In many ancient traditions, time is not seen as linear but cyclical, moving through great ages that mirror the rise and fall of human consciousness. In Hindu cosmology, Kaliyuga is described as the final and most turbulent of these cycles: the age of confusion, quarrel, and forgetfulness. In Kaliyuga, the ancient texts say, truth becomes obscured. People forget who they are. The sacred is replaced by the superficial. The world accelerates, louder, faster, more divided, and the inner voice of wisdom grows faint beneath the noise.

This is not just a myth about civilisation. It is also a map of the inner world. Each of us carries a microcosm of the Kaliyuga inside, moments when we lose contact with our deeper nature, when our minds become divided, when the truth of who we are is forgotten beneath layers of fear, distraction, and striving.

The Psychology of a Confused Age

Modern life mirrors the conditions of Kaliyuga. We live in an era of:

Overstimulation — constant information, no silence.
Disconnection — from our bodies, our communities, our inner wisdom.
Fragmentation — we play roles, perform identities, but struggle to feel whole.
Acceleration — everything must happen now, leaving no space for reflection.

These are also the conditions in which anxiety, burnout, and existential emptiness flourish. It is easy to forget that behind all this noise, something still and eternal remains.

Remembering the Light Within the Dark

Kaliyuga, however, is not only an age of decline, it is an invitation. In times of confusion, awareness becomes the most radical act. The very darkness of the age makes light visible again. Through stillness, reflection, and compassion, we begin to remember what the ancient teachings call Satya — truth, alignment with what is real. In therapy, meditation, or honest self-inquiry, we reclaim the parts of ourselves that have become fragmented. We learn to listen to the quiet voice beneath the chaos. We begin to live less from reaction, and more from remembrance.

The Inner Practice

The work of healing in the age of confusion is not to escape it, but to stay awake within it. Each moment of awareness, a breath, a kind word, a pause before reacting, becomes an act of resistance against the forgetting. Each time we reconnect with our heart, we help to restore balance, both within ourselves and in the collective field we share. As the mystics say:

“Even in Kaliyuga, a single spark of remembrance can light the whole sky.”