By Zile Singh
“Yesterday is gone, Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.” – Mother Teresa
When I thought to write about ‘Time’, I opened the English Dictionary and was surprised to know that almost one and a half pages are devoted to explain the word ‘time’ there. As noun and verb, and with its prefixes and suffixes, time is the frequently used word. As a noun, it means ‘the indefinite continued progress of existence, events etc., in the past, present and future regarded as a whole’. As a verb, it means to choose the time or occasion. I am sure that hardly anyone would have opened the dictionary to see the meaning of Time. So, it is the time, for you to open any Standard English dictionary and read the wonderful word ‘time’ and its usages. You will not regret this suggestion!
One’s life is a fixed time between birth and death. On the infinite path of time there are incidents of ups and downs. One of the well known milestones on this path is Jesus Christ. The time before him is known as BC (Before Christ) and after him as AD (Anna Dominie or After Christ). Similarly, seconds, minutes, days, weeks, months, years, decades and centuries are other units to recognize time. In fact, time is not the main thing, but it is the only thing.
“You wake up in the morning and lo, your purse is magically filled with twenty-four hours – the most precious of possessions.” Arnold Bennett, as a poverty-stricken young clerk in a London Law office, became one of the celebrated writers by budgeting his time so that every hour served some useful purpose – and it worked beyond his most ambitious dreams! He called it “How to Live on Twenty-Four Hours a Day”. In the following paragraph he explained the gist of the philosophy that had worked so well in his own life:
“Time is the inexplicable raw material of everything. With it, all is possible; without it, nothing. The supply of time is truly a daily miracle, an
affair genuinely astonishing when one examines it. You wake up in the morning, and lo! Your purse is magically filled with twenty-four hours of the unmanufactured tissue of the universe of your life! It is yours. It is the most precious of possessions. No one can take it from you. It is un-stealable. And no one receives either more or less than you receive.”
Not only Arnold Bennett, but let us see what the famous Sufi Saint Omar Khayyam said about time:
Tomorrow’s fate, though thou be wise,
Thou canst not tell nor yet surmise;
Pass, therefore, not today in vain,
For it will never come again.
If we can become aware of moments as they flow by, focusing our attention on just that awareness of the present moment, we can connect to a thread beyond time: A thread that attaches moments together. In several religions, the God exists outside the bounds of time and space. In fact, the practice of stepping outside the bounds of space and time, and opening consciousness to grasp the infinite is what meditation teaches. Meditation is nothing but the transcendence of time and space with an awareness of the present moment.
Naturally, to lead a healthy and prosperous life one must manage one’s time wisely. Time management or timetable is a critical factor in the life of every one. Real success cannot be achieved without proper time management. The management of time depends upon the stages of life. Time has to be managed keeping in mind the individual’s function in teenage, young age and the old age. The most common measures for using the time to its utmost use are – (1) Punctuality. One should understand the value of time and must be punctual if he wants to progress in life. Courtesy demands that we should be on time to meet an appointment. We should learn the regularity, continuity and commitment from the time. (2) Time is Invaluable. Time is more valuable than money. We can earn money and health even after losing it whenever we want by working hard again, but we cannot earn the time which has been lost it. ‘Time and tide wait for none’. Time runs continuously without any stoppage. (3) To Avoid Chaos, we should finish our tasks on time, otherwise ‘there is no use to cry over spilt milk’. Those who plan ahead, hardly fail; face less mental tension and worries. Time has the capacity to heal us all from our injured feelings and broken hearts. Therefore, time is called ‘the best healer’.
So, “those who want to live, for them there is no other way than to live this moment. Only the present is existential. The past is simply a collection of memories, and the future is nothing but your imagination, your dreams. Reality is here now.”- Osho
“Life is short and the older you get, the more you feel it. People lose their capacity to walk, run, travel, think and experience life. I realize how important it is to use the time I have.” Viggo Mortensen”.
Mr. Zile Singh is much respected Link Columnist, writer and a Vipassana Meditator. He can be reached at [email protected] .
