A New Hope: Kalki, the Man on the White Horse, Phra Sri Ariya Maitreya, and the Age Yet to Come

For this edition of God’s City on the Ticy City website, spiritual storyteller Nai Mu invites readers—devotees and skeptics alike—on a journey into the world of The Age of Maitreya Buddha. It’s a realm of renewed hope, divine prophecies, and spiritual rebirth—home to Phra Sri Ariya Maitreya, the Future Buddha; Kalki, the final avatar of Vishnu; and the symbolic Man on the White Horse, celebrated during the festival of Kalki Jayanti.

As we navigate an era filled with confusion, injustice, and uncertainty, many around the world—Thailand included—can’t help but wonder: will someone come to restore balance and light? Could the tales of a savior, a new arrival, really be true?

Most Thais have heard of The Age of Maitreya Buddha. According to Buddhist prophecy, once the teachings of the Buddha Avatar (Gautama) fade—about 5,000 years after his passing—a new Buddha will descend. That Buddha is Phra Sri Ariya Maitreya, the embodiment of hope in a broken world. His spiritual presence is said to reside in Dusit Heaven, where he awaits the moment to bring enlightenment back to Earth.

In Mahāyāna Buddhist traditions, Maitreya is often depicted as a plump, smiling monk—a symbol of prosperity and joy. His birth is celebrated on Chinese New Year, the first day of the lunar calendar.

Hindu belief mirrors this vision of renewal through the Dashavatara—the 10 Avatars of Lord Vishnu—where each incarnation marks a phase of human and cosmic evolution. Kalki, the 10th and final avatar, is destined to appear at the end of Kali Yuga, the age of darkness, bringing with him a new era of righteousness. This year, Kalki Jayanti 2025 falls on July 30, 2025.

In Thai culture, Kalki is better known as the Man on the White Horse—an image both regal and redemptive. His divine steed, Devadatta, is a gift from Lord Shiva and is said to transform according to the needs of each age—sometimes a horse, other times something more fitting to modern times.

Kalki will be trained by Parashurama, the sixth avatar of Vishnu, who endures across ages. Known for his role in defeating the corrupt king Kartavirya, Parashurama bestows upon Kalki a legendary weapon: Kalki’s Sword of Flames, blessed by Lord Shiva. With it, Kalki is prophesied to destroy Kali, the tyrant who rules through fear and falsehood, and to liberate humanity from oppression.

Kalki’s personal life is also richly told. He weds two consorts: Padmavati Devi, an incarnation of Lakshmi, and Ramdevi. With Padmavati, he has two sons: Jaya and Vichai; and with Ramdevi, two more: Mekhamala and Phra Balaka. His celestial city is called Shambhala—a mythical kingdom designed by the divine architect Vishvakarma.

His enemy, King Kali, is more than just a tyrant. He represents the spiritual decay of the age—a being descended from Adharma (injustice) and Anrita (falsehood), and the son of Krodha (rage) and Himsa (violence). He even takes his own sister as wife, a symbolic gesture underscoring the complete collapse of moral order.

In recent years, these ancient myths have resurfaced in modern form. The Indian film “Kalki 2898 AD” reimagines this spiritual prophecy as dystopian sci-fi. It draws from the Mahabharata, focusing on the character Aswatthama, one of Lord Shiva’s 19 avatars. A warrior on the Kaurava side of the great war, Aswatthama commits an unforgivable act: attacking the unborn child of Uttara, wife of Abhimanyu. As punishment, Krishna curses him to immortality—forever disfigured, bleeding, and doomed to witness the suffering of humanity in Kali Yuga.

In the film, redemption comes only if Aswatthama protects the mother of Kalki. Set in the year 2898 AD—roughly 6,000 years after the Kurukshetra war—the world is ruled by dictatorship and surrounded by missiles and machines. Yet even in this dark future, the story dares to imagine hope returning.

And that’s what makes these stories so enduring. If they remain only myths, they fade. But when reinterpreted for the present, they offer us a vision that feels close—possible.

The West calls such a vision Utopia. In Buddhism, especially Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna traditions, it’s Shambhala. In the novel Lost Horizon by James Hilton, it’s Shangri-La—a paradise beneath the Himalayas, brought to life in a beloved 1937 film.

Shambhala, especially in Tibetan Buddhism, is a spiritual ideal—a hidden land of peace, ruled by a just king taught by the Shakyamuni Buddha. In this utopia, people live long lives, free of disease, war, and injustice. All beings are equal, creative, and enlightened.

But Shambhala is not just a legend—it’s a challenge. A call to imagine, build, and live in a world of compassion. We don’t need to wait for Kalki or Phra Sri Ariya Maitreya to come down from the heavens. The Buddha-nature—that innate capacity to awaken, to know, and to live joyfully—is already within us.

And so, we too can become the New One of this age. We can shape our world—not just dream of a better one. We can bring Shambhala into being, with our own hands and hearts.

Story by Nai Mu