Time flies never to return

The prehistoric man would not have known anything about time. Even to measure time he did not have a clock or watch. With the advancement of civilisation, man began to understand the value of time. However, even at the height of civilisation, do we know the meaning of time?

Today we know that time is a period during which an action takes place or an event occurs. We also know how to measure time with clocks and watches. So, we draw up timetables and other methods to utilise the time meaningfully.

Sometimes, we regard time as a dimension representing a succession of actions and events. Although we cannot see, smell, hear, feel, or taste time using our sensory organs, we know for sure that time is one of the fundamental qualities of the physical world. In other words, time is something abstract.

If you look at it scientifically, we measure time by the daily rotation of the earth on its axis. We also take into consideration the fact that the earth revolves around the sun. For the ordinary man, the sun is apparently moving from one side to the other across the sky.

This was perhaps the oldest way of measuring time. When the sun appears in the east, he knows that it is morning. When the sun is right above his head, he knows that it is noon. When the sun goes down in the west, he knows that is evening. When the sun disappears completely from the sky, he knows it is night. Gradually, man decided that there are 24 hours in a day and each hour consists of 60 minutes.

While man tried to come to grips with time in a scientific way, some philosophers in the past thought time was an illusion. They were of the view that everything happened at the same time. However, ordinary people did not believe what the philosophers said because the whole idea appeared to be a paradox. Some scientists also came to the rescue of the philosophers. They also claimed that time was an illusion. For instance, the great physicist Albert Einstein stated that time is something relative.

Ordinary men and women very often come across situations where time does not appear to be a reality. Lovers and busy people feel that time passes very quickly. When you go on a picnic or attend a party too time takes wings. However, when you are listening to a boring lecture or engaged in a tiresome activity, time seems to move very slowly.

If you visit a sleepy village off Moneragala or elsewhere in the country, you will meet people who lead leisurely lives. In such places time seems to stand still. In these villages people do not have clocks and time is measured by looking at the sun. They get up when the cock crows in the morning. They stop work when the sun is right above their heads. They go to bed when it is really dark.

It is very easy to waste time. When you sit before the television for long hours, it becomes second nature to you. If you begin to watch everything the idiot box telecasts, you will waste much of your precious time. Students who spend too much time watching television programs are bound to realise their folly when they sit examinations. In the last G. C. E. Ordinary Level examination nearly 50 percent of the candidates failed because they had not studied properly. I am sure most of them would have been glued to the TV.

This does not mean that you should not watch television at all. Intelligent students and even adults should watch selected programs. Some of the television programs are extremely good and educative. They also provide adequate entertainment.

If you want to use time wisely, avoid procrastination. Those who put off things for tomorrow without doing them today will only reap unhappiness in the end. Although most of us procrastinate now and then, it should not become the rule.

You tend to procrastinate when you are not really committed to a course of studies or some other task. Or you do not know how to do a particular job. On the other hand, some of the people who tend to procrastinate set a very high goal for themselves. Once I postponed sitting my final examination in Law thinking that I would fail if I sat. What happened finally was that I never sat the examination thereafter!

I have a friend who is very much interested in yoga exercises. So, I introduced him to a reputed yoga master. But my friend came up with a funny excuse. He said, "I don't have the time". If he had been really interested in improving his health, he would have found the time to do yoga exercises. Even with physical disabilities you can do certain yoga exercises.

Our time on this planet earth is relatively short. Although we do not really know why we are here, we have to utilise the time available to us without wasting it. Until someone comes up with a better definition of time in the future, let us treat it as an abstract subject and live accordingly.

When I think of time, I always remember my Latin master who once said, "Sed fugid interea, fugid inreperabile tempus" which simply means: Meanwhile time is flying - flying never to return.