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The age of Kali is a very difficult time. We don’t need to go very far to see how many terrible things are happening around us. However, the age of Kali also has positive sides. This is summarized in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.18.7):
“Mahārāja Parīkṣit was a realist, like the bees who only accept the essence [of a flower]. He knew perfectly well that in this Age of Kali, auspicious things produce good effects immediately, whereas inauspicious acts must be actually performed [to render effects]. So he was never envious of the personality of Kali.”
We may brag about how Vedic society in previous eras was wonderful, but the fact is that if such societies still existed, we would not be accepted by them, since we lack the proper qualifications. We would be considered outcasts and forced to live in the hills and forests among other uncivilized people. It’s fun to brag about how brāhmanas and kṣatriyas were elevated and how people from this age are fallen, forgetting that we are part of the problem.
The reason the age of Kali exists is exactly to give us a chance to progress spiritually despite our shortcomings. For this, we receive a lot of opportunities. Not only does Lord Caitanya come to bring us the chanting of the holy names, but we are also not punished for our mental sins.
Our minds are very disturbed; we lack the mental equilibrium people had in other eras. We frequently desire to do sinful things, we think badly about other people, and we may even mentally offend exalted persons, things that would be severely punished in other ages. However, in Kali-yuga, we are not punished for any of it, as long as our mental agitation is not converted into concrete actions.
On the other hand, even when we can’t perform pious activities due to the lack of material resources, lack of energy, or just plain inertia, if we can have at least a sincere desire to do so, we already get the benefits. One may not be able to construct great temples, give millions of dollars in charity, protect thousands of cows, or distribute millions of books. One may not even be able to properly follow the principles of spiritual life, but if he has at least the desire to do so, this is sufficient to award him benefit and bring him to a better situation in his next life.
The age of Kali is thus a great opportunity for us. It’s an age especially tailored for our deficiencies. This shows the mercy of the Lord in creating viable paths for spiritual advancement in many different circumstances. We always have free will, and things are never automatic, but the door is always open; we just need to decide to go through.
The positive sides of Kali-yuga are, in fact, glorified. In many passages, it is described as a glorious age. See, for example, what is spoken in the Eleventh Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.5.36-40):
“Those who are actually advanced in knowledge are able to appreciate the essential value of this Age of Kali. Such enlightened persons worship Kali-yuga because in this fallen age all perfection of life can easily be achieved by the performance of saṅkīrtana. Indeed, there is no higher possible gain for embodied souls forced to wander throughout the material world than the Supreme Lord’s saṅkīrtana movement, by which one can attain the supreme peace and free oneself from the cycle of repeated birth and death.
My dear King, the inhabitants of Satya-yuga and other ages eagerly desire to take birth in this Age of Kali, since in this age there will be many devotees of the Supreme Lord, Nārāyaṇa. These devotees will appear in various places but will be especially numerous in South India. O master of men, in the Age of Kali those persons who drink the waters of the holy rivers of Draviḍa-deśa, such as the Tāmraparṇī, Krtamālā, Payasvinī, the extremely pious Kāverī and the Pratīcī Mahānadī, will almost all be purehearted devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva.”
These are verses spoken by Nārada Muni, who is considered a trikāla-jña, a knower of past, present, and future. He, therefore, speaks from direct realization. To balance all the problems and deficiencies we have in Kali-yuga, we also have great facilities. So great, in fact, that inhabitants of other ages, as well as demigods who come to understand the opportunities of our age, desire to take birth among us.
Different types of pious activities award different results, but they all keep us in this material world. Even great sages who practice devotional service mixed with jñana and are eventually promoted to Janaloka, Tapoloka, or Satyaloka still remain in this material world. Only love of Godhead can take us out for good, bringing us to a position of direct association with the Lord. This is extremely difficult to achieve in other ages, but can be easily achieved in Kali-yuga just by following the path inaugurated by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, chanting the holy names in ecstasy.
As concluded by Śukadeva Gosvāmī on SB 12.3.51:
“My dear King, although Kali-yuga is an ocean of faults, there is still one good quality about this age: Simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, one can become free from material bondage and be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.”
Even though we lack the discipline and other virtues of the people from other eras, we have a better chance than they of achieving spiritual perfection due to this extraordinary mercy. We just have to take it seriously.
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Everything is the mercy of Vasudeva 🙏🏼