It is a little
frustrating when we have an idea but we do not seem to have a suitable word to
express it. I am thinking of a suitable word, a single word, for
“philosophy/theory/study of time.” One finds “horology” but it is said to mean
“the study and measurement of time” or “the art of making clocks and watches.”
This may be indirectly related but this is not exactly what I want. I once used
“temporalogy” but I am quite unhappy with it. One could use “timeology” but it
is not particularly appealing either. One could perhaps use “Kālology” (from
Sanskrit kāla “time”) but it can
easily be confused with “kalology” (i.e. “the study of beauty; aesthetics”).
But for the want of a better term, I will use here “timeology,” or
specifically, “Buddhist timeology,” mainly for the sake of speculating about
the Buddhist philosophies/ideas of time.
For now, I am just collecting random
Buddhist ideas that could be explored for studying the Buddhist concept of
time. (1) Abhidharmically, time belongs to the category of “conditioned
phenomena” (saṃskṛtadharma: ’dus byas kyi
chos), and that too, to “aggregate consisting of impulses” (saṃskāraskandha: ’du byed kyi phung po).
It is one of the 24 impulses dissociated from mind. One can elaborate here. (2)
Speed, too, belongs to the same category. (3) Normally, time often means past,
present, and future. The ontological status of time would be debated among
various systems of Buddhism. (4) There is also the idea of a fourth dimension
of time (i.e. dus bzhi mnyam pa nyid).
(5) Some Buddhist systems propose the idea of the smallest units or moments of
time. For Mādhyamikas, there is no such thing as unbreakable infinitesimal
moment or span of time. This can be easily demonstrated. (6) Consider the idea
of bya rdzogs kyi skad cig ma. This
is completely contextual and variable. (7) One also should consider the ideas
of hours, days, nights, weeks, seasons, years, decades, centuries, and various
kinds of eons. (8) To my knowledge, Buddhism denies time as the agent of
creation. Thus the idea that “time heals all wounds” may be acceptable as an
expression but strictly speaking it would be a hollow statement. (8) Is there
such a thing an auspicious time in Buddhism, for example, the birthday of the
Buddha? There is such a thing. But it is not because of its special ontological
status. Consider Klong-chen-pa and others in this regard. Trace Indian sources
for it. There are various ideas of the suitable and unsuitable time for various
kinds of activities and events. (9) Returning to the ontological status of
time, perhaps the Sarvāstivādins or Vaibhāṣikas may posit that time is
substantial (dravyasat: rdzas su yod pa).
But for Sautrāntikas, it may simply be nominal (prajñaptisat: btags par yod pa). One may state that the
Sautrāntikas posit “philosophical presentism” (i.e. the view that neither the
future nor the past exist”). What is sure is that according to the
Sautrāntikas, if something is existent, it must exist only in the present. The
Mādhyamikas deconstruct all notions of time.
(10) One can indeed speak of a Buddhist philosophy of time or Buddhist
timeology. In some Mahāyāna sources, time is considered to be one of the ten or
so fields of expertise (mkhas par bya
ba’i gnas). (11) One must also consider the ideas of speed and duration.
(12) The ideas and practices of time-keeping and time-telling according to
Vinaya sources should be studied. (13) Buddhist timeology would naturally
include elements of astrology found in Buddhist sources. (14) Any other ideas
related to the Buddhist ideas of time should be added here.
