Ways to Avoid envy and Jealousy

In my last post, I wrote about the evil of jealousy. In this blog I would like to give some of the solutions that help removing that envy and jeolousy from the heart.

Shaykh Salih Al-Munajjid mentioned different ways  to be followed to get rid of envy and jealousy :
* Making Du’aa to Allah and asking Him to remove any problem person is facing toward others. The Prophet (Pbuh) used to say “guide my heart and remove ill will from my breast).” The phrase “guide my heart” means to the straight path, and “remove ill will from my breast” means take away all insincerity, rancor and hatred.

* Pondering the meanings of the Quran and reading it frequently, especially the verses which speak of hasad (destructive jealousy), because reading the Quran brings one a great deal of reward for good deeds. Allah says: “Verily, the good deeds remove the evil deeds” (Hood: 114)

* Reading the biography of the prophet (Pbuh), seeing how he kept away from hasad and how he loved well for others, even for his enemies.

*Reading the biographies and stories of the Sahaabah that teach the love and how they helped each other without being jealous

 *Seeking refuge with Allah from the accursed Shaytaan, and keep self busy with something that will make forget the whispers and bad thoughts.

 *If the Shaytaan manages to instill hasad in the heart, then beware lest you say or do anything which will show that hasad. Every person has his or her share of hasad. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said: “Nobody is free from hasad, but the noble person hides it whilst the base person shows it.” (Amraad al-Quloob). A person will not be brought to account for whatever crosses his mind, but he will be brought to account for what he says and does. The Prophet (Pbuh) said: “Allaah will forgive my ummah for their mistakes, what they forget and what they are forced to do.”

*If you feel that you are jealous of a specific person, then buy him a gift and shake hands with him. The Prophet (Pbuh) said: “Shake hands, for this will dispel rancor, and exchange gifts and love one another, for this will dispel hatred.”

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said in his book Amraad al-Quloob (diseases of the heart): 

“Whoever find in himself any hasad towards another has to try to neutralize it by means of taqwa (piety, consciousness of Allah) and patience. So he should hate that (the feeling of hasad) in himself… But the one who does wrong to his brother by word or deed will be punished for that. The one who fears Allah and is patient, however, is not included among the wrongdoers, and Allaah will benefit him by his taqwa.”

It is great lesson learned from the story of  Yusuf and his brothers about the danger of jealousy and what can lead to. So, for Muslim “male or female” should avoid hasad (jealousy) toward others and follow the solutions given to overcome it.