In the Kali age, a time of great decline descends upon the world. Thieves become rampant—not only stealing crops and sturdy garments, but even robbing one another, so that theft begets further theft in an endless cycle. As proper work and activity cease and the world grows inert, humans find themselves beset by insects, mice, and snakes, the very creatures that once kept their distance now attacking them. Abundance, safety, health, and capability become rare treasures. Hunger and fear torment the people, driving them to seek refuge in the regions of Kauśikī. Amidst such suffering, the highest lifespan dwindles to a mere hundred years, and the Vedas vanish entirely from sight in the Kali age. Sacrifices perish, overwhelmed by unrighteousness; even those who don ochre robes, those without ties, and many skull-bearers are seen everywhere, their presence marking the loss of true spiritual discipline. Some begin to sell the sacred Vedas, others sell holy places, and impostors rise to obstruct the established orders of caste and stage of life. When Kali truly arrives, such people flourish; Shudras, skilled in dharma and wealth, study the Vedas themselves. Kings born of Shudra lineage perform Ashvamedha sacrifices, but their actions are stained by violence—they kill women, children, cows, and even each other. Disturbances among people grow; suffering becomes widespread, lifespans shorten, bodies decay, and disease afflicts all. The Kali age is enveloped in darkness due to attachment to unrighteousness, and acts such as the killing of Brahmins and others arise among the people. Entering Kali, lifespan, strength, and beauty decline swiftly, and in a short time, humans meet their end. Yet, blessed are those excellent twice-born who, at the end of the age, practice dharma as declared in the scriptures, without envy. In Treta, dharma is practiced yearly; in Dvapara, it is remembered monthly; but in Kali, the wise attain it daily, adapting to their hardship. Such is the condition of the Kali age. Now, hear of its twilight portion: in each age, three quarters of perfection diminish, and only a quarter remains. The nature of the ages and their twilight portions persists, each retaining a quarter of its essence. When the twilight portion at the end of the age arrives, a ruler of wicked beings emerges for their destruction. In the lunar lineage, one named Pramiti is spoken of—born by a portion as a man, though in a previous interval of Svayambhu, he was known as a deity, as Vishnu. Pramiti, upon reaching twenty years of age, travels the earth, leading an army with horses, chariots, and elephants. He is surrounded by hundreds and thousands of Brahmins armed with weapons, and together they slay thousands of mlecchas. Pramiti destroys all those kings born of Shudra lineage and eradicates impostors completely, acting as the lord. He kills everywhere those who lack righteousness, as well as those born from mixed castes and their followers. With the wheel of action set in motion, Pramiti, powerful and invincible among all beings, brings an end to the mlecchas and roams the earth. Though born as a man in this age, in a previous birth, Pramiti was known as Vishnu. When the Kali age is complete, this lord from the lunar lineage, in his thirty-second year, begins his twenty-year journey. Through his cruel deeds, he destroys beings by the hundreds and thousands, leaving only seeds remaining on earth. Driven by mutual causes and sudden anger, he subdues and destroys almost all the unrighteous outcastes. With his followers, he settles between the Ganga and Yamuna, remaining there with his ministers and army as time passes. Having overthrown all kings and thousands of foreigners, Pramiti stands at the twilight of the age, as the end of the yuga approaches. When only a few people remain scattered here and there, those surviving are seized by greed and become unrestrained in every way. Even after bowing to one another, they harm each other; without a king and as the age dictates, uncertainty prevails. Tormented by mutual fear, all the people become distressed, wandering about and abandoning their families and homes. Indifferent to their own lives, utterly without compassion and deeply miserable, with Vedic and customary law destroyed, they begin to kill one another. Devoid of boundaries, expelled, without affection or shame, with righteousness lost and their strength broken, they become dwarfed and reduced to just twenty-five. Abandoning sons and wives, their senses disturbed by disputes and struck by drought, they forsake their livelihoods and wander far away. They dwell in borderlands, leaving their own countries to seek rivers, seas, wells, and mountains. Suffering greatly, they survive on honey, meat, roots, and fruits, wearing bark, leaves, or animal skins, with no rituals and no possessions. Having fallen away from caste and stage of life, they endure terrible hardship; only a few remain, suffering greatly. Afflicted by old age, disease, and hunger, their minds overwhelmed by sorrow and despair, from that despair arises reflection, and from reflection, a state of equality. Awareness characterized by equality arises; from awakening comes righteousness and virtue, and those left at the end of Kali, though without form or restraint, possess this themselves. Then, for them, the age turns over in a single day and night, their minds bewildered as if in sleep or intoxication.