Appendix XVII: Time Magnitudes of the Master Universe
The Papers have less to say about time magnitudes than space magnitudes of the master universe, but enough data is given to make possible some reasonable calculations. We can work out the age of an old Uversa native, then the age of Orvonton, then the time-span of the Second Universe Age. After that, we can apply space magnitudes (See Appendix XVI; Space and Mass Magnitudes of the Master Universe) to time magnitudes and make something better than an uncalculated guess as to the time-spans of the post-supreme ages of the universes of outer space.
§1. CALCULATION OF THE AGE OF A VERY OLD NATIVE OF UVERSA
Suppose we start by calculating the age of an abandonter, a very old native of Uversa. (416,1) We can calculate his age from the following data:
(1309,2) 400 billion years ago, Michael began the organization of the local universe of Nebadon.
(392,1-3) When the Vorondadeks had been created, then the Lanonandeks were created and exactly 12 million were brought into being.
Deduction: The Lanonandeks were created after 400 billion years ago and were all created at the same time. All are of the same age.
(654,3) 200 billion years ago the Andronover nebula entered one of the stages of its physical evolution. The oldest inhabited worlds in the local universe date from this time.
Deduction: Lanonandeks were created before 200 billion years ago. They serve as system sovereigns and planetary princes and they would have to be functional before there could be any inhabited worlds.
(618,3) Subjective time is relative. Take the case of Lucifer: Three days in his long life would be like 300,000 years of human life. But three days to Lucifer would be like two and one-half seconds in terms of life on Uversa.
Deduction: Three days in the life of Lucifer is proportional to two and one-half seconds in the life of a very old native of Uversa, our hypothetical abandonter.
We may now begin our calculation of the age of a very old native of Uversa. First, we need to determine the ratio of two and one-half seconds to three days. There are 3,600 seconds in an hour and 72 hours in three days. Thirty-six hundred seconds multiplied by 72 is 259,200 - this is the number of seconds in three days. If we divide 259,200 by two and one-half, the quotient is 103,680. The ratio of one to 103,680 shows the relationship of the life span of Lucifer to our abandonter.
Now, just how old is Lucifer - or any Lanonandek, for that matter? We know that all Lanonandeks were created at the same time and that this time falls in between two known dates-. after 400 billion years ago, and before 200 billion years ago. We elect to assume that the age of the Nebadon Lanonandeks dates from a time midway between these two dates; we assume our Lanonandeks were all created about 300 billion years ago.
We are now in position to complete our ratio: one is to 103,680 as 300 billion is to the age of the very old native of Uversa. Three hundred billion multiplied by 103,680 gives a product of 31,104 trillions of years. Let us round this number off to an even 30,000 trillions of years. This is the age of our hypothetical abandonter. It is a number equal to thirty times ten-tothe-fifteenth-power. The physical age of Andronover, a component nebula of our local universe, is a little less than one trillion years. (651,5) We can accordingly state that our Uversa abandonter is around 30,000 times as old as Andronover.
§2. AN ESTIMATE OF AGE OF THE SUPERUNIVERSE OF ORVONTON
Just as the local universe of Nebadon is older than even its older natives, such as the Lanonandeks, so must the superuniverse of Orvonton be older than a Uversa abandonter. The question is: How much older? Well, again we can reason by comparison. If we take the age of Andronover as around one trillion years, and if Michael arrived 400 billion years ago, then the first sixty percent of the age of Andronover had to do only with physical development.
If we date the beginning of the history of Nebadon with Michael's arrival, then we can say that the local universe is around 100 billion years older than Lucifer, this means one-third again as old.
We have computed the age of the Uversa abandonter as 30,000 trillions of years. If Orvonton is one-third again as old, then we should add another 10,000 trillion years to the age of the abandonter to arrive at the estimated age of Orvonton. The sum of these two amounts gives us a total time-span of 40,000 trillions of years for the estimated age of our superuniverse.
§3. THE TIME-SPAN OF THE SECOND UNIVERSE AGE
If Orvonton is already on the order of 40,000 trillions of years old, then what is the total time-span of the Second Universe Age - from the creation of the Ancients of Days to the settling of the superuniverses in light and life? The Papers present much data that will illuminate this question.
Percentage of inhabited worlds to the total projected. We know that life is still being planted on the worlds of time and space; the superuniverses are still in process of growth. (165,2)
(166,9) The plan of the superuniverses provides for about seven trillion inhabited worlds.
(182,8) The number of Urantia is 5,342,482,337,666 in the registry of inhabited worlds.
If we divide the registry number of Urantia by seven trillion we can determine what percentage of the total projected inhabited worlds were actually inhabited by human beings - as of a million years ago, when Urantia was registered. This calculation gives a figure of just over 76 percent. In other words, in terms of the evolution of human life, the seven superuniverses are 76 percent inhabited.
Percentage of organizing local universes to the total projected. We know that not all local universes have been started in the seven superuniverses; Nebadon is one of the younger creations. (359,6)
(167,5) The creative plan for the seven superuniverses provides for 700,000 local universes.
(166,1) All of the projected local universes have not yet been organized.
(366,2) The number of our Creator Son is 611,121.
(370,8) The number of our Union of Days is 611,121.
(654,3-4) 200 billion years ago, Nebadon was registered on Uversa as a universe of habitation.
We assume that Creator Sons and Unions of Days are assigned in serial order to the local universe space sites. If this is the case, then the local universe of Nebadon is the 611,121st to be organized in the seven superuniverses. Since there are only 700,000 projected local universes, we can compute the percentage of local universes that have been organized by dividing Michael's number by 700,000. By this calculation we find that just over 87 percent of the projected local creations had been organized at the time Nebadon was recognized as an inhabited creation. (This was 200 billion years ago, but, in view of the size of the numbers we have already encountered, we may cheerfully ignore a small number like 200 billion!)
A variance in the percentage of local universes in commission. We have assumed that Creator Sons are assigned in serial order. This may or may not be the actual case. Consider the following:
(266,1) Circuit Supervisors are not rotated in service. The Circuit Supervisor stationed on Salvington is number 572,842.
This number - 572,842 - would appear to belong to a series culminating in the total number of projected local universes - 700,000. If we divide the smaller number by the larger, we can again compute the percentage of local universes that have been commissioned. By this division we arrive at a figure that is just under 82 percent. This is 5 percent less than the calculation based on Michael's number. Here, again we have no assurance that the circuit supervisors are assigned in serial order.
Percentage variance between inhabited worlds and local universes. By far the greatest difference thus encountered is the difference between the percentage of inhabited worlds (76 percent) and the two percentages related to local universes - 87 and 82 percent. This difference must be due to the presence of many younger universes, such as Nebadon. We know that:
(166,5) A local universe is designed to have about ten million inhabitable planets.
(359,6) Nebadon had 3,840, 101 inhabited worlds at the time of the last registry.
On this basis Nebadon is little more than 38 percent started, so far as concerns the appearance of human life on the worlds of time and space. And, even within a local universe, the local systems may vary greatly in the number of inhabited worlds. Consider the following:
(166,3) A system is designed to embrace about one thousand inhabited or inhabitable worlds. In the younger systems, comparatively few of these worlds will actually be inhabited.
(359,7) The system of Satania has 619 inhabited worlds.
From this data we may deduce that the local system of Satania is nearly 62 percent completed in terms of inhabited worlds. This compares with 38 percent for the entire local universe of Nebadon. Some of the other Nebadon systems are not nearly as far along as is the system of Satania.
Other indices of Orvonton development. There are two more citations that will help us in estimating the percentage of attained growth in Orvonton:
(265,9) On Uversa, there are 84,691 secondary circuit supervisors.
(267,6) Census director number 81,412 is stationed on the capitol of Nebadon.
Both of these numbers appear to belong to a superuniverse series that culminates in 100,000. They respectively suggest that Orvonton is 85 and 81 percent completed so far as concerns the assignment of these particular beings.
A comparison of percentages. We are now in a position to make a comparison of the relevant percentages that have been computed:
76% - of a projected seven trillion inhabited worlds have already developed human life.
81% - of 100,000 projected census directors have already been assigned in Orvonton.
82% - of 700,000 projected tertiary circuit supervisors have been assigned in the superuniverses.
85 % - of 100,000 projected secondary circuit supervisors are already on Uversa.
87 % - of 700,000 assignable Creator Sons (and Unions of Days) have been commissioned in the local universes.
While there is variance in these numbers, it is still very interesting to note that they are all of the same general magnitude - running from a low of 76 percent to a high of 87 percent. Now, we have seen that the percentage relative to inhabited worlds can be misleading; we have 76 percent for the seven superuniverses but only 38 percent for our local universe. We can also raise a question as to the figure of 85 percent relative to the secondary circuit supervisors; the Papers state that this 85 percent are present on Uversa, but do not state that they are all in function. As to the figure of 87 percent pertaining to the number of Creator Sons that have been commissioned, it seems most likely that the Michaels are numbered in the serial order of appearance; but we cannot be equally sure that they are commissioned in that same order. If they are not, then the figure of 82 percent relating to tertiary circuit supervisors could be a better indicator of the number of local universes in commission.
If this line of reasoning is correct, then we have two percentages - 81 and 82 percent - that are in very close agreement as to the likely number of local universes that were organized in the superuniverses when Nebadon was recognized as a local creation.
There is another possible explanation that would account for the gap between the 81 and 82 percent level and the 87 percent of assigned Creator Sons. This could reflect a variance between superuniverses. It is possible that 87 percent of all the local universe space sites have been organized in the seven superuniverses, but the seventh superuniverse is trailing behind with only 81 or 82 percent.
An application of percentages. The commissioning of a local universe is an event that is quite remote from the settling of that local creation in light and life. The vital factor is not the local universes, but the inhabited worlds. When they are all settled in light and life, the local universes will soon follow. And, if any component world is not settled, then the local creation cannot achieve this status; and, if any local universe is not settled, then the superuniverse cannot achieve this status. (633,4), (635,4)
Perhaps the most indicative figure that we have is the 76 percent for the total number of inhabited worlds (out of seven trillion projected). Let us adopt this number, round it off to 75 percent, and say that somewhere near three-fourths of the Second Universe Age is a past event, and that about one fourth remains for the future.
We have computed the age of Orvonton as some 40,000 trillions of years. If this number represents three-fourths of the Second Age, then we should increase it by one-third to arrive at the total time-span of the present universe age. This would mean an increase of about 13,000 trillions of years. We can round this number off at 10,000 trillions of years, add it to the age of Orvonton and arrive at the total of 50,000 trillions of years. This, then, is our estimate of the total time-span of the Second Universe Age; it is 50,000 times as long as the age of the Andronover nebula.
§4. PROPORTIONAL TIME MAGNITUDES OF THE OUTER SPACE AGES
Our reasoning to this point has established a possible time-span of the Second Universe Age as 50,000 trillions of years. How is this number related to the time-spans of the post-supreme ages of the outer space levels? It is entirely possible that the Second Age is of comparatively short duration when compared with the possible length of the outer space ages. This line of reasoning is based on the calculations that were made in estimating the space magnitudes of the master universe. (See Appendix XVI, §6; A Summary of Space Magnitudes.) In this calculation, we arrived at a ratio of size that worked out as one-to-one hundred. In other words, as we moved out from the grand universe, each space level was about one hundred times the size of the preceding one (on linear bases of comparison). Starting with the grand universe as having a value of "one" we can tabulate the relative magnitudes of the space levels as follows:
- The Grand Universe 1
- The Primary Space Level 100
- The Secondary Space Level 10,000
- The Tertiary Space Level 1,000,000
- The Quartan Space Level 100,000,000
If the age of the superuniverses is 50,000 trillions of years, and that of the Quartan Space Level is 100 million times as long, then we have a number that is too big to handle conveniently. It would be the number 50 followed by 22 zeros. This is something of what it would be like to deal with astronomical distances in miles instead of light-years. What we need here is the time-equivalent of the space measurement of a light-year. Why not devise one? The longest time-span dealt with in the Papers is the age of Andronover - just a little less than a trillion years.
Suppose we adopt this as our basic time unit, and give it the name "Andronover Time Unit." We could abbreviate this as "ATU." Now we can deal with these long time spans more conveniently:
- The second age 50 thousand ATU's
- The third age 5 million ATU's
- The fourth age 500 million ATU's
- The fifth age 50 billion ATU's
- The sixth age 5 trillion ATU's
It appears likely that the full development of the outer space levels is going to require a very long time, but they are quite large.
