--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The past, like the future, is indefinite…" description: "\"The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities.\" — Stephen Hawking" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg" --- # The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only… ![“The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities.” quote by Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg) > “The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities.” [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Time is fluid; past and future are not fixed but exist as a range of potential outcomes. **In simple terms:** Past and future are possibilities. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty, explore options. Themes time possibility uncertainty Mood thought‑provoking philosophical Type scientific reflective When to use this quote - decision making - future planning - historical analysis - creative writing Key Concepts philosophy of time quantum theory Questions to Reflect On - How do you view time? - What possibilities do you see? A Different Perspective Complex concept may be oversimplified. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Indefinite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indefinite/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Possibilities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibilities/) [Possibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibility/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“Spiritual activity, education, civilization, culture, the idea are all vague, indefinite concepts, under the banner of which it is quite convenient to use words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/spiritual-activity-education-civilization-culture-the-idea-are-all/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“I wonder where will I go now? The net is vast and indefinite.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mamoru-oshii/i-wonder-where-will-i-go-now-the-net-is-vast-and-indefinite/) [Mamoru Oshii](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mamoru-oshii/) > [“Everything is indefinite, misty, and transient; only virtue is clear, and it cannot be destroyed by any force. —MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/everything-is-indefinite-misty-and-transient-only-virtue-is-clear-and/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [What made Guantanamo such a travesty - and what still makes it such - is that it is a system of indefinite detention whereby…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/what-made-guantanamo-such-a-travesty-and-what-still-makes-it-such-is/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [Pleasure is a shadow, wealth is vanity, and power a pageant; but knowledge is ecstatic in enjoyment, perennial in frame, unlimited in space and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/pleasure-is-a-shadow-wealth-is-vanity-and-power-a-pageant-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The charge of being ambiguous and indefinite may be brought against every human composition, and necessarily arises from the imperfection of language. Perhaps no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-ellsworth/the-charge-of-being-ambiguous-and-indefinite-may-be-brought-against/) [Oliver Ellsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-ellsworth/) > [I pursue no objectives, no systems, no tendency; I have no program, no style, no direction. I have no time for specialized concerns, working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/i-pursue-no-objectives-no-systems-no-tendency-i-have-no-program-no/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [We are all under sentence of death, but with a sort of indefinite reprieve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/we-are-all-under-sentence-of-death-but-with-a-sort-of-indefinite/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [I have no time for specialized concerns, working themes or variations that lead to mastery... I like the indefinite, the boundless; I like continual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/i-have-no-time-for-specialized-concerns-working-themes-or-variations/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [“Sometimes, the indefinite article 'an' seems unnecessary to me. We can use 'a' instead of 'an'. It will not create a huge problem if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/md-ziaul-haque/sometimes-the-indefinite-article-an-seems-unnecessary-to-me-we-can/) [Md. Ziaul Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/md-ziaul-haque/) > [There is a line between a definite maybe and an indefinite yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/there-is-a-line-between-a-definite-maybe-and-an-indefinite-yes/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [While many people are trying to be in tune with infinite, what they really are is in tune with the indefinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-butterworth/while-many-people-are-trying-to-be-in-tune-with-infinite-what-they/) [Eric Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-butterworth/) > [Indefinite plans get dubious results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/indefinite-plans-get-dubious-results/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [Hell is indefinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-williams/hell-is-indefinite/) [Charles Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-williams/) > [Some persons never attain to the happy art of perspicuous expression, and it is equally true that some persons, thro' a mental defect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-ellsworth/some-persons-never-attain-to-the-happy-art-of-perspicuous-expression/) [Oliver Ellsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-ellsworth/) ## More by Stephen Hawking > [The doctor who diagnosed me with ALS, or motor neuron disease, told me that it would kill me in two or three years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-doctor-who-diagnosed-me-with-als-or-motor-neuron-disease-told-me/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [We are the product of quantum fluctuations in the very early universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-are-the-product-of-quantum-fluctuations-in-the-very-early-universe/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The human race does not have a very good record of intelligent behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-human-race-does-not-have-a-very-good-record-of-intelligent/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“We have finally found something that doesn’t have a cause, because there was no time for a cause to exist in. For me this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-have-finally-found-something-that-doesn-t-have-a-cause-because/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [ \[On President Bush's plan to get to Mars in 10 years\] Stupid. Robots would do a better job and be much cheaper because you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/on-president-bush-s-plan-to-get-to-mars-in-10-years-stupid-robots/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I believe the simplest explanation is, there is no God. No one created the universe and no one directs our fate. This leads me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-believe-the-simplest-explanation-is-there-is-no-god-no-one-created/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-paralympic-games-is-about-transforming-our-perception-of-the-world/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The increase of disorder or entropy is what distinguishes the past from the future, giving a direction to time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-increase-of-disorder-or-entropy-is-what-distinguishes-the-past/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [Most sets of values would give rise to universes that, although they might be very beautiful, would contain no one able to wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/most-sets-of-values-would-give-rise-to-universes-that-although-they/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [There is a fundamental difference between religion, which is based on authority, and science, which is based on observation and reason. Science will win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/there-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-religion-which-is-based-on/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“In the eighteenth century, philosophers considered the whole of human knowledge, including science, to be their field and discussed questions such as: Did the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/in-the-eighteenth-century-philosophers-considered-the-whole-of-human/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [A model is a good model if first it interprets a wide range of observations in terms of a simple and elegant model, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/a-model-is-a-good-model-if-first-it-interprets-a-wide-range-of/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“Empedocles noticed that if you cover the neck before you immerse it, a clepsydra does not fill. He reasoned that something invisible must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/empedocles-noticed-that-if-you-cover-the-neck-before-you-immerse-it-a/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [The human race shouldn't have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet. Let's hope we can avoid dropping the basket until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-human-race-shouldn-t-have-all-its-eggs-in-one-basket-or-on-one/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I hope I have helped to raise the profile of science and to show that physics is not a mystery but can be understood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-hope-i-have-helped-to-raise-the-profile-of-science-and-to-show-that/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) [Explore all 601 Stephen Hawking quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) ## More Future quotes > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Getting on the cover of TIME guarantees the existence of opposition in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/getting-on-the-cover-of-time-guarantees-the-existence-of-opposition/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you can connect people, you can create the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-heiferman/if-you-can-connect-people-you-can-create-the-future/) [Scott Heiferman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-heiferman/) > [A strong, durable Puerto Rican economy will leave the island better prepared to handle future natural disasters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/a-strong-durable-puerto-rican-economy-will-leave-the-island-better/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [“We have no idea, now, of who or what the inhabitants of our future might be. In that sense, we have no future. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/we-have-no-idea-now-of-who-or-what-the-inhabitants-of-our-future/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“You are destiny for greatness. Your future is in the hands of the Lord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/you-are-destiny-for-greatness-your-future-is-in-the-hands-of-the-lord/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I'm just always looking forwards. I spend very little time, looking backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-vaynerchuk/i-m-just-always-looking-forwards-i-spend-very-little-time-looking/) [Gary Vaynerchuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-vaynerchuk/) > [Football is my passion, and who knows where I will play in the future - you cannot foresee that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edinson-cavani/football-is-my-passion-and-who-knows-where-i-will-play-in-the-future/) [Edinson Cavani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edinson-cavani/) > [When I was 17, I broke up with my future wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-allen/when-i-was-17-i-broke-up-with-my-future-wife/) [Kris Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-allen/) > [I think everybody in the future has stopped talking to each other and we all just use emojis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-moffatt/i-think-everybody-in-the-future-has-stopped-talking-to-each-other-and/) [Scarlett Moffatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-moffatt/) > [When you continue to dwell on the past, there's no chance for a future. History repeats itself, thus, it's ok to LOOK back at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-continue-to-dwell-on-the-past-there-s-no-chance-for-a-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am no different from a lot of people. I am concerned for the future of my children and concerned for the future of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-barnes/i-am-no-different-from-a-lot-of-people-i-am-concerned-for-the-future/) [John Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-barnes/) > [Starting a new job can be nerve-racking , but it's also exciting. You're embarking on a new future, positioning yourself to write a fresh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adena-friedman/starting-a-new-job-can-be-nerve-racking-but-it-s-also-exciting-you-re/) [Adena Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adena-friedman/) [Browse all 12,349 Future quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Hawking" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-and-exists-only-as-a-spectrum/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Future" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-and-exists-only-as-a-spectrum/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stephen-hawking-389_future_the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-a_2678817.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities.” — Stephen Hawking", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Stephen Hawking", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The past, like the future, is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-and-exists-only-as-a-spectrum/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-past-like-the-future-is-indefinite-and-exists-only-as-a-spectrum/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```