This Is Why ENVY Just Doesn’t Make Sense

Last updated on: December 26, 2019 at 9:28 am by Iman

This Is Why ENVY Just Doesn’t Make Sense 2019-12-26T09:28:54-06:00 Iman

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“You always want what you can’t have.” We’ve all heard that expression, and have experienced it at some point in our lives as well. This feeling of wanting what we don’t or can’t have is a big reason why we envy those who do have that thing.

A poor person may envy a rich person. Someone with average looks might envy someone who is considered to be very beautiful. If someone is single, they might envy people who are married. Those who don’t have children might envy those who do have kids. These are only a few examples.

But the poor person doesn’t know that the rich person they envy is only befriended for their money, and constantly feels used by disloyal people. The average-looking person doesn’t realize that the beautiful person they envy often pushes people away because of how conceited they are. The single person doesn’t realize that the married person they envy is abused every day by their spouse, even though things appear to be perfect on social media. The childless person doesn’t know about how the children of the person they envy are their biggest source of pain.

At the same time, those who envy people are envied by others, too. We all have something that another person only wishes they could have, but we may not realize it. This is not something to become arrogant about, but just a point of reflection. Sometimes we start to feel like everyone else’s life is better than our own in some way, but other people might be thinking the same about us. Rather than coveting what others have, we should try to count our blessings and pray that Allah (swt) will protect us from the trials that many others are facing without our knowledge.

Allah tells us: “If you are grateful, I will increase you” (Qur’an 14:7). Maybe He will reward us for our gratitude through His favor, by granting us that which we don’t have. Or maybe He will increase us in contentment, so we’re happy and at peace with what we already have, rather than constantly wishing for more. Either way, we can’t lose if we think about our blessings and what we do have, but we risk losing our peace of mind if we’re constantly focused on what we don’t have.

May Allah (swt) make us grateful to Him in all conditions, free us of envy, and grant us the best in this life and the next. Ameen.

Personal / Life

Reflections

Previous Post

March 20, 2017

4 Reasons Why Forgiveness Is Good for the Soul

Next Post

April 5, 2017 Islam Is Not About Being Perfect

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Afterlife Culture Dealing with Others English Faith & Spirituality Inspiration Letters to the Ummah Personal / Life Poetry Ramadan Reality Check Reflections Relationships Religion Society & Culture Uncategorized Urdu Women

Select a Month September 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 January 2020 December 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 March 2016 November 2015 October 2015 June 2015 May 2015 February 2015 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does the Greek word 'Doulos' mean in the New Testament?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Priest King Servant/Slave Teacher