What Is Jealousy?

Many people don’t know what the forbidden type of jealousy/envy [حسد], hassad – actually entails…

Imam Nawawi explained:
‎قال العلماء الحسد قسمان: حقيقي ومجازي، فالحقيقي تمني زوال النعمة عن صاحبها، وهذا حرام بإجماع الأمة مع النصوص الصحيحة، وأما المجازي فهو الغبطة وهو أن يتمنى مثل النعمة التي على غيره من غير زوالها عن صاحبها، فإن كانت من أمور الدنيا كانت مباحة، وإن كانت طاعة فهي مستحبة
“The scholars said:
Hassad [Jealousy/Envy] is of two types:
– Firstly, a person wishes that a blessings gets removed from the other person. This type of envy is forbidden by consensus due to authentic evidences for its prohibition.
– Secondly, a person longs for the same blessings the other person has, without wishing that it gets removed from that person. This type of envy is permissible in worldly affairs and it’s desirable in matters of religion.”
[‘Sharh Sahih Muslim’, 6/97].

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If you see someone with a nice car, nice house, beautiful kids – and you wish you had the same – this is NOT forbidden. It becomes the forbidden type of [حسد], hassad – when you wish the other person didn’t have those blessings or hope they lose it…

This is why one of the Salaf said: I feel bad when I see someone excel me in the affairs of this life and the affairs of the next life…

This is human nature, it’s part of the fitrah – humans are competitive, that’s how we thrive, survive and excel.

But they did NOT wish that the others didn’t attain things, they wanted everyone to succeed – but they just wish they also succeeded like them.

This is not forbidden at all…