Harkat mein barkat [53:39]

In Verse 39 of Sura Najm, Allah says: And that man shall have nothing but what he strives for. (Holy Quran 53:39)

For today’s verse, I could not find a better title than the Urdu phrase: Harkat mein barkat, meaning there is blessing in movement/striving. One of the principles of life, taught by experience and by Divinity, is that human beings get what they strive towards.

It is important to note that what the Quran is telling us is that our outcome will be in accordance with our striving. The Arabic word sa’ā which is used literally means to walk fast, to run almost, to walk with effort. It is used to denote hard work and effort as this means moving ahead fast on the path. It is interesting to note that it does not say that man will have nothing but in accordance to his actions, rather in accordance to the efforts behind his actions. What this means is that it the intention and effort behind the action that counts.

This is quite different to our experience in the material world. Here we are told that winning is everything and that being second best does not count. If we are working towards a goal or project, an admission to a university, a interview for a job, we either get it or not. It does not matter how much effort we put in if someone else beats us to it.

However, in our relationship with God, winning and the outcome does not matter as much as the effort and the intention with which any action is undertaken. Allah [swt] appreciates all the effort that we put in, regardless of how far we get or how close we come to our goal.

The outcome, of course, is never really in our control in the first place. We can work really hard at something and still not get the outcome we hoped for or worked towards. Or on the other hand, much can be handed to us through no effort on our part, just because we happen to win at the genetic or privilege lottery.

This verse reminds us that with Allah [swt] things are much more equitable and just. That all our striving towards worthy goals still counts. That even if we do not see the results of our striving, the striving still counts in terms of spiritual progress and in terms of our status with Him.

So let us set our intentions straight and put wise effort into things that really matter. Things that will count towards eventual success. Let us make sure that the “ladder of our success is leaning against the right wall” [with a nod to Stephen Covey!