Who deserves your envy as a Muslim?
Two Types of People Worthy of a Believer's Envy
Summary
This lecture discusses a hadith about the two types of people worthy of a believer's envy, as narrated from the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Sh. Ali Mashhour begins by distinguishing between hasad (destructive envy) and legitimate admiration, explaining that hasad is one of the four pillars of disbelief and involves wishing to have what others have while simultaneously wishing they lose it. Sh. Ali Mashhour then explains the hadith's teaching that only two types of people deserve a believer's envy: first, a wealthy person who dedicates their wealth to what pleases Allah, and second, a knowledgeable person who possesses hikma (wisdom of the Quran and Sunnah) and implements and teaches this knowledge to others. Both are presented as gifts from Allah, and Sh. Ali Mashhour emphasizes that these are the only individuals worthy of a believer's attention and consciousness.
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Alhamdulillah. Continuing in Wasam.
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For. So here in the virtues of knowledge narrates a very well-known narration. It's been narrated from a number of companions and it's been narrated in a number of the books of hadith in which the prophet sallall.aii tells us about two types of people. He says in this narration, there is no valid reasonable jealousy that a one person should be jealous of another or one person should be envious of another except two types of people, two situations. And what's meant here by jealousy, by envy is not hassed in its true original form. Because what is hasset? There's an narration. It's not an authentic narration. It is often cited that tells us that Hassad that envy devours a person's sins and eats it up. , excuse me. that envy devours and consumes a person's good deeds, a person's merits, hasset, just as thoroughly as fire consumes grass or dried grass. What does this mean? This jealousy is one of the four pillars of kufur. We have pillars for Islam, right? Four pillars of Islam. five pillars of Islam. How many pillars are there for kufur? Four pillars. And one of them is envy. That envy is not just that a person desires what another has. That's not envy in its truest form. Envy in its truest form is that a person desires what another has and desires it so that he can be better than others. That's a very important distinction. And so some scholars say that the true nature of jealousy which is prohibited which is a pillar of kufur etc is that you wish that you had something someone else has and that they didn't have it. So that jealousy it is mixed with a desire to be singled out with good things. That's the exact stark opposite of right because we know that the opposite is true for the believers. None of you will truly believe until he loves and desires for his brother what he loves and desires for himself. So when a person is jealous, envious as Allah says this is not just that they see something nice and they wish they had it too. is that only they had that nice thing and that they are better and higher than everyone else. So, a guy sees a nice car, a woman sees a nice house or a fancy handbag or whatever it is that people desire, they say, you know, I'd really to have one of those myself. This is not jealousy in its dispraised, denounced sense. Jealousy is when they say, "I wish that guy didn't have that car. I wish I had that car and he didn't have it and I was the one who got all the eyeballs when I rolled into the parking lot." Right? That is the jealousy that is mentioned. I wish I don't wish that so and so had a that I had a good husband like so and so has a good husband. No, I wish I had the best husband and I was the envy of all other women's husbands. Right? Or I was the envy of all other people's wives etc. This is the jealousy which is a branch of kufur in its true sense. However, there's another type of envy in which a person merely desires for himself what another has. I I want them to have it, but I wish I had it too. Right? This is not the way of the believer except in two things. meaning nothing that you see another person having is worth your envy even in this most innocent sense except one of two things. So he says he says nothing is worthy of your envy except two things. He says two types of people are the only type of people that are worthy of a believer's envy. What are those two types of people? He said, "A man, a person, a man whom Allah has given immense wealth to he concentrates that wealth on all that is good for the sake of Allah." I mean he takes that wealth and he concentrates it on that which pleases Allah giving it for the sake of Allah for the path of Allah etc and and of course those are many avenues that person not just a person with money but a person with money who knows how to use it in order to garner Allah's attention and garner garner Allah's praise and forgiveness and mercy and to garner Allah's pleasure that person is worthy of to for people to be envious of him and what is the second type he says notice the wording here very specific wording he didn't just Say.
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Had a he says, "And Another worthy of envy is someone whom Allah has given alikmma to. Now he didn't say just knowledge and he didn't just say the Quran and he didn't just say the sunnah and he didn't just say revelation. He said alikmma al hikma in the Quran when it is used in reference to knowledge it is not just knowledge but it is the nuances secrets wisdoms and true meanings of the Quran and sunnah. That is what alikna is. Alhikna.
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And so wisdom here is knowledge of the Quran, knowledge of the Sunnah, knowledge of its application. and knowledge of the nuances and wisdoms of the Quran and Sunnah. So it is the it is essentially what the the results or the conclusions of knowing the Quran and Sunnah. He says, "And a man whom Allah has given a hikma to." And so he implements it and teaches it to others. He implements it and he implements it in judging between people and in judging situations and he teaches it to others. So two types of people. A man of wealth who doesn't just give for the sake of Allah. No, he concentrates it on all that Allah loves. He uses that wealth if not if any if for anything for the pleasure of Allah. And the second is a man whom Allah has given knowledge to and he uses and implements that knowledge and teaches it to others. These are the only two types of people that are worthy of your attention, that are worthy of a believer's envy. Anyone else? Not worth the time of day. They do not deserve a place in the believer's mind, in the believer's heart, and in the believer's consciousness as if they are a non- entity. But these two types, they are the only praiseworthy of those things. And this narration honestly has a lot of benefits in it. if not only the benefits of the the nature of knowledge and the nature of wealth that those two things have a lot of parallels, but both of them have been given this by Allah. Yes, they had to earn it in whatever way they earned it. But ultimately, it is what? It is a gift from Allah subhanahu.
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Nice to see you.