An Interview with Joseph Selbie

by Krysta Gibson

Have you ever wondered about the building of the Great Pyramid in Egypt? How could that incredible feat have been accomplished during that period in history? According to what we know, the people of that time didn't have the technology to build such a structure. Yet, it exists. According to Joseph Selbie, co-author with David Steinmetz of The Yugas, a book about an ancient tradition of the same name from India, says humankind's development is cyclical rather than linear.

"The linear viewpoint says we evolved from caveman's days and over time have become more technologically savvy. The Yugas take a much different viewpoint that explains a lot of the anomalies we see which don't fit the linear viewpoint," explains Selbie.

He continues, "An example is the amazing Great Pyramid, which according to linear time was built just after the Stone Age, and yet is not a Stone Age building. The Yugas, particularly the system put forward by the Indian sage Sri Yukteswar, explain a 24,000 year cycle of development."

Selbie explains that according to this system, there are two arcs. One is a descending arc where humanity goes from a higher level of consciousness to a lower one, losing awareness and abilities. According to this system, that arc was finished in 500 A.D. which is around the time of the Dark Ages, a time considered to be a low period for every civilization on the planet.

After this, things begin to go in the opposite direction, in an ascending arc.

"We are now some 1,500 years past that low point and are moving into an emerging awareness of energy, both outwardly with things such as nuclear and solar energy, as well as inwardly in terms of a greater recognition and ability of our life force, our personal energy," says Selbie.

"That cycle indicates that not only has there been higher consciousness in the past, but that we are moving into that higher consciousness once again in this ever recurring cycle. That is the Yugas in a nutshell," he explains.

The book gives many examples in great detail that support what he is saying. History buffs will find much of this throws a new light on events we have taken for granted.

This system of the Yugas was introduced in a book called The Holy Science, written by Sri Yukteswar. According to the Yugas, we have just entered Dwapara, the energy age. The Indian sage described it as, "A time when mankind would come to appreciate the subtle energies that underpin all of matter, and also a time of rapid expansion of knowledge in all departments of life," Selbie says.

Usually these changes happen slowly, although there are some major leaps in understanding and awareness. Selbie says these don't happen instantaneously but can happen somewhat quickly.

According to this system, 1700 A.D. was the last big transition period from material consciousness into the beginnings of understanding the underpinnings of energy and matter. Because 1900 A.D. is when we properly entered into this age, it is interesting to see what scientific breakthroughs occurred around 1900. A significant one was Einstein's equation: E=MC2. The essence of that discovery is that matter is energy in a super-condensed form.

"What he presented to the world was the knowledge that this energy can be liberated for good and ill, as we saw this last century, and it profoundly changed the world of physics, science and technology. Also there's a steady emergence of inner awareness. Much of the movement of people towards yoga, meditation and tai chi, and to some degree psychic awareness, many of the things that we see as the emerging new age, is the emerging new consciousness that really only started to grow right around the turn of the century."

Selbie explains that this is when we had Eastern teachers coming to the States for the first time and there was a renaissance of interest in ancient healing techniques like acupuncture and shiatsu that were developed in the previous Dwapara Yuga, which would have been 3000 B.C. to 700 B.C. That is the time that parallels ours in the descending arc. Mankind shared many of the traits that we see now. Acupuncture needles have been found that date back to 3000 B.C. We are seeing both the outer and inner energy awareness exploding right now.

Our world is transitioning and has discovered the immensity of the power available to us even though we are not yet using it very wisely. Sri Yukteswar said this leads to a natural spiritual inquiry to find practical ways in which to use our life force for greater health, harmony, and happiness.

When asked about how the Mayan calendar might fit into this world-view, Selbie said, "My co-author discovered an interesting parallel to the way the Yugas and the Mayan calendar are calculated. Both systems appear to be based on the length of the equinoxical cycle, the procession of the equinox. The Mayan calendar says it is a 26,000-year cycle while the Yugas are based on 24,000-year cycle.

"If you allow for the fact that the origins of the Mayan calendar go back to 3000 B.C. and if you allow that Sri Yukteswar said the cycle of the Yugas is 'about' 24,000 years, you can make an informed guess that maybe both of these systems are talking about the same cycle."

Selbie doesn't think we will see dramatic changes on Dec. 21, 2012 – the predicted day of the end of the Mayan calendar – because things move more slowly than that. However, he said this time could give us a positive vibrational change rather than a negative one as some people have stated.

Even though much of this means looking at life from a big picture perspective, Selbie says it also applies to the way we live our everyday lives.

"People can take a lot of inspiration for daily life from the Yugas, which tell us we have enormous potential. Several times, Sri Yukteswar said that anyone in any age can achieve their full potential. We're not limited to the age we're living in. Our inherent nature is spiritual, to be the heir to tremendous abilities, mental telepathy, to manifest things miraculously. On a more practical level, we can appreciate the emerging awareness that this age gives us. It really is the age of time of tuning into inner energy, your life force, your chi, that brings with it intuition and insight and solutions.

"Day-to-day, do those things that get you in touch with your life force, live more in that subtle body, that is your truer and deeper self, and life goes more smoothly. Joy and energy go hand-in-hand. The deep flow of energy moves through us and more joy and satisfaction can flow in greater abundance when we tune into it."

To hear this entire interview, please visit the audio section at newspiritjournal.com. For more information about the Yugas, articles, events, and a blog, visit www.theyugas.com. A conference called "The Yugas and Awakening Consciousness" is planned for Memorial Day weekend, 2012, at the Expanding Light Retreat Center at Ananda Village in Northern California.