ഇനി എത്ര ദൂരം

Time: The Fourth Dimension and the Doorway to the Infinite

I often find myself gazing at the world—not just through the eyes of science, but through the deeper lens of wonder. We live in a beautifully structured, three-dimensional universe where length, width, and height form the foundation of everything we touch and see. We build homes, measure distances, draw shapes, and navigate spaces—it’s a world we seemingly understand, one we believe we control and design.

But then there is time—the fourth dimension.

Mysterious. Invisible. Unstoppable.

It moves forward relentlessly, never backward, untouched by our desire to pause or rewind. It is the one dimension we are bound to, yet cannot command.

Time doesn't reveal itself the way space does. We can walk through space, travel across it, explore its vastness—but time keeps moving regardless of our position or preference. We are not travelers of time—we are captives of it. Every ticking second changes us, moves us forward on a path we cannot escape.

Modern physics, especially Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, has expanded our understanding of time. It teaches us that space and time are not distinct—they’re intimately woven into a single fabric called space-time. When massive objects like planets or black holes warp this fabric, they distort the very flow of time. For someone orbiting close to a black hole, seconds would pass far more slowly than for someone on Earth. Time, it seems, bends under the weight of gravity and stretches across the cosmos.

But even with all this scientific insight, time remains untouchable. We can’t trap it in a bottle. We can’t turn it back like pages in a book. Science has merely learned how to measure it, how to predict its flow—but not how to master it.

And that’s where the realm of science ends—and the realm of spirituality begins.

Many ancient traditions—from Indian Vedanta to Greek philosophy—have viewed time not as a linear path but as a cyclical or even illusory experience. In these views, time is Maya—a divine illusion created to give structure to the material world. The past is a fading memory. The future is a silent possibility. And the only true moment is the now—the present, the still point where eternity lives.

Time teaches us the truth of impermanence. Everything we love, everything we fear, everything we strive to achieve—all pass through time. It is the silent teacher that humbles kings and comforts monks. It is present in every heartbeat, in the tides of the ocean, in the birth of a star, and in the final breath of life. In a way, time is the rhythm of the divine, synchronizing all existence.

Whereas space tells us where we are, time reveals who we are becoming.

We cannot hold time, but we can choose how deeply we live within it. We can choose to scroll endlessly through distractions or pause and fully inhabit the sacred now. We can waste years waiting for the “right moment,” or we can realize that this very moment is the right one.

Time, in its mystery, is more than a measure—it is a mirror. It reflects our growth, our choices, our values. Are we merely aging, or are we evolving? Are we moving through time, or is time moving through us? These are questions not just of science, but of the soul.

And here’s something even more intriguing: modern theoretical physics now speculates about higher dimensions—a fifth dimension, perhaps even more. In spiritual traditions, this fifth dimension is often described as pure consciousness—a state beyond time, where past, present, and future merge into one eternal awareness. Could it be that time is not just a physical force, but a message from the infinite—a cosmic whisper urging us to awaken?

Could it be that time is not the boundary, but the bridge?

A divine invitation to look beyond the surface, beyond the ticking clock, and into the timeless truth of who we are?

As I sit with these thoughts, one question echoes in my heart:

What if time is not something we pass through—but something that passes through us, urging us to remember the part of ourselves that has never aged, never begun, and will never end?

Ramsheena. T. K.

Assistant Professor of Mathematics

Alshifa College of Arts and Science, Keezhattur, Perinthalmanna.