“Kala” is Sanskrit for "time". In the world of puppetry, Kala also refers to Batara Kala, the god of time in the form of a giant with a scary face. He is the son of Batara Guru (Lord Shiva) and Batari Uma who were created in the wrong situation, time and opportunity to create Kala who is so scary and shakes the order. The puppet stories also depict Kala as the god of time and destruction. He is responsible for the changing of time, including day and night, life and death. He upholds cosmic order and those who violate the natural order are punished.
Batara Kala is a personification of man's deep reflection on time. Oceans, mountains and even the sky have been conquered by man, but man has never been able to conquer time. It runs in a precise order and in accordance with cosmic movements. So “cruel ” is time that everything is helpless before it. The mighty king will eventually grow old and decrepit. A victorious and powerful nation may become powerless. The beauty of a girl who subdues kings is also powerless before time. A fit and healthy person may at another time succumb to a debilitating disease. In the end all things will be "consumed" by time.
In parallel, the Book of Ecclesiastes echoes similar though not exactly the same nuances. The author of Ecclesiastes positions himself as the teacher of wisdom who voices his reflections to the people. Chapter 1 Verse 2 paints the essence of his teaching that all is vanity. Those who toil in labor cannot enjoy the fruits of their labor when they die and leave the world. Everything is tiring because man is always driven by eyes and ears that are never satisfied with seeing and hearing.
Is there an end to all this?
The preacher's meditation continues in chapter 3. This time he doesn't dwell on the futility of life but rather the endlessly rolling cycle of life. His appeal opens with a wise saying, "For everything there is a season, for everything under heaven there is a time." For the preacher, time is always closely related to all activities that occur in the world. There is a time to be born and die, always a time to plant and uproot, a time to cry and laugh, a time to seek and lose, a time to love and a time to hate, and so on. Humans fall back into futility if they always question why things happen at a certain time. According to the preacher, the answer to this question is actually clear: "For everything there is a time and a season." So instead of asking questions about time and seasons, we are invited to live the time and seasons that come.
But we should not be misled into thinking that the preacher is leading us to nihilism. Because the awareness of time and time that continues to roll is always placed on the belief in the Master of Time itself, namely God. In verse 11 it is affirmed that "He makes everything beautiful in its time." That is the belief that we need to hold on to. In that belief there is an understanding of what is eternal, namely God. Besides "time", it seems that God is always present in the history of the universe.
Awareness of time and the God who is in all the fabric of time is important for us as we begin our journey in this new year. If time is a mystery and full of uncertainties, then we can depend on God who will always bring something beautiful in its time. Perhaps the path of life in the future will not only be filled with laughter, sometimes tears rise, fear and anxiety prevail, but rest assured that nothing escapes His plan. Our job is to live our days to the fullest, cherishing this time that never repeats itself through the meaningfulness of life that we show through our thoughts, words, and actions.
Reflective questions:
How do you value the time that God has given you?
