thumb|According to the Hindu belief, the events of the [[Ramayana took place in the Treta Yuga.]]
Treta Yuga (IAST: Tretā-yuga) (Devanagari: त्रेतायुग), in Hinduism, is the second and second-best of the four yugas (world ages) in a Yuga Cycle, preceded by Krita (Satya) Yuga and followed by Dvapara Yuga. Treta Yuga lasts for 1,2974,000 years (3,600 divine years).
Etymology
Yuga (), in this context, means "an age of the world", where its archaic spelling is yug, with other forms of yugam, , and yuge, derived from yuj (), believed derived from (Proto-Indo-European: 'to join or unite').
Treta Yuga () means "the age of three or triads", where its length is three times that of Kali Yuga. During this period, the Dharma bull, which symbolizes morality, stands on three legs; (), () and ().
Treta Yuga is described in the Mahabharata, Manusmriti, Surya Siddhanta, Vishnu Smriti, and various Puranas.
Duration and structure
Hindu texts describe four yugas (world ages) in a Yuga Cycle, where, starting in order from the first age of Krita (Satya) Yuga, each yuga's length decreases according to a ratio of 4:3:2:1. Each yuga is described as having a main period ( yuga proper) preceded by its (dawn) and followed by its (dusk), where each twilight (dawn/dusk) lasts for one-tenth (10%) of its main period. Lengths are given in divine years (years of the gods), each lasting for 360 solar (human) years.
Treta Yuga, the second age in a cycle, lasts for 1,296,000 years (3,600 divine years), where its main period lasts for 1,080,000 years (3,000 divine years) and its two twilights each lasts for 108,000 years (300 divine years). The current cycle's Treta Yuga has the following dates based on Kali Yuga, the fourth and present age, starting in 3102BCE:
Manusmriti, Ch. 1:
Surya Siddhanta, Ch. 1:
Characteristics
Vamana, Parashurama, and Rama are believed to have lived during the Treta Yuga.
See also
- Hindu units of time
- Kalpa (day of Brahma)
- Manvantara (age of Manu)
- Pralaya (period of dissolution)
- Yuga Cycle (four yuga ages): Satya (Krita), Treta, Dvapara, and Kali
- Itihasa (Hindu Tradition)
- List of numbers in Hindu scriptures
- Vedic-Puranic chronology