaching presents a great value in the context of studying medieval Indian beliefs about the individual. The Kalacakra teaching and its periodization of the human life continue to live in Tibet and among the Mongol tribes up to the present day.
- Keywords
- individual, Avatāra, Viṣṇu, tantra, Kālacakra, universe and individual isomorphism, yuga, eschatology
- Date of publication
- 28.10.2025
- Year of publication
- 2025
- Number of purchasers
- 1
- Views
- 604
RAS History & PhilologyЭтнографическое обозрение Ethno review
- ISSN (Print) 0869-5415
- ISSN (Online) 3034-6274
The Periodization of an Individual’s Life in the Kālacakra Teaching
Индексирование
Scopus
Crossref
Higher Attestation Commission
At the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation
Scientific Electronic Library