Time is Life
Fear your Lord Who knows all that is hidden, and Sufficient is He, concerning the sins of His servants, as Acquainting and Seeing. Allaah (The One & Only God) says,
“O you who believe! Fear Allâh (by doing all that He has ordered and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden) as He should be feared. (Obey Him, be thankful to Him, and remember Him always), and die not except in a state of Islâm (as Muslims with complete submission to Allâh).”
(Holy Quran Aal ‘Imraan 3:102)
In this world, a person is between two dreaded things: his past life which he does not know what Allaah (The One God) is going to do with it, and the remaining part of his life which he does not know what Allaah is going to decide on it.
The wise one then makes proper use of his life for his own benefits, fills his worldly life with righteous deeds in preparation for his hereafter and judiciously uses his free time before a time comes when he will be busy. By Him in Whose Hand is my life, there is nothing one can do after the death has come, and there is nothing after the life of this world but Paradise or Hell.
Man’s conditions in this world change between health and illness, free time and busy time, toil and rest, seriousness and indolence.
The contemporary modernity that has turned man into a tool for the whole year, toiling tirelessly and frantically running after the materials of this world, far from spiritual nourishment like faith in One God, which is the source of rest for the body, heart and the soul.
In view of the reality of Islaam, its universality, its comprehensiveness and its balanced rules and just laws, it has affirmed the soul and the body’s right to have their share of rest and relaxation. The Messenger of Allaah said, “Surely, your body has a right upon you and your family has a right upon you. So give each their right.” (Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim)
The soul might become tired because of a long work. And the hearts also are tired like bodies. ‘Alee said, “Give the hearts an hour of rest every now and then, for if the heart is coerced into work it becomes blind.”
Nevertheless, this recreation should not be allowed to exceed the limits of what is permissible. It is authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah used to make jokes but he would not say anything but the truth. He engaged ‘Aaishah in a race, played with children and encouraged playing with one’s wife. He approved that the Abyssinians should play with their javelins. He would tell his companions, “Throw [arrows], for your father was an arrow-thrower.” These are some of the allowed recreation that do not consume all the time and that do not become one’s perpetual habit.
Making oneself happy and cheerful and refreshing oneself through permitted recreational activities are some of the things that Islaam considers in its law. A permitted recreational activity is the one that does not contradict the fundamentals and laws of Islaam. It should not be a forbidden thing or lead to a forbidden thing or block the way to an obligatory deed.
The time of vacation is a part of life, that time is life and that vacation does not mean abandonment of works & a person is not excused from abiding by God's obligations during vacations & holidays. For, man is required to use all his time in worshipping Allaah (The One God), which is the purpose for which he was created. Allaah (The One God) says,
“And I (Allaah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone).”
(Holy Quran Adh-Dhaariyaat 51:56)
However, this does not mean that one should spend all his time in prayer, fasting and acts of worship without any stop or rest. What is meant is that man should always remain in obedience to his Lord in all his situations. He should not abandon the obligation, for he is always commanded and prohibited and there is no time in his life in which he is free from God's regulations and free to do all that he likes. He should always abide by obligatory, supererogatory and permitted things. At least, he is obliged to shun all forbidden things however remote or relaxed he may be.
Holiday is not a time used on the margin of life. It is rather part of man’s life that is not owned by man but by Allaah (The One & Only God), Who created man so that he might use the time in the service of his Lord. That is why Allaah (The One God) made it forbidden that man should destroy his own life (commit suicide) or waste his time in any form (commit sins) and for any reason. Allaah (The One God) says,
“And do not kill yourselves (nor kill one another). Surely, Allaah is Most Merciful to you. And whoever commits that through aggression and injustice, We shall cast him into the Fire.”
(Holy Quran An-Nisaa 4:29-30)
This is in spite of the fact that the suicide perpetrator killed only himself. This underlines a human’s responsibility before his Creator, regarding his own life.
The Messenger of Allaah said, “The feet of the son of Adam shall not slip on the Day of Resurrection until he is asked of four things: His life as to how he spent it, his youth as how he used it, his knowledge as to what he did with it and his wealth as to where he got and how he spent it.” (At-Tirmidhee)
Travels are also part of life. And everyone shall be held accountable for how he spent the hours of his life. Based on this, we realize that the concept of time, according to Islaamic legislation, does not permit man to waste any part thereof. We also realize the greatness of time in that Allaah (The One God) swears with it and with some parts of it. He says,
“By Al-'Asr (the time). Verily, man is in loss. Except those who believe (in Islaamic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, and recommend one another to the truth (i.e. order one another to perform all kinds of good deeds (which Allaah has ordained), and abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds (which Allaah has forbidden), and recommend one another to patience.”
(Holy Quran Al-‘Asr 103:1-3)
Allaah (The One God) also swears by the night when it covers and the day when it appears and with the two kinds of creation: male and female. He also affirms that people’s efforts are diverse. He swears by the sun and its brightness, and by the day, night and the soul, affirming that whoever purifies his soul has succeeded and that whoever instils it with corruption has failed. All this, indicating that time is the essence of life.
The wise is the one who reflects over his affairs and realizes that movement of days means nearness of his death however long or short he is destined to live. He then takes the safe side, strives in his day and prepare for his morrow. The time is nothing but man’s life and his repeated breath. Time is precious. The part of it that is gone will never be retrieved.
We seriously need to be alert. Many are the heedless who have sold off their most precious possession –their time – for a pittance. The time goes and those who fail to catch up with it, their days and times will go in vain and they will incur great loss, and nothing will remain of the life but only its effects. So choose for yourself what will benefit you. That is why the prosperous ones will be told on the Day of Resurrection,
“Eat and drink at ease for that which you have sent on before you in days past!”
(Holy Quran Al-Haaqqah 69:24)
And the miserable ones will be told,
“That was because you had been exulting in the earth without any right (by worshipping others instead of Allaah and by committing crimes), and that you used to rejoice extremely (in your error). Enter the gates of Hell to abide therein: and (indeed) what an evil abode of the arrogant!”
(Holy Quran Ghaafir 40:75-76)
Man has two days in which he will regret his time that he has wasted and in which he will ask to be given some respite.
One: when he dies, that is when he will say,
“My Lord! If only You would give me respite for a little while (i.e. return to the worldly life), then I should give alms (i.e. Zakât) of my wealth, and be among the righteous.”
(Holy Quran Al-Munaafiqoon 63:10)
And the answer to this request will be:
“And Allaah grants respite to none when his appointed time (death) comes. And Allaah is All-Aware of what you do.”
(Holy Quran Al-Munaafiqoon 63:11)
Two: in the Hereafter when he enters Hell. Allaah (The One & Only God) says,
“Therein they will cry: "Our Lord! Bring us out, we shall do righteous good deeds, not (the evil deeds) that we used to do.”
And the reply will be:
"Did We not give you lives long enough, so that whosoever would receive admonition could receive it? And the warner came to you. So taste you (the evil of your deeds). For the Zâlimûn (polytheists and wrong-doers) there is no helper."
(Holy Quran Faatir 35:37)
Preserving time and making proper spending of one’s life need some resoluteness and strong will. As for indolence, it is a destructive and fatal disease. It reflects negatively on individuals and the society. It causes languor, poverty, moral and material backwardness and it leads to sins. Though work might be strenuous, indolence is undoubtedly destructive. If one sits down too much, he will fail to achieve his goals.
Tell those who are looking for places of fun to kill their time: ‘Do you think that life is just a pastime or do you think that death is just a fun?’
Tell those who spend their days between illusions and dreams: ‘If you are ignorant of how much of the time you waste, visit the graveyards, and seek from their inhabitants some time so that you might know that time is a precious thing that cannot be perpetually owned and a missed thing that can never be retrieved.’
Many are those who say: O Lord, send me back to the world that I may do righteous deeds that I had earlier abandoned.’ But they will be told: ‘No, life does not go back.’
Free time does not remain so for ever. It must be filled with either a good or a bad deed. He who does not occupy himself with good deed will have himself occupied with evil deed. The righteous predecessors disliked that a man should have nothing to do neither in matters of his religion or matters of his worldly life. If free time is combined with wealth and health, the danger then becomes greater if that free time is not used in good thing. The Messenger of Allaah said, “There are two blessings in which many people are deluded: health and free time.” (Al-Bukhaaree)
If someone has no goal to pursue, he will waste his time. The one who wanders about aimlessly bothers none but only himself. A man without a goal is like a captain-less ship tossed about by the waves. Days are records of deeds, so fill them with good deeds. Opportunities move like clouds, and languor is the habit of backward people. He who adopts the life of weakness will stumble. If procrastination and indolence are combined they generate loss. One of the righteous people cried when he was dying and when he was asked of the cause of his crying he said, “I am crying in regret of a day in which I did not fast and a night in which I did not pray.”
The reality is that whenever everyone nears his/her death he regrets every moment in which he had not done a good deed, regardless of whether the person was righteous or neglectful. Can’t we then catch up with what is left of our lives? You will find the earliest generations the best in terms of their keenness to preserve their time more than a stingy person would be keen to preserve his money. The harvest of their keenness was useful knowledge, righteous deeds, struggling in the way of Allaah (The One God), glory and a firm-rooted civilization of towering branches.
But when you look at the situation of the contemporary Muslims, you will be surprised to notice how they waste their lives and times in a manner that is foolish and idiotic thereby lagging behind after they had been the leaders.
If a man’s life is blessed he attains, within a short time, uncountable favours of Allaah (The One God). Many are those who are made to succeed in achieving a lot within a short time so much so that you think that their achievements are miracles, while the reality is that they are only blessed and made successful in investing their time in useful things. The best example is the Messenger of Allaah who brought the people out of darkness to the light and changed the face of human history within a short period of twenty-three years.
Another example is ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab who worked continuously through days and nights. He would say, “If I slept in the night I would waste my life and if I slept during the day I will waste the lives of my subjects. How can I then sleep between these two periods?”
Ibn ‘Aqeel said, “I cannot waste an hour of my life. Even if my tongue stops from reading and discussing matters of knowledge, and my eyes stops from browsing books, I make use of my thoughts at my time of rest and when I am lying down. When I get up I’ll already have in my mind what needs writing down.” That is how he was able to write his book, al-Funoon, about which adh-Dhahabee said, “Nothing greater than it [in its field] has ever been authored.”
Ibn al-Qayyim said about his Shaykh, “I have seen wonders in the strength of Shaykh al-Islaam concerning his ways, his actions and his writings. In a single day, he would author what a copyist would copy for a whole week.”
Adh-Dhahabee said about him, “His writings reached about five hundred volumes.”
All this is in addition to his other activities like da’wah and jihaad.
The Messenger of Allaah said, “He who fears [sudden attack of the enemy] sets out in the night, and he who sets out in the night will arrive at the appropriate station. Behold, Allaah’s commodity [Paradise ] is precious and expensive! Behold, Allaah’s commodity [ Paradise ] is precious and expensive!” (At-Tirmidhee)
Since we have talked about time and the importance of investing it in useful things, here is a piece of advice for those who are gambling with their lives in the ambiguities of darkness that lead to unlawful shedding of the blood of people.
The reprovers have reproved and the sincere advisers have given their sincere advice. The scholars have explained the truth. Will you then cease?
Many of the lives that should have been used in constructing the useful society with the guidance of the scholars and upon the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet have been wasted. Let those who have committed mistakes repent, and those who are accused surrender themselves so that they can enjoy security. It is an act of bravery to admit mistakes and face the consequences.
Whatever Allaah (The One & Only God) has decreed shall come to pass, and to Him belongs the control of all affairs in the beginning and in the end. We seek refuge with Him against misleading trials.
"And if all the trees on the earth were pens and the sea (were ink wherewith to write), with seven seas behind it to add to its (supply), yet the Words of Allah would not be exhausted. Verily, Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise." [Holy Qur'an, Luqman (31):27]
...This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion... (Holy Quraan 5:3)
Have they not observed things that Allaah (The One God) has created: (how) their shadows incline to the right and to the left, making prostration unto Allaah (The One God), and they are lowly? And to Allaah (The One God) prostrate all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth, of the moving (living) creatures and the angels, and they are not proud [i.e. they worship their Lord (Allaah) with humility]”[Holy Quran al-Nahl 16:48-49]
Allaah (The One & Only God), may He be glorified and exalted, has “a veil of light, and if He lifted it, the glory of His countenance would burn all of His creation as far as he could see.” (Reported by Muslim, no. 197)
