Time

In many early philosophical works and scriptures, like the Vedas, it has been written that time is an illusion. That what is true is that everything is going on at the same time. Naturally the world did not understand what they meant and a lot of people had dismissed the idea as just ramblings or superstition. In the last century or so, many prominent scientists have echoed the same theory: Time does not exist; it is just something created by man to understand the world. Even Albert Einstein has stated that time is relative.

In daily life we often come across situations where time does not seem to be a reality. Taking just how a day passes, we see that on a full day of activity, time seems to pass rather fast. When we are on a picnic, for example this happens. When we are busy enjoying ourselves and no one stops to look at the clock, we can enjoy ourselves right through lunch time without feeling hungry and have to be told that it is lunch time. Even the stomach which has been conditioned for years to feel hungry at fixed times every day, seems to miss its cue if we do not look at a watch. Often it is three o’clock before anyone gets hungry. Did time pass too quickly? The writer remembers attending a seminar when the seminar leader demonstrated that time is real only if we measure it – that is, keep looking at a watch. The participants were told to leave all watches at the back of the room, so no one knew what time it was. Then the day was filled with various activities. At a certain time the seminar leader told the participants that it was 2 o’clock and asked if anyone felt hungry. Then he apologized and released them for lunch. Everyone was shocked when they looked at the watch. The time was 7:00 p.m.!

Can time slow down? It does not seem that it can too. If we visit a slow moving society – like a sleepy village in a less developed country where everyone goes about his business without hurrying – we will see time practically standing still. This is true especially if we do not have any dynamic activity but laze around or perhaps read a book. After what seems a long time, if we look at the watch we will see that we have been reading for only a few minutes.

Hence we see that time is really relative. What it really is, we do not really know. At least with our present knowledge it looks like we never will. Perhaps, like so many breakthroughs in recent years, there will be a breakthrough in the future and it will be discovered that time is really something quite different from what we have been thinking it is.

Lesson of Time:

When a bird is alive, it eats ants.

When the bird is dead, ants eat the bird!

Time and circumstances can change at any time,

Don’t devalue or hurt anyone in life.

You may be powerful today,

But remember time is more powerful than you!

One tree makes a million match sticks.

But when the time comes,

Only one match stick is needed to burn a million trees! 
So be good and do good…