A Time Travel Tale From Mahabharata

Before the relativity theory of Einstein, thousands of years before he was even born, Vedic scriptures have already explained the mystery of time. The concept is explained through a story which is the first-ever reference of time recorded in the history of the world.

Time Is An Illusion, source: Pinterest

Lord Brahma, source: Pinterest

On such remarks, the king and his daughter stood stunned. Further, Brahma explains to them that time runs differently on different planes. During the time they waited for him, 27 chatur yugas had already passed on Earth (One Chatur Yuga is equal to 4,320,000 human years). This means that the king’s wife, his whole family and friends and even his kingdom have all been washed away by the waves of time. And when he was to return to the planet Earth, a new time and era will be introduced to him.

They both grieved at such words coming through Lord Brahma, so he comforted them by suggesting a current worthy groom for the king’s daughter who was the twin brother of Krishna and is known by the name Balarama. So when the king and his daughter returned to Earth it was Dvapara Yuga while they went to Brahmalokam in Satya Yuga.

Legends also claim that Arjun, one among the Pandavas, had also visited heaven for some work and when he came back all his friends were older and not him, as he traveled in a different space where time ran slower.

Interestingly, the theory of time explained in the epic and by the scientists years later are the same. Albert Einstein explained that time is relative to the observer’s frame of reference. It depends on the observer’s motion and the strength of gravity. Hence, because of the higher force of gravity on Earth time runs slower here as compared to space. Guess, ‘impossible’ is not a scientific term (wise words of Vanna Bonta).

The story is from the epic, Mahabharata, which is said to be written around 400 BC.

Once upon a time, there was a king named Kakudmi who ruled Kusasthali, a lavishing kingdom under the sea. Just like every father wants a perfect groom for his daughter, he too wanted the same for his beautiful daughter, Revati. Based on his observation and understanding there was no one suitable husband for his daughter. So, to find the flawless suitor, he and his daughter visited Brahmalokam to receive some guidance from Lord Brahma.

When they arrived Brahma was listening and enjoying a musical performance. So, they chose to wait for him until the performance was finished. It was past 20 minutes when Lord Brahma came to see them. King Kakudmi greeted him and made his request saying:

“O, Brahm! To whom shall I betroth this daughter? I have come to you to ask on this point. I have searched for many princes and seen also a good many of them and none of them is to my liking and so my mind is not at rest.”

Listening to his plea Brahma started laughing at the King’s foolishness which had nothing to do with his request, but with his lack of knowledge regarding the understanding of time. So he replied to him:

“O, King! The princes that you thought would become the bridegroom of your daughter, all died; their sons and grandsons and their friends even have all passed away.”