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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Principles of Upbringing Children Chapter 60: Jealousy Jealousy or envy is a negative trait in human beings. A jealous person always envies others who are happy and comfortable. When he finds something good and attractive with others, he wishes that they lost the thing. Generally such a jealous person is neither capable of snatching away the good thing from the other person nor harm him in any way. He continues to sulk and brood.

He will be burning in the flames of jealousy day and night. An envious person is devoid of the pleasures and comforts of the world and the feelings of deprivation and the thought of the amenities enjoyed by others makes his own life miserable.

The Prophet of Islam has said: “A jealous person is the unhappiest of his compatriots."[^1] ‘Ali, The Commander of the Faithful, says: "Envy makes the life of a jealous person bleak." [^2] “An envious person never gets contentment and happiness."[^3] Jealousy has deleterious effects on the nerves and heart of a person and makes him sick and weak.

‘Ali, The Commander of the Faithful, says: “An envious person is always feeble and debilitated."[^4] Jealousy weakens the roots of the person’s faith and turns him towards sin and disbelief. Lots of murders, fights and other crimes are the result of envy and jealousy. Sometimes the envious person does backbiting of the person he is jealous of and spreads rumors and inappropriate designations about him. He sometimes causes damage to the properties of the other person.

Imam Muhammad al Baqir said: “Envy destroys faith in the way fire destroys the fuel." [^5] Jealousy is a part of the human nature. There will hardly be any persons who don’t have this instinct. The Prophet of Islam says: “There are three things no person is devoid of: base thoughts, bad actions, and jealousy"[^6] Therefore, this undesirable instinct must be curbed with all the force at the disposal of a person. It should not be allowed to flourish and grow.

If the instinct of envy is allowed to persist, since it is a part of the person’s nature, it would grow at leaps and bounds. It will reach such proportions that fighting it out will not be possible. The best time when good manners are cultivated and the bad ones are eliminated is the childhood of a person. The element of jealousy too will be present in a child.