Why Does Karma Need Time? A Hindu and Vedic Perspective

Is it possible for the concepts of Karma and Time to coexist harmoniously within a single worldview? From a perspective of the doctrine of cyclic time (kālavāda) as developed in Hinduism, particularly in the epics, there is a noticeable tension between these two notions. According to this system, Time is a power that effectively governs the degree of righteousness (dharma) in the world through cosmic cycles (yugas) determining human destiny and afterlife. Conversely, the karmic law is also viewed as a force that decides the afterlife, rebirth, and liberation of humans based on their actions. However, the two concepts in their preliminary form coexisted in the Vedic worldview. Multiple time-related Vedic notions, such as ṛta, ṛtu, and saṃvatsara, were congruously connected with karman, the ritual action. In the Vedas, it was Time that determined the destiny of a person and governed ritual actions by putting them in a sequence.