A yuga, in Hinduism, is generally used to indicate an age of time.
In the Rigveda, a yuga refers to generations, a period of time (whether long or short), or a yoke (joining of two things). In the Mahabharata, the words yuga and kalpa (a day of Brahma) are used interchangeably to describe the cycle of creation and destruction.
In post-Vedic texts, the words " yuga" and "age" commonly denote a Yuga Cycle (pronounced chatur yuga), a cycle of four world ages—for example, in the Surya Siddhanta and Bhagavad Gita (part of the Mahabharata)—unless expressly limited by the name of one of its minor ages: Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dvapara Yuga, or Kali Yuga.
The term " yuga" can represent the number 4. In early Indian astronomy, it referred to a five-year cycle starting with the conjunction of the sun and moon in the autumnal equinox.
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