Hasad (jealousy and envy) is among the most destructive emotions or feeling which a man may have towards his fellow human being. The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) warned: "Beware of jealousy, for verily it destroys good deeds the way fire destroys wood." [Abu Dawud]
Hasad is a disease of the heart and it is a sign of impurity of the heart. When Allah's Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) was asked who are the best of people? He (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) replied: "the one with a clean heart and truthful tongue." They asked: 'We understand a truthful tongue, but what does a clean heart mean?' he answered: 'It is the heart of one that is pious, pure, and is free of sin, transgressions, hatred and Hasad." [Ibn Majah]
Hasad is such a dangerous characteristic that Allah revealed Surah al-Falaq (113) in the Qur'an to be recited as a protection from the jealous.
Imam Tirmidhi narrated from al-Zubayr Ibn al-Awam that the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said: "There has come to you the disease of the nations before you, jealousy and hatred. This is the 'shaver' (destroyer); I do not say that it shaves hair, but that it shaves (destroys) faith!" [(Hasan)Tirmidhi (2434)]
Shaykh Mufti Taqi Usmani has described three degrees of Hasad or jealousy in his 'Discourses on Islamic Way of Life' [5/69]:
The three degrees of jealousy:
The first degree is to desire in the heart that you too get the type of blessing which another person possesses (preferably, with out depriving that person, but, if that's not possible, then taking it away from that person and giving it to you).
The second degree of jealousy is that the blessing in the possession of the other person may be snatched away from him and given to you.
This degree consists of two aspects.
Firstly, the blessing may be taken away from its owner
Secondly, that it may be given to you.
Secondly, that it may be given to you.
The third degree of jealousy is to desire that the blessing may be taken away from its owner along with the status and honour which he is enjoying by virtue of this blessing whether that blessing is passed on to you or not.
This is the worst and most heinous degree of jealousy.
The Haasid (envier) harms himself in three ways:
- He earns sin because hasad is haraam.
- It is bad etiquette before Allah, because what hasad really means is hating to see Allah blessing His slaves, and objecting to what Allah does.
- He suffers because of too much worry and distress.
May Almighty Allah protect us all from this. Āmīn
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ReplyDeleteWhat Islam permits in contrast to Hasad (destructive jealousy) is Ghibtah (envy that is free from malice), which means neither loving the loss of the blessing nor hating for it to remain with the person, but desiring the same for oneself without the removal of the blessing from others.
The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said: "Envy is allowed in two cases, in case of a man whom Allah has given the Qur'aan and who recites it throughout night and day; and a man on whom Allah has bestowed wealth who gives it away throughout night and day." [Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim] and he (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) also explained what may be said: "I wish I were given what he was given and did with it what he did."
The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said: "The similitude of the people of this Ummah is like four individual. One whom Allah has given wealth and knowledge, so he handles his wealth with the knowledge. One whom Allah has given knowledge but not wealth and he says, 'Lord, should I have wealth like so-and-so I would have handled it like him.' So they both have the same reward. Such a person loves to have wealth like others so he can do good like others without wishing that the others lose their wealth. Another man, Allah has given him wealth but no knowledge and he spends his wealth in disobedience to Allah. And last, a man whom Allah has not given knowledge nor wealth but he says, 'Should I have wealth like so-and-so, I would spend it in the way he does.' So, both will have the same sin against them." [Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah]