Across the universe Quote by Alan Lightman
“One cannot walk down an avenue, converse with a friend, enter a building, browse beneath the sandstone arches of an old arcade without meeting an instrument of time. Time is visible in all places. Clock towers, wristwatches, church bells divide years into months, months into days, days into hours, hours into seconds, each increment of time marching after the other in perfect succession. And beyond any particular clock, a vast scaffold of time, stretching across the universe, lays down the law of time equally for all.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Einstein’s Dreams, 1992
Time is everywhere, marked by clocks and natural cycles; it governs all existence uniformly.
In simple terms: Time appears in many forms and controls everything.
Key Takeaway
Recognize time’s influence and use it wisely.
Themes
time
universality
structure
Mood
contemplative
inquisitive
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- daily scheduling
- historical research
- creative writing
Key Concepts
chronology
cosmology
human experience
Questions to Reflect On
- How does awareness of time shape your choices?
- In what ways do you measure personal progress?
A Different Perspective
Time’s abstract nature can be overwhelming.
![“Our life is made up of time. Our days are measured in hours, our pay measured by those hours, our knowledge is measured by years. [...] And yet time eventually runs out and you wonder in your heart of hearts if those seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years and decades were being spent…” quote by Cecelia Ahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/80d/cecelia-ahern-535_life_our-life-is-made-up-of-time-our-days-are_2029075.jpg)
