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The Hindu religion is the only one of the world's great faiths dedicated to the idea that the Cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed an infinite, number of deaths and rebirths. It is the only religion in which the time scales correspond, to those of modern scientific cosmology. Its cycles run from our ordinary day and night to a day and night of Brahma, 8.64 billion years long. Longer than the age of the Earth or the Sun and about half the time since the Big Bang. And there are much longer time scales still.

Carl Sagan#86

ScienceCosmosReligionCosmologyTime

About this quote

What does it mean?
Hindu cosmology uses time scales similar to modern scientific views of the universe's age and cycles.
In plain terms
Hindu beliefs about time match scientific ideas about how old the universe is.
What can you take from it?
Some ancient religious ideas align with modern scientific time scales.

Where it applies

  • religious studies
  • history of science
  • interfaith dialogue

Putting it to work

  • comparing beliefs
  • teaching history
  • writing articles

Questions to consider

  • How do different cultures view time?
  • Can faith and science agree on age?

Another view

Comparing mythic time to scientific time can be complex and context dependent.

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