This paper attempts to construct a philosophical theory of time based on the Āgama sūtras. There is a wealth of scholarly research on Buddhist philosophy of time. However, most of them are focused on Buddhist schools' doctrines or treatises, while studies in the light of Buddhist sūtras and the teachings of liberation are rare. The Āgama sūtras are an important starting point for understanding the practice of the Śrāvakayāna (vehicle of disciples), and the important concepts such as "emptiness" and "liberation" discussed therein are also common bases for Buddhist studies. It is necessary to begin the study of Buddhist philosophy of time by using the Āgama sūtras as primary source. This paper focuses on two important ideas – "emptiness of time" and "nirvanic liberation". The emptiness of time is used to describe the fundamental condition of time as emptiness. By examining, contemplating, and putting this idea into practice, a Buddhist practitioner is able to achieve "nirvanic liberation" from the cycle of birth and death(saṃsāra). The examination of the emptiness of time is also important to the discussion of metaphysics of time and the temporal experience. The state of nirvanic liberation enables the practitioner attaining the arhantship not to perceive the phenomena of time. The scenario of liberation is an important basis for Buddha's practice, and it also grounds the assertion that time is empty. By analyzing the sūtras and exploring the philosophical issues of time, this paper attempts to justify three points. First, the Buddhist view of time is a karmic view of time. In this section, two sets of concepts, linear and cyclical, are defined resepectively, and both are shown to be irrelevant to the Buddhist view of time. It is therefore appropriate to use the karmic view of time as an illustration. Second, the unreality of time. The concept of temporal reality is examined in the context of the karmic view, along with the discussions of metaphysics and the temporal experience. Through the analysis of time and the unraveling of the process of perceiving temporal phenomena, it is shown that the claim of the reality of time is no longer preferable. Third, time could be transcended. Since time is also part of the phenomena of the world, and the highest state of a Śrāvakayāna practitioner is to be freed from the world, the principle of transcendence of time is within the scope of the Āgama sūtras. The principle of transcendence of time is discussed in the Āgama sūtras. The path towards transcendence of time proceeds by analyzing the metaphysics of the edge of time and by examining the path to liberation. Being able to attain liberation and not to perceive time is an important foundation for the "emptiness of time" at the level of knowledge.
