The Yugas: Keys to Understanding Our Hidden Past, Emerging Present and Future Enlightenment [Paperback]

Joseph Selbie (Author), David Steinmetz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 16, 2011

Today's view of history cannot account for ancient anomalies,such as the Pyramids and advanced knowledge contained in India's Vedas-but in 1894 an Indian sage gave us an explanation not only for our hidden past, but for the trends of today and for our future enlightenment-the 24,000 year yuga cycle.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The concept of the yugas is critically important for a clear understanding of humankind's ancient past, our potential future, and the way the larger cosmic environment influences humanity's changing consciousness. The conventional mainstream view of an overall linear progression in human history is no longer tenable; it is now clear that the ancients of 10,000 to 15,000 years ago were not primitives and we have much to learn from them. Based on the teachings of Sri Yukteswar, The Yugas by Joseph Selbie and David Steinmetz provides a perceptive analysis of history from the height of the last Satya Yuga (Spiritual Age) of circa 11,500 B.C. to our present age. Just as importantly, the authors discuss trends and developments that we may anticipate over the next 10,000 years as the cycle of the yugas comes full circle. The Yugas integrates and synthesizes disparate facts and apparent anomalies that are often ignored. This is a profound book on a profound subject. Intelligently written and fascinating, it provides new revelations on the unfolding of human potential over the course of millennia. (Robert M. Schoch, Ph.D., July 2010 )

The Yugas is a great and important book that will undoubtedly revolutionize our view of history and how it plays out. Selbie and Steinmetz have done a terrific job in demonstrating the scientific evidence of rising and falling ages of man, as opposed to the linear development of civilization favored by most historians. Before reading The Yugas, I was familiar with Sri Yukteswar's and Paramhansa Yogananda's concept, on which the book is based. After reading The Yugas, I understood more deeply this concept's sometimes-surprising foundations in the past and its all-penetrating ramifications for the future. Reading this book was like being given a glimpse of the sweeping panorama of the ages. My mind shifted. My consciousness was transformed. I think The Yugas should be used as a textbook in universities. If you are at all interested in where humanity has been and where we are headed, I highly recommend that you read this book. (Richard Salva, author of The Reincarnation of Abraham Lincoln and Walking with William of Normandy, August 2010 )

Move over Copernicus, another revolution is underway! The Yugas will not only change the way we look at history, it will change the way we see ourselves and the world around us. This is a wisdom whose time has come. The startling revelations and sweeping vision of Selbie and Steinmetz deliver a story so timeless it will challenge and inspire generations to come! Our forefathers etched the phrase Novus Ordo Seclorum (New Order of the Ages) on the Great Seal of our new nation, but few historians have understood its meaning. By resurrecting a lost knowledge, with exquisite and provocative detail, Selbie and Steinmetz unleash its full power and promise. The Yugas . . . I absolutely loved this book! (Walter Cruttenden, author of The Lost Star of Myth and Time, August 2010 )

Selbie and Steinmetz have produced a comprehensive and in-depth study of the yuga theory of Hindu and yogic thought. They have based their research upon the writings of Sri Yukteswar, the venerable guru of famed Yoga master Paramahansa Yogananda, and his profound insight. The book covers all aspects of the yugas, including the secret of what world age humanity currently resides in and what we can likely expect for the future. The book casts an important new light on the history and evolution of the human race and the mysteries of the great cycles of time that we must all honor. All those who want to understand our species and the hidden cosmic influences that govern our lives will benefit from its detailed examination. Those who study the book carefully will come away with a transformed vision of our world and its spiritual potentials. (David Frawley (Pandit Vamadeva Shastri), author of Astrology of the Seers and Yoga and Ayurveda, August 2010 )

We moderns tend to believe we know more than those who have lived before us, especially those of earlier millennia. In its detailed research and fascinating revelations, this book pricks the bubble of that linear conceit with its wealth of extraordinary insights and evidence to the contrary. Here is proof once again that ancient wisdom and truth, though often overlooked or long forgotten, is never superceded. As we learn in this brilliant detective-like study that probes the arc of time, greater civilizations than ours have preceded and exceeded us, more advanced in spirituality as well as science, borne to higher awareness by a cyclical dance of cosmological forces. Contained in this new history of humankind is a divinely inspired examination of why we were as we were in ages past, why we are as we are in this ascending age of energy and understanding, and what we can anticipate about ourselves and our world in ages yet to come. Selbie and Steinmetz have given us a thesis that is uncompromisingly accurate in its chronicle of significant events and their correspondence to the yugas - cycles of human consciousness - in which they occurred. What emerges is an astonishing, compelling and altogether enlightened view of evolution itself. (James Surendra Conti, Manager, East-West Bookstore, August 2010 )

If you're one of the people who has been asking yourself, "What's going on these days?" and not finding an answer that resonates with you, this is a book you will want to read and study. Based on the teachings of Sri Yukteswar and Paramhansa Yogananda, the book explains about the Yugas or ages the planet goes through every 24,000 years.

 

Not only does the book provide compelling evidence of the veracity of these cycles, it goes much further by telling us about our possible future cycles and how we and planet can be much different than we are today. The Yugas is comforting by giving meaning to today's events and it is intriguing by putting the world into a more easily understood evolutionary picture.

 

This is a don't miss read for anyone who wants a deeper understanding and appreciation of our past, present, and future.

 

A great gift for anyone on a spiritual path and for those who love history.

 

-Krysta Gibson, New Spirit journal; December, 2011

 

Product Details

• Paperback: 358 pages
• Publisher: Crystal Clarity Publishers; Original edition (August 16, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565892534
• ISBN-13: 978-1565892538
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #356,302 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #34 in Books > History > World > Religious > Hinduism

More About the Author

Joseph Selbie
Author and lecturer, Joseph studied ancient Western cultures at the University of Colorado and ancient Eastern cultures at UC Berkeley. He has had a keen interest in ancient history since grade school. He has taught and lectured on the principles of Eastern philosophy for over thirty years.

Joseph lives with his wife at Ananda Village, a spiritual community in Northern California. Joseph, also known as Puru, is a founding member of Ananda Sangha and has served in many leadership and teaching roles. Joseph is also the founder and CEO of Tristream, a web development, marketing and application design firm.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Cycle of the Ages Explained August 10, 2011

By Walter Cruttenden

Format:Paperback

Selbie and Steinmetz have completed a remarkable work. This clear and concise story of the "Cycle of the Ages" is compelling from beginning to end.

The Yugas will give the reader a new appreciation for the wisdom of pre-Dark Age cultures, a new perspective on the subtle forces that change the course of history, and most importantly, new hope for the future.

If you are not familiar with the ancient view of history you are in for a treat. And if you already have some notion about the cycle of rising and falling ages it gets even better. The Yugas splays out the ascending and descending phases in such clarity that it is easy to see the many subtleties of the epochal changes that have shaped our past and that are ongoing today. Understanding the message in this book will bring larger meaning to the fields of archaeology, anthropology and a number of other sciences. When properly cognized The Yugas can serve as a predictive tool to literally rewrite history.

Like a patient with amnesia mankind has forgotten his past, making it almost impossible to plan for the future. This book awakens us to our rich and beautiful history as it lifts the consciousness to the immense possibilities of the coming higher ages.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A book of hope for our troubled times August 15, 2011

By LC Parojinog

Format:Paperback

The Yugas is a fascinating book about a very important topic--the true nature of man's history on the Earth. Not only does the Yuga Cycle explain so many confusing contradictions in archeology, science and history around the evolution of human culture, it shows us that our human consciousness is still developing. From this we can understand that the current state of 'civilization,' with all its brutality and lack of wisdom, is not our final destiny; that we are moving toward a time of expanded awareness among all people, and a world of increasing cooperation and harmony.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars How consciousness affects our history and our future August 15, 2011

By Sudarshan

Format:Paperback

Clearly written in a very accessible style, this book presents the concept that the evolution of our consciousness is cyclic over multiple thousands of years, and presents clear and convincing evidence of the effect of higher or lower awareness on past civilizations. It also predicts our future plausibly, showing grounds for real hope along with a realistic view of impending difficulties.

I have studied Sri Yukteswar's and Yogananda's explanations of Yuga theory, and attended many lectures by the authors and others on this subject. Never have I encountered such an engaging and complete, yet simply stated overview of the subject.

Readers should know that much fascinating information is not covered in this volume. I believe the authors have been wise to concentrate on the essentials of this vast subject thus giving the reader a solid foundation for further exploration. This is not to say the book is elementary. I found it to be a real page turner, with many fresh perspectives on the subject.