Surah al-An`am (The Cattle) 6 : 31

Overview (Verses 31 - 32)

What the Unbelievers Actually Reject
 
The scene portraying the final outcome decreed by God is now complemented with a statement of the truth of its causes: “Lost indeed are they who deny that they will have to meet God. When the Last Hour comes suddenly upon them, they cry, Alas for us! We have neglected much in our lifetime!’ And they will be carrying their burdens on their backs. Evil indeed is that with which they are burdened.” (Verse 31)
 
It is indeed an utter loss because it includes the loss of this world, since they have spent their lifetime caring only for what is petty, low and profane, and the loss of the hereafter as we have already seen. Those deluded, ignorant people have not taken any precautions against what comes to them as a sudden shock: “When the Last Hour comes suddenly upon them, they cry, Alas for us! We have neglected much in our lifetime!’“ (Verse 31) They are then portrayed as overladen donkeys: “And they will be carrying their burdens on their backs.” (Verse 31) Indeed, animals are in a better situation because they carry ordinary loads, while these have loads of sin. Animals are unloaded and set free to relax, while these march with their loads to hell, followed by the rebuke: “Evil indeed is that with which they are burdened.” (Verse 31)
 
The passage then portrays a terrible scene which strikes fear in the listener’s heart, followed by one of complete and utter loss. These two scenes are then followed by a statement of the real weight and value of this life and the life hereafter according to God’s measure: “The life of this world is nothing but a sport and a passing delight. Surely the life in the hereafter is by far the better for those who are God-fearing. Will you not, then, use your reason?” (Verse 32) This is the final value of each of the two lives. It could not be otherwise, when we compare an hour in a day’s work on this small planet with eternity in God’s vast dominion. What value other than a pastime could be attached to an hour’s work in this life when it is compared to the seriousness of the great world beyond.
 
This evaluation is absolute in nature, but it does not create any tendency to neglect this life or approach it in an isolationist or negative way. There has certainly been some of this among some Sufi or mystic movements, but this tendency has no roots in the proper Islamic vision.
 
It is simply borrowed from some Christian clerical concepts, Persian and Greek ideologies as they found their way into Islamic society. The great practical examples history gives us of how the Islamic concept of life works in practice have never been negative or isolationist in attitude. You have only to look at the generation of the Prophet’s Companions who were able to subdue the evil tendency within themselves and overcome the prevailing systems of jāhiliyyah, represented by powerful empires. That generation, which understood the true value of this life as it is in God’s measure, was the same generation which set out to work for the hereafter and accomplished in the process feats that left great positive effects on human life. That generation lived a life of immense activity, great power and unstoppable momentum.
 
The proper evaluation of the two lives according to God’s measure gave them the benefit of not being enslaved by the pleasures of this life. They mastered this life and made use of it for God’s cause, to ensure that His authority remains supreme. They gave worldly pleasures no chance to enslave them. Thus, they were able to fulfil their task of building a proper and sound structure for human life. At no time did they aim to enjoy more of the pleasures of this world but instead aimed to win in the hereafter. With this driving aim, they were able to excel over the rest of mankind in this life and to ensure that they will excel them in the hereafter.
 
The nature of the hereafter is something which has not been explained to us in detail. Therefore, believing in it gives us a broader vision and nobler thinking. To work for it ensures better results for the God- fearing which can easily be recognized by those who use their reason: “Surely the life in the hereafter is by far the better for those who are God- fearing. Will you not, then, use your reason?” (Verse 32)
 
Those who deny the hereafter, simply because it is imperceptible, are only ignorant people who claim to have sound knowledge. Human knowledge today has no longer any certainty other than the certainty of what lies beyond our world and what is imperceptible.