Time Travel : A Leap of Faith

The earliest account of time travel according to Hindu mythology can be linked to a king named Raivata also known as Kakudmin who went to the Brahmaloka to seek a suitable match for his daughter, Revati. Blessed with supernatural powers he was able to take his daughter along and travel up to the very plane of existence where Brahma the creator resides. However, this to and fro journey to the Brahmaloka lasted for 108 yugas and apparently thousands of years had passed by the time he returned back to earth. Despite the fact that there is no mention of fancy spacecrafts or the journey itself, it is however interesting to note how well the concept of “Time Dilation” has been described in the whole event.


Around a hundred years ago this event would have been considered by many scientists as a “Leap of Faith”, something intangible or improvable. But one fine day Albert Einstein with his “Special Theory of Relativity” on the structure of space-time decided to change a few perceptions. Time Dilation was one was the direct consequences of this theory. It can be illustrated by supposing that if two observers are in motion relative to each other and each carry a clock of identical construction and function then, the point of view of each observer will generally be that the other observer's clock is in error (has changed its rate). In simple words, it implies that a moving clock is measured to tick more slowly than an observer's "stationary" clock. Hence it is not impossible to rule out that if a person travelling at unimaginably high velocity away from earth decides to continue one way for two years before returning back, then during his entire journey of four years, a total of four thousand years would have actually passed on earth. Does this mean that king Raivata’s account could actually have been true after all?

Taking a look at the physical aspects of this journey throws a number of unanswered questions at us which are impossible to deal with. First of all, according to the formula for determining time dilation due to relative velocity, only if an object approaches 30,000 km/s i.e. 1/10th the speed of light does time dilation become noticeable. The effects due to relative velocity any lesser can safely be ignored. The closest we have come to this is about 1/4470th the speed of light when Helios-2 set the record for the fastest man-made object in 1976. Secondly, the amount of thrust required to achieve this velocity must be at least 750,000 times more than the thrust needed to propel an average space-shuttle. Thirdly even if achieve the above, under the special theory of relativity, a slower-than-light particle with nonzero rest mass needs infinite energy to accelerate to the speed of light. And achieving an infinite amount of energy is certainly not a sensible notion. Hence, considering the mathematical aspects of such a journey the possibility sounds almost unfeasible.

While physicists have produced some great ideas for time machines over the years, most theories of time travel don't rely on machines at all. Instead, time travel will likely be done by way of natural phenomena that will transport us instantly from one point in time to another. These space phenomena, which we are not even sure exist, include:

• Rotating black holes
• Wormholes
• Cosmic strings

Black holes have gravitational fields so strong that even light cannot escape. Kerr holes are considered to be a type of rotating black holes that could be used as portals for time travel or travel to parallel universes. In 1963, New Zealand mathematician Roy Kerr proposed the first realistic theory in which dying stars would collapse into a rotating ring of neutrons that would produce sufficient centrifugal force to prevent the formation of a singularity. Without singularity, Kerr believed it would be safe to enter the black hole without being crushed by the infinite gravitational force at its center. If Kerr holes do exist, it might be possible to pass through them and exit out of a "white" hole. A white hole would have the reverse action of a black hole. So, instead of pulling everything into its gravitational force, it would use some sort of exotic matter with negative energy to push everything out and away from it. These white holes would be our way to enter other times or other worlds.

Opposing the idea of rotating black holes, physicist Kip Thorne believes that there could be another type of tunnel-like structure existing in the universe that could be used for a time travel portal. “Wormholes”, also called Einstein-Rosen Bridges, could allow us to travel many light-years from Earth in only a fraction of the amount of time that it would take us with conventional space travel methods. A Wormhole is a hypothetical warped space-time which is also permitted by the Einstein field equations of general relativity, which states that any gravitational mass curves space-time. Thus it’s possible that masses that place pressure on different parts of the universe could eventually come together to form a tunnel. We could then travel from Earth to another galaxy and back relatively quic-kly (within a lifetime).

Yet another theory uses the idea of “Cosmic Strings”, proposed by Princeton physicist J. Richard Gott in 1991. These string-like objects that some scientists believe were formed in the early universe. These strings may line the entire length of the universe and are under immense pressure -- millions upon millions of tons. These cosmic strings, which are thinner than an atom, would generate an enormous amount of gravitational pull on any objects that pass near them. Objects attached to a cosmic string could travel at incredible speeds, and because their gravitational force distorts space-time, they could be used for time travel. By pulling two cosmic strings close together, or one string close to a black hole, it might be possible to warp space-time enough to create closed time-like curves and travel through time.

All these time travel theories suggest one thing for sure which is, that if King Raivata did actually travel to Brahmaloka and back then he must have passed through one such space-time tunnels. However, since he never returned back to his own period, the return journey must have been through a different tunnel which led to the creation of a parallel universe and he reached back ages after he actually intended to. But did he really know the art of exploiting space-time warps to reach the very center of the universe? Physically it has not been possible with our present scientific knowledge and most probably will never be for a long time to come but what seems possible is a virtual travel. Could it have been possible that Raivata’s journey to Brahmaloka was a spiritual one while he himself was physically present on earth? Also, could the time dilation have been his account of a peep into the future. Let’s understand the concept of meditation and try framing this again.

Meditation is a spiritual journey which allows one to reach the astral plane and still remain connected with the physical self sitting at ease on earth. In my earlier article on “Sound of the universe” I have tried to outline how ancient sages had the ability to harness their entire energy to sync up with the cosmic divine presence all around them. They had the ability to decode these cosmic radiations and subsequently decipher audio and visual information from it. Coming back to space-time tunnels, if scientists cannot yet figure out a safe passage through them to reach out to other galaxies, is it possible that light from these sources itself reaches out to us through these defined passages. According to the theory of relativity, light bends around gravitational masses in the space-time mesh. So the path of selection appears to be quite natural instead of a guided one. One doesn’t need to choose the path towards destination; rather it’s kind of going with the flow. Such continuous bends and tunnels may eventually lead the way to a receptor of choice as in our case King Raivata. So could he really demodulate the information riding on cosmic carriers from the center of the universe? Also I wonder the coincidence of passing of 108 yugas and chanting of the Om mantra 108 times as prescribed by our ancient texts. We might never be able to establish the true nature of space-time continuum or unleash the secrets of the universe but we can definitely experience the ecstasy of being closer to it by meditation.