Ibn Mas`ud (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "Envy is permitted only in two cases: A man whom Alah gives wealth, and he disposes of it rightfully, and a man to whom Allah gives knowledge which he applies and teaches it."[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
Commentary:
This Hadith has already been mentioned. Yet, its relevance with this chapter has prompted us to repeat it here. It lays emphasis on two points. First, if Allah gives wealth to a man, his sense of gratitude should be expressed in his spending it in good ways according to the Divine command. Second, if Allah has endowed somebody with knowledge and wisdom, he should be thankful to his Rubb by way of putting it into practice and by imparting it to others. It means one can aspire for knowledge and richness, provided one's motive is to benefit others. Envy is a bad quality which Muslims must shun. In this Hadith, however, envy (or Ghibtah) refers to the feeling of wishing to have what somebody else has or to be like somebody else without these blessings be taken away from the envied person.
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