Spoke 6 of the wheel
Duḥṣamā-duḥṣamā दुःषम-दुःषमा
Sorrow upon sorrow. Lasts 21,000 years.
The worst age. The teaching disappears entirely from Bharat Kṣetra . Texts describe extremes of heat and cold, poisoned rain, and people surviving in caves along the Gaṅgā on what they can catch.
It ends at the bottom of the wheel, and then the wheel keeps turning. The same six spokes run in reverse as Utsarpiṇī , and everything comes back.
Suṣamā-suṣamā 4 ×10¹⁴ sāgar. Suṣamā 3 ×10¹⁴ sāgar. Suṣamā-duḥṣamā 2 ×10¹⁴ sāgar. Duḥṣamā-suṣamā 1 ×10¹⁴ less 42k yr Duḥṣamā 21,000 years Duḥṣamā-duḥṣamā 21,000 years Duḥṣamā-duḥṣamā 21,000 years Duḥṣamā 21,000 years Duḥṣamā-suṣamā 1 ×10¹⁴ less 42k yr Suṣamā-duḥṣamā 2 ×10¹⁴ sāgar. Suṣamā 3 ×10¹⁴ sāgar. Suṣamā-suṣamā 4 ×10¹⁴ sāgar. AVASARPIṆĪ ↓ descending · everything diminishes UTSARPIṆĪ ↑ ascending · everything returns KĀLA CAKRA one full turn = 20 crore-crore sāgaropama Bharat and Airāvat only we are here 5th spoke of a descending half c. 2,500 of its 21,000 years gone The twelve spokes are drawn equal. They are not: the first alone outlasts the last two beyond ordinary counting. The wheel of time — Duḥṣamā-duḥṣamā highlighted Measurements and counts Meaning Sorrow upon sorrow Length 21,000 years Human lifespan up to 20 years Human height 1–2 hands Food taken irregular In descending order Avasarpiṇī spoke 6 In ascending order Utsarpiṇī spoke 1
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