Recently, Japanese PM Takaichi posted that she often gets “zero to three hours of sleep” and spent a recent holiday catching up on ironing and policy work. This sparked a national debate about work-life balance in Japan. Critics said her boasting about long hours boosts an unhealthy, overwork culture. She should know better and prioritise rest and learn to delegate tasks. Could this be me? The episode drew attention to high-profile ‘Overwork deaths.’ Deaths and suicides due to extreme work hours and workplace stress that cause fatalities like heart attacks and strokes.
When Work Leaves No Time for Worship
Like most of you, I also work hard. However, there is increasing evidence that the cost-of-living crisis is forcing many people to do two or even three jobs. They spend 45-60 hours per week working. For a practising Muslim who wants to worship his Lord, thank him for the gifts of life, family and health, this means worship takes second place and hardly leaves time for anything else.
Whilst most non-Muslims talk about ‘hard labourers’ and Work-Life balance, I suggest Work-Worship balance. Whilst teaching Surah Al-Ghashiya at a memorial service of a local namazi, I came across the Quran’s comments on these ‘hard labourers.’ “They laboured until they were exhausted”. Could The Majestic Quran be hinting at these poor labourers? So, to help us understand the severity of this issue, I present you with awe-inspiring words that help us reflect on a materialistic mindset that is driving some people to work themselves to death.
Surah Al-Ghashiyah: The Awe-Inspiring Event
The Day of Judgement is introduced: “Has the news of the Overwhelming Event reached you?” Followed by a harrowing account of what will happen to the disbelievers who were hard labourers, ignorant of Allah and the Hereafter. This is contrasted with the fate of believers who worked to please the Lord. They enjoy the delights of Paradise, its elegant surroundings, its comforts and luxuries. Let’s read the Surah.
I begin with Allah’s name, the Kind, the Caring.
The miserable fate of disbelieving hard workers
1 Has news of the Awe-inspiring Event reached you? 2 Some faces that Day will be humbled. 3 They laboured until they were exhausted. 4 They will walk into an intensely-hot Fire, 5 and drink water from a boiling spring. 6 They will have no food except bitter thorns, 7 that won’t nourish or satisfy their hunger.
The delights of Paradise
8 Some faces that Day will be fresh and bright, 9 well-pleased with their efforts, 10 living in elegant Gardens, 11 where they won’t hear idle chat, 12 watered by a flowing spring, 13 furnished with luxurious comfortable sofas, 14 wine glasses gracefully arranged, 15 silken cushions set in rows, 16 and precious, soft carpets laid all around.
Invitation to observe the world around us
17 Don’t they see the camels, how they were created? 18 And the sky, how was it raised? 19 And the mountains, how were they fixed? 20 And on Earth, how was it spread out? 21 So remind, Prophet, your job is to remind. 22 You aren’t their guardian. 23 The one who turned away and disbelieved, 24 God will punish him harshly. 25 They will finally return to Us, 26 and We will call them to account.
Commentary
‘They laboured until they were exhausted.’ Some commentators say this refers to people who worked hard to become rich and spent their entire life in pursuit of material success. The explanation given is that even in Hell they will continually be engaged in painful, exhausting labour, as they drag chains and shackles up and down the dungeon. An outcome of their arrogance in the worldly life, they considered themselves too proud to worship Allah and instead immersed themselves in worldly labour and seeking worldly pleasure (Al Sabuni).
Here is the terrifying warning of the Surah: a person may spend an entire lifetime working, achieving, earning and accumulating, only to discover that they neglected the very purpose for which they were created. Their hands were busy, their diary was full, their body was exhausted. Yet their soul was starving. The next section celebrates the believer who kept the work-worship balance. They will be residents of a luxurious place, comfortable and rich with the most exquisite furnishings. The final section is drawing attention to the cause of the above stark outcomes: life of faith, gratitude and worship is based on accepting the universe as the handiwork of the ingenious Creator.
Conclusion
The warning of Surah Al-Ghashiyah should shake us. We can spend our lives working, earning, and building until we are exhausted. But arrive empty-handed before Allah. What a terrifying tragedy. One day our work will stop, the business will pass to someone else, our possessions will be left behind. We will stand before our Lord with only our faith and deeds.
So, ask, ‘Our Lord, give us the best of the world and the best of the hereafter. Protect us from the hellfire.’ So, let’s get our work-worship balance right before it’s too late. The Surah ends with words that should remain ringing in our ears: “They will finally return to Us, and We will call them to account.” Work hard but never become so busy making a living that you forget the purpose of life. Worship!
