Is there a such thing as the present?
We need the present to define the past and the future. In fact, mathematically, we define the now as a single point in time. This point is an abstraction and, believe it or not, it has no duration. Ergo, mathematically, the present is a point in time with no duration: the present doesn’t exist!
How long does the present exist?
Using physicist Max Planck’s formulations, some suggest that the present lasts 10 to the -43 seconds, which is how long it takes a photon to do something that I don’t really understand. Others suggest that, based on electrochemical brain activity, the present moment lasts about 200 milliseconds.
Why do we call now the present?
“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift of God, which is why we call it the present.” “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift…
Does the past still exist?
The past does not exist anymore. It is a reminder of the duality of creation, something can not be considered created if its destruction is not imminent, gravity always wins. The same with time, there is a duality future is existent past is not, and there is no stopping this.
Is the present moment all that exists?
Yes, the present moment exists. In fact, it’s all that exists, like ThailandTom says. I think what you’re wanting to think about is our concept of duration. We think of time as something that comes in lengths and can be measured in chunks. One second, one minute, one hour, one lifetime.
Does the future exist?
According to the growing block universe theory of time (or the growing block view), the past and present exist and the future does not exist. The present is an objective property, to be compared with a moving spotlight.
Is the past real?
The past is more real than the present. For beings who observe anyway. Every observable moment you live, your every thought is always in the past. We can only exist in the present and predict the possibilities of the future.