Kala-Sanskrit word which means both Black and time or death in English. As a traditional Hindu unit of time , one kala correspond to 900th part of a day ,equivalent to96 seconds. According to Surya Siddhanta kala is equivalent to 48 seconds. This dual identity highlights the connection between time and death.
Yama represent the god of death and justice, overseeing the moral order and fate of the soul in afterlife. As a kala, he represents the inevitable passage of time that bring about changes ,decay and death. In Hindu cosmology ,kala or time is a fundamental force that governs cycle of creation, preservation and destruction. Yama as a kala , plays a crucial role in maintaining this cosmic order by ensuring that every souls receives its due based on actions (karma) during life time. Various Hindu texts such as Mahabharata and Ramayana depicts kala as a powerful and inevitable force.
Ramayana, the other great epic of Hinduism traditionally attributed to SAGE Valmiki believed to be composed between 7th to 3rd century BCE. In sloka 106.10 of Uttara kanda Ramayana Lord Yama ,disguised as messenger of time comes to remind Rama of his divine duties. He informs Rama that time has come to return to his divine abode highlighting the impermanence and duty that pervades Ramayana.
In Shaivism kala is known as fiery avatar of Shiva, Kala-Bhairava or Kalagni-Rudra.
In Vaishnavism kala is associated with Narasimha Avatar (one of the 4 Avatars that appeared in Krita Yug)and pralaya. In Hindu cosmology and philosophy Lord Vishnu is associated with Matter(Prakriti),Time(Kala),the manifest(Vyakta),and the Cosmic person(Purusha) the ,universal form
In Bhagavat Gita the truth is depicted in the form of dialogue between Lord Krishna, an Avatar of Vishnu, and Arjuna, the second Pandava brother. In the battle field of Kurukshetra , in the middle of two opposing fronts of Pandava’s and Kaurava’s, Lord Krishna engages Arjun in a profound and extensive dialogue. The dialogue is encapsulated in Bhagavat Gita. The conversation starts at chapter 2 and continues up to chapter 10 before Krishna reveals His Cosmic form in chapter 11. In chapter 10 ,known as Vibhuti Yoga, Krishna details his divine manifestation and powers to prepare Arjun for grand revelation. Krishna describes his infinite and supreme nature explaining that he is the source of all creations and essence of everything in existence . His glories are limitless and cannot be fully described even if he were to speak of eternity. He highlights that true knowledge of his divine nature can only be attained through his grace. He declares that he is the origin of all beings and sustaining force of universe.
BG11-31
akhyahi me ko bhavan ugra-rupo
namo ‘stu te deva-vara prasida
vijnatum ichchhami bhavantam adyam
na hi prajanami tava pravrittim.
‘Tell me who are you, so fierce of form. O God of Gods ,I bow before you; please bestow your mercy on me. You, who existed before creation ,I wish to know Who You are, for I do not comprehend your nature and workings.’
BG11-32
Shri-bhagavan uvacha
Kalo ‘smi loka-kshaya-krit pravriddho
Lokan samahartum iha pravrittah
Rite ‘pi tvam na bhavishyanti sarve
Ye ‘vasthitah pratyanikeshu yodhah.
The supreme Lord said: “I am mighty time ,the source of destruction that comes forth to annihilate the worlds. Even with out your participation ,the warriors arrayed in the opposing army shall cease to exist”

Here is an beautiful story based on eastern philosophy of time.
In the ageless realm of cosmos, there existed a mysterious wheel named ‘KALACHAKRA.’ It was said to be the very embodiment of time ,eternally spinning ;guiding the rhythm of life and universe. The Kalachakra encompassed the three dimension of kala ,the past ,the present, and the future seamlessly interwoven in a cosmic dance.
In grand tapestry of existence of Kalachakra, there lived a weaver MAHAKALA, THE TIME LORD, (Mahakal is not just a deity but personification of time itself)transcendent, omnipotent, eternal and timeless. He is the fierce manifestation of LORD SHIVA associated with time and destruction. His appearance – Typically portrayed as dark skinned , embodying the primordial darkness .Attire-adorned with garlands of skulls and severed heads symbolising the cycle of birth and death .Expression -Fierce , with a third eye on his forehead denoting his ability to look beyond ordinary in to the eternity. Adorned with the weapons- Trident(trisul), a Drum (damaru), a Sword (khanda) sometimes a ,Noose representing his dominion over time, creation, destruction, and the souls of dead .Mount- shown mount over a dog symbolising loyalty and protection. .His loom was vast, stretching across the cosmos , its threads woven from the essence of time itself. Each thread is hummed with unique vibration and each vibration, a replica of primordial sound ‘OM’ and dyed with unique hue , the spectra beyond the comprehension of mind, the story waiting to be unfold.
Kala with infinite patience continued to weave the threads into intricate pattern . Some threads were vibrant and bold representing moments of joy ,love and triumph .Others were sombre reflecting sorrow, loss, and fleeting nature of life.
He wove the thread of Birth , a delicate bloom of possibility in to the grand design of life, simultaneously wove the thread of Death, a gentle fading in to eternity of existence .He also wove the threads of Karma and Dhrama , the intricate web of cause and effect , weaving through every moment shaping destinies.
Once , a young soul (Jigynasha,) curious and eager approached Kala’s Loom. “Oh, Weaver!,” the soul pleaded “Tell me what is time?”
Kala smiled ,a serene expression on his fierce face-a constellation of stars and galaxies.. “Time dear SOUL” ,he began “is not a linear progression, but a cyclical eternal dance. It the very rhythm of creation and destruction , the ebb and flow of existence. ”He pointed to the Swirling pattern and guided the soul towards a shimmering thread in the tapestry. “Can you see the thread ?; are a spark of creation. They all represent the cycles of universe, the endless dance of creation and dissolution Just as season changes, too so does the universe, fore ever renewing itself.”
The soul gazed at the intricate patterns, intrigued, traced the threads with its finger . It felt vibrant energy pulsing through it , the echoes of laughter and the whispers of dreams. It saw the glimpses of joy and sorrows, of triumph and defeat. Mesmerized and could not understand the whole journey, the complexity and simplicity ; asked the very nature of life ‘What about my Life, weaver sir?’
Kala nodded, “Indeed , dear soul . your life like all lives and in fact all physical existence are -microcosm of universe. You are born and others are created . You grow, you experiences and put into sansara. After entering the process of liberation you return to original source. But this is not end , but a transition , a journey back to the essence, ready to be woven a new in to another dimension of tapestry of existence.
The soul felt a sense of peace coming out of instability and chaos. The veil of ignorance disappeared He understood the life is not linear journey but a cyclical dance of journey to ultimate goal.
Kala smiled ‘Life is a gift, dear soul. Embrace each moment for each moment is a thread in grand design which is eternal, ever existent. Weave your own pattern of Joy, Love and Compassion. And your work is subjected to the Law of cause and effect’.
The Soul, enlightened , bowed to kala and continued his journey, carrying the wisdom of the weaver in his heart. He understood that the time is not to be feared but a precious gift a cyclical Dance that connect everything to the eternal rhythm of universe.
Time is indeed an important aspect of our physical existence on this planet earth and beyond(if can be materialised in future.) Our vast universe exhibits phenomena related to time like other millions of phenomena, which the human tries to understand. Time is an natural phenomena that predates humanity. This aspect is well understood observing some scientific facts concealed in nature.
Nautilus_ This ancient cephalopods has remained relatively unchanged for about 500 million of years. Nautilus use light to regulate their daily activity ;staying in deeper water during day and coming up to shallow water at night.
Sea Turtle _With a lineage dating back to 120 million years use sun’s position to navigate during long migration , often counted to hundreds and thousands of miles for mating and nesting. Digging the seashore sand and laying eggs in a particular season of the year ,usually in summer months, is known fact today .Long Atlantic sea coast of Florida of US ,Australia’s Great barrier Reef of Queensland and India’s Odisha beach of Gahirmatha are famous site for nesting.
Humming bees _ Humming Bees ,particularly the Honey bees have a fascinating way of sensing solar time for various activities. Circadian Rhythm; Humming Bees have an internal biological clock like human , known as circadian rhythms which helps them keep track of time for 24 hours period. The internal clock is influenced by sun’s position and light pattern. Sun Compass orientation; Honey bees use sun as compass to navigate and find foods. They learn sun’s daily pattern of movement known as solar ephemeris function. This function help them to orient themselves and communicate the location of food sources to other Bees through their famous ‘Waggle Dance’. Jet Lag;Interestingly the Bees can experiences the Jet Lag similar to Humans. When moved to a different time zone , they initially continue to operate on their original schedule but gradually adjust by using to sun movement to reset their internal clock.
These creatures have adapted to their environment over millions of year developing sense of solar time to help them survive and thrive as evolution is to be believed (ought to be believed) the modern human have large brain and more intelligence than before . So the concept of time is changing from simple star gazing night and sun movement day to ever ticking Atomic clock.
Definition of Time- For our understanding of events ,time has to be defined.
“a non spatial continnum that is measured in terms of events which succeed one another from past through present to future”
Merriam Webster……
In physics time is the measurement of change in physical quantity or duration of events .It is a fundamental quantity that is used to calculate and understand other areas such as speed, motion velocity ,kinetic energy and time dependant fields.
Religions and Philosophy , spiritualism, and new concept of time by science all do not agree upon a single platform on definition of Time.