In the final portion of the Kali age, the Yavanas will arise—people of little generosity, who speak untruths, burn with great wrath, and act without righteousness in their conduct, desires, and dealings with wealth. The kings of this era will not be those consecrated with the sacred anointing; instead, they will be marked by evil conduct, their faults reflecting the darkness of the age. In their pursuit of power, these kings will violently kill women and each other, seizing the earth for themselves by force. Dynasties will rise and fall in quick succession, with kings appearing and then vanishing, each ruling for a brief time according to fate. These rulers will lack righteousness, proper desires, and true wealth; the lands they dominate will become thoroughly mixed with mleccha customs, forsaking ancient ways. Order will be overturned, and these kings will destroy their own people, driven by greed and delighting in falsehood. As time passes and their rule fades, an age will come where women are many, but the people will decline gradually—lifespans growing shorter, beauty and strength diminishing, and learning lost. When the kings have fallen to their lowest state among the people, they will be swept away, struck down by the force of time itself. The mlecchas—those who have abandoned righteousness and true doctrine—will be destroyed by Kalki and will vanish completely from the earth. When the very title of king is lost and the twilight of Kali Yuga arrives, only a few will remain—bereft of righteousness and possessions. These survivors will be without means, their hopes shattered, suffering from disease and sorrow, tormented by drought and mutual violence. Helpless and terrified, they will abandon their livelihoods and ancient villages, fleeing into the forests in their misery. Without kings, the people will leave their homes, deprived of affection and the bonds of friendship. All ties of love will wither. Having fallen away from their proper castes and stages of life, embracing dreadful confusion, they will make their dwellings by rivers and mountains. They will spread out along the banks of rivers, the seashores, and among the mountains—inhabiting lands such as Anga, Kaliṅga, Vaṅga, Kāśmīra, Kāśi, and Kośala. Seeking safety, humans will take refuge on the slopes and in the valleys of the sages’ mountains, along the ridges of the Himalayas, and on the banks of the salty sea. The noble, together with foreigners, will enter the forests. There, along with beasts, fish, birds, and wild animals—who are also disturbed—humans will live on honey, vegetables, fruits, and roots. They will clothe themselves in garments made of bark, leaves, and skins, living as the ancient sages once did. To survive, they will cultivate grain in lowlands, using only wooden stakes, and carefully tend goats, sheep, donkeys, and camels. People will settle by rivers for water, but even then, they will trouble one another in their dealings. Though some may be held in regard, the world will be empty of people, purity, and proper conduct; unrighteousness will prevail. The people will follow inferior and deficient dharmas, and at that time, none will live beyond twenty-three years. Weakened, exhausted by sense pleasures, overcome by old age, they will subsist on leaves, roots, and fruits, wearing bark and black antelope skins. Wandering the earth in search of livelihood, these people will mark the very end of the Kali age. When Kali Yuga is finally depleted—after a divine thousand years—all will perish together with the age. As the twilight portion of Kali ends completely, the Krita (Satya) Yuga will be restored. A sign will appear: when the moon, the sun, and Tishya-Brihaspati all occupy the same night, then the Krita age will begin anew. Thus, the entire lineage has been recounted—those of the past, the present, and those yet to come. From the consecration of Mahadeva up to the birth of Parikshit, a thousand years and fifteen more should be known. The measure of time has been stated, including the interval of the Mahāpadma, reckoned as one hundred and eighty-six years. This span is to be considered for those known as the Andhra-ending ones; their numbers have been declared by sages learned in the Purāṇas. In the reign of Pratīpa, the Seven Sages spoke of a hundred years; for the Andhras, you should count again with twenty-seven hundreds. At the end of these twenty-seven cycles, the Seven Sages remain throughout the circle of stars, each cycle lasting a hundred years—this is the era of the Seven Sages, counted in divine reckoning. That era is remembered as sixty, plus seven divine days; from this, divine time proceeds, governed by the Seven Sages. The earlier Seven Sages are seen in the northern direction; then, in the middle, the region appears which is equal in the sky. There, the Seven Sages are to be known as united for a hundred years, marking the conjunction of stars and sages. The Seven Sages, joined with the constellation Maghā, remain for a hundred years; in the Andhra portion, in the twenty-fourth cycle, they will be thus, as I have explained. Then, indeed, human nature will be greatly corrupted; all will be afflicted by falsehood—in righteousness, desire, and wealth. When Vedic and customary law is weakened, and the duties of caste and stage of life are lost, the weak-minded and deluded will adopt the doctrine of Śaṅkara. Śūdras will become associated with the twice-born; Brāhmaṇas will perform sacrifices for Śūdras, and the Śūdras will become the source of mantras. At that time, Brāhmaṇas will approach Śūdras, seeking livelihood; and all people will gradually decline, falling bit by bit from their former state.