Annotations
In Southeast Asian mentality, work-life balance is actually life-work balance. Before capitalism has forced itself on us, rest was seen as an important part of living.
In his writings, Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm argued that leisure is a pursuit of intentional contemplation and finding joy in nature rather than an idle pursuit.
It should be noted however, that rice planting and harvesting wasn’t just serious work, but instead a community oriented task that involved singing and even a bit of enjoyment.
Tungul2 is an act of forced rest that is enacted in Ifugao society following the conclusion of the harvest rites where no agricultural work is done, otherwise it would be taboo.
In traditional Vietnamese rice farming prior to the 1980s4, farmers would grow one rice crop per year and let the field rest between the periods of May and December.
In Bali, Nyepi is a day where the entire island mandates a period of rest and reflection, to the point where even the airport is closed.
The rice fields are also places where artistic innovation was born rather than just mere fields of arduous labor. Flooded rice paddies in northern Vietnam became a stage for the unique water puppet shows that were an integral part of rural entertainment dating back to the 11th century.
Rather than behaving like a strict binary, like the slow waters of the Mekong River, time flows smoothly, unrushed. In Indonesia and Malaysia, this is called jam karet, or rubber time. The Philippines just call it Filipino time, while in Cambodia, it’s called Cambodian time.
Sanuk doesn’t have a direct translation into English, but it’s generally understood to mean “fun” or “pleasurable”, while sabai-sabai is a common Thai phrase to mean “relax” or “take it easy.”
The mentality of work-hard-play-hard isn’t widely practiced because enjoyment and fun is woven into workplace contexts. Work and enjoyment are not mutually exclusive.
Similar to sabai-sabai, santai7 is generally translated as “relax”, and like it’s Thai counterpart, santai acts as a philosophy. Santai mentality promises that things will get done, but in the meantime, the process is meant to be enjoyed, so it’s a calling to enjoy the moments of slowness, and practice presence.
In the Philippines, this practice is known as siesta (disclaimer: just because the word itself is Spanish doesn’t mean the cultural practice itself has Spanish origins, there is a habit of colonizers assigning a name of a practice that has already existed), where many of the working-class take a midday break.
In Vietnam, giấc ngủ trưa, or the midday nap9, is widely practiced among the general population, especially among those involved in manual labor.
In Indonesia, the phrase “tidur siang”10 roughly translates to “afternoon nap”, and is woven into the fabric of life rather than seen as a sign of laziness.
Ngopi pagi14 is a morning ritual where people take time to recharge and reconnect. The warung kopi was also a place of socialization, where news spread among patrons over a table of locally grown coffee and small snacks such as krupek, pisang goreng, kue, and rempeyek.
It’s safe to say that Southeast Asian work culture at large allows for human-centric working environments.
Societies that highly value Western capitalism encourage burnout, overtime, and high returns, and while it might lead to prosperity, it doesn’t allow for social connections, nor does it allow for leisurely pursuits free of guilt.
A culture that is founded on collectivism and weaves pleasure and relaxation encourages the participant of that culture to take care of their own needs, as well as participate in the social sphere. Where social harmony is a value, leisurely pursuits thrive.