#SohbahSeries: About Envy

Bismi Llāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm

Maulana Sheikh Nazimق’s Suhbah

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By the name of Allah, All-Mighty, All-Merciful, Most Beneficent and Most Munificent.

Give happiness to people and you will be happy. If anyone wants to be happy by himself only, he cannot; he will never be happy. But if he is going to share happiness with all, he will be happy.

This is the cause of our trouble and suffering: everyone wants everything only for himself, not for others.

If power, he wants it only for himself; if wealth, he wants it only for himself; if knowledge, he wants it only for himself; if beauty, he wants it only for himself; if intelligence, he wants it only for himself, not for any other person.

Therefore, there are so many troubles for envious people. That is the worst thing for the sons of Adam (AS), to be envious.

One day, Prophet Moses (AS) was going to Mount Sinai to speak with Allah Almighty. A person, a very poor person, said to him, “O Moses, when you go to your Lord and speak with Him, please ask for something for me. I have nothing. Let Him give me something.”

Moses (AS) said, “Yes, I will.” Then he went, and he said, “O my Lord, my neighbor, a very poor person, is asking You to give him something. Anything You may give will be enough for him.”

And Allah Almighty said to Moses, “I accept to give him everything, but tell him that when he is asking anything for himself, he should ask for his next-door neighbor, also. If asking for something, he must say to Me, ‘O my Lord, I am asking for an ox for myself and an ox for my next-door neighbor.’ Then I will give, too much. This is what I am asking from that person, My servant.”

Moses (AS) went back, and the man was waiting. “What news, O Moses? What does your Lord say about me?”

And Moses (AS) said, “Your Lord says, ‘When you are asking something from your Lord, you must ask for your next-door neighbor as you ask for yourself.’”

Then that person was so angry. “If He is not going to give to me without giving to my next-door neighbor, I will not ask for myself also! I am not in need.”

Look! This gives so much awakening to people. Envious people, the worst people they are. He did not agree that there should be anything good for his next-door neighbor; if he had the same thing, he would not accept it.

Therefore our ego, our nafs, is asking everything only for itself, not for anyone else, asking happiness also for itself, not for anyone else, and if anyone does not ask for others, Allah Almighty does not give. You must ask. Therefore we are asking for ourselves and for everyone else, for the whole Ummah.

InsyaAllah, you will be a father sometime. You may have many children. Very good. As a father, would you agree that everything should be for you when you sit down to eat and you give nothing to your children?

No, you would make a division. First you would give to your sons and daughters. Then, even if nothing remained for you, you would be pleased also. You are going to envy your sons? Is anyone going to be envious of his or her children? Never!

Therefore, all the prophets looked upon their nations as their sons, their children. The Children of Israel, they are saying, yes? Israel was Prophet Jacob (AS). Jacob (AS) looked upon all of them as his children, not envying them.

But his son, Prophet Joseph (AS)’s brothers became envious; among the twelve sons of Jacob (AS), envy made them enemies. Look! Even between brothers and sisters, envy destroys them. What came upon them and upon their father and upon their brother, so many sufferings, and what was the reason? The reason was envy.

If a person is clean from envy, he is at the top level of humanity. His claim to true humanity will never be valid until he leaves envy finally, completely; if no envy, he has perfect human nature.

If anyone feels envy within himself, he must try to leave that bad characteristic; he must try, he must train himself.

How can we be successful? As we said now, if a person is a father, he has no envy for his children, but brothers become envious of each other. Therefore, do not be like brothers to each other. Rather, you must be like a father to his children. That is makarim akhlaq, the best good character.

And Allah Almighty looks at your heart. If He ﷻ finds envy, He ﷻ says, “Go away. Dirty person, do not come to Me! Be clean and come. Am I not giving you what you ask?”

“Ask from Me,” He ﷻ says. “I will give to you. If I give to another person, does it finish what is with Me? My treasures are never-ending. Ask! I shall give to you. Why are you envious of My servants?”

But now everyone has envy. Therefore troubles, sufferings, fighting, wars, battles, evil, the kingdom of devils, from East to West, from North to South.

Darkness is coming on the earth, such darkness that, when it is complete, it will be like the darkness of the time when the Children of Israel worshipped the Golden Calf after Moses (AS) went to meet his Lord ﷻ on Mount Sinai.

You know? Before Moses (AS) returned, since he stayed on Mount Sinai for forty days, the Children of Israel made a golden calf and worshipped it.

When their Lord ﷻ became angry with them, He ﷻ commanded that those who did not worship the calf should execute those who had fallen into idol-worship, as a severe repentance and cleansing for the people.

But those who were to be killed were their relatives, maybe their sons, maybe their fathers, maybe their brothers, maybe their mothers. Therefore, when Allah Almighty ordered that killing, a dark cloud came down; the whole of that area was like nighttime. No one knew who was killing or who was killed; both sides did not know.

That darkness came down and they were killing, up to sunset. Then Moses (AS) and Aaron (AS) tried to save them, saying, “O our Lord, the Children of Israel are going to be finished. Forgiveness! Your mercy, Your mercy!” And that dark cloud went away.

That was the time when seventy thousand of the Children of Israel who worshipped the Golden Calf were killed, finished! Now I am fearing a darkness coming on earth, covering from East to West. You are asking about a third world war. That war is coming now.

That dark cloud is coming down, covering the whole world so that people do not know what they are doing. They are going to kill each other. That is the Third World War. It is written in holy books.

Of envious people, no one can stay; they will kill each other, envious people. Only those people who do not keep envy in their hearts will be in safety, and the others will go.

Therefore Allah Almighty is saying, “O My servant, ask from Me. I will give to you. As I gave to that one, ask from Me and I will give to you, also. Why are you envious of him? Ask from Me!” But envious people are saying, “Neither for me nor for him!”

That is the worst thing; that is the suffering of the sons of Adam (AS) in our time!

Therefore, in the Holy Injil, the Holy Torah, the Holy Qur’an, the Holy Psalms [Zabur], in every holy book, Allah Almighty, the Lord of the sons of Adam (AS), is saying to His servants, “No envy, no envy! But ask everything from Me. I will give to you.”

Al-Fatiha.

• Mawlana Shaykh Muhammad Nazim Adil al-Haqqaniق

More sohbahs from the Liberating the Soul Series can be found here.

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This series was initiated by the SufiHub Team in honour of the 2nd Urs of our beloved Sheikh, the late Sheikh Muhammad Abdul Sattar Khan, who lovingly dedicated himself to transcribing and summarising the daily sohbahs of Mawlana Sheikh Nazimق.

It was through this blessed service that he began his journey on this beautiful Way in 2008, remaining steadfast upon it until his final breath in 2023. Today, his legacy continues at our Zawiyah at A’Posh Bizhub Singapore through his representatives Sidi Shalihin, Ismail, and Syed Muhammad, who humbly carry forward the path he sincerely paved.

We pray that our dear Sheikh Abdul Sattar has been reunited with his beloved Mawlana Sheikh Nazimق and all our Grandshaykhs, and that their light continues to guide us always on the way of Haqq.

The text was originally taken from Liberating the Soul – A Guide for Spiritual Growth by Shaykh Nazim Adil al-Haqqaniق. With love and sincere intention, parts of this sohbah have been gently revised by the SufiHub Team for clarity and contextual relevance.

If you wish to share it on your platforms, kindly post it in full and ensure that proper credit is given to all its sources. For this is adab, the very core of our beautiful religion and way.

Should you have any queries or concerns, you are always welcome to reach us at thesufihubteam@gmail.com.

Wassalam.