Understanding The Prophet's Life
From Issue: 470 [Read full issue]
Organising Time
It behoves a believer to organise his time in respect of his obligatory and other duties, both religious and mundane, so that one does not dominate the other, the unimportant does not overshadow the important, the important does not prevail over the more important, and the timeless does not take precedence over the time-specific. Thus, an urgent duty should be expeditiously performed, and a less urgent one deferred to a later time; and a duty that has a prescribed time, should be consummated within its specified time.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, has narrated this quotation from the Books of Ibrahim:
"It behoves an intelligent man - in so far as he behaves rationally - to have four time periods: a period in which he converses with his Lord; a period in which he cross-examines himself; a period in which he reflects over the artistry of Allah, the Almighty, the Exalted; a period which he devotes to his needs for food and drink."
[Reported by Ibn Habban and narrated by Abu Dharr, may Allah be pleased with him]
Source:
"Time in the Life of a Muslim" - Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, p. 28