Time Dilation: An Addendum from Theravada Buddhist Viewpoints

Abstract

It began in 1905 when Albert Einstein published his Special Theory of Relativity (Einstein, 1905) that introduced the concept of space-time, which means that space and time are part of the same entity and it is not possible to move in space without moving in time. Furthermore, according to this concept, space-time is not constant because it can be changed, bent or twisted. It is evidenced that the faster we move, the more time slows down that is time becomes “dilated” and is noticeable only at very high speeds such as near the speed of light. For example, a stationary clock will measure the passing of time at a different rate to that of a moving clock. The clocks are each behaving normally in their respective frames, but different to each other in their relative frames, which is the concept of “Time relativity” or “Time dilation”. Similarly, in Theravada Buddhist philosophy, there are explanations that time does not exist independent of the mind (Bunnag, 2016, pp. 90-91). In this study, the researcher claims that Buddhist philosophy suggests that time relates, not only to the minds that observed it but also, to the space or the realm that the observed minds exist.