3 Stories About Envy
These tales of envy were created so that we could see the full extent of the manifestations and effects of this unhealthy passion. It is said that envy was the cause of the first homicide in sacred history. Cain killed Abel because he did not tolerate God giving him his preference. And more than one conflict, and even more than one war, has arisen from the envy of individuals or peoples.
Envy is the pain we feel “because of” the happiness of others. It’s a passion that almost everyone feels at some point in their life. It happens when our identity is not well established and we look at our deprivations through others, and not through ourselves.
Envy can heal itself and the way to do it is to go both ways. The first is compassion: others also have their own flaws, their own sufferings, and find it difficult to get what they have. The second way is to recognize that what is ours is also worthwhile and that we must fight to get what we want. The following stories that we will reveal to you about envy remind us of those lessons.
1. The first of the stories about envy: the peacock
Once upon a time there was a peacock that was deeply admired by other animals. As soon as the sun rose, he would start walking in the fields, proud of his plumage. Everyone was still looking forward to the moment he unfurled his cock and let out all the beauty he carried within him.
The envious tale goes that one day, foreign owls arrived at this place. Everyone received them very nicely. The group of owls continued chatting for much of the night. One of them had the idea to say that there was a beautiful golden pheasant nearby and that he had never seen such a beautiful bird. The others agreed.
The peacock, who was listening to the conversation, couldn’t believe his ears. This pheasant surely had several flaws that the others had not seen. The next morning he went in search of this pheasant, because he wanted to see it with his own eyes. He got lost in the woods and we never heard from the peacock again.
Moral of the first of the stories about envy: he who feels envy thinks that the merit of others belittles his own .
2. Another of the stories about envy: who is worse?
The second of the envy stories tells us that there was a distant land where the king wanted to know what was the worst fault: envy or greed. To find the answer to this question, he sent for the most envious man and the most miserly man in the kingdom. When he had them in front of him, he said to them: “You can ask me what you want. But I will give double to the other. ”
The miser then felt very uncomfortable. By asking for something, he would also increase what another had. Something similar passed through the envious man’s mind. The miser finally replied that he wanted nothing. If the king didn’t give him anything, he wouldn’t give anything to the other either. When it was the envious person’s turn, he said: “I want my eye to be put out”.
Moral of the second of the stories on envy: an envious person is ready to suffer, if with this suffering he succeeds in making the other suffer more.
3. The history of crabs
There was a fisherman selling crabs near the beach. He had two buckets where the animals were kept. However, one of the buckets was covered, while the other was not. No one noticed this detail until a woman came to see the merchandise and was amazed at the difference. She thought maybe the animals were of a different quality. Then she asks the fisherman the reason for this distinction.
The vendor pointed to the crab bucket with the lid on. “ These are Japanese crabs, ” he says. Pointing to the other bucket, he added: “ And these are national crabs ”. The woman did not understand the connection with the fact that one bucket was covered and the other was not. What could this have to do with the origin of crabs?
The fisherman, who noticed the astonishment of the woman, took it into his head to explain it to her. “ You see, Japanese crabs escape easily. When one of them tries to get out, the others form a chain and help him, until he manages to escape. That is why it is necessary to put a lid on the bucket. The national crabs, on the other hand, as soon as they see one of them trying to escape, grab it and hold it so that it does not escape ”.
Moral of the third of the stories about envy: someone envious prefers not to achieve anything, as long as the others do not achieve anything either.
Our thoughts Envy is an unpleasant feeling that leads to adopting unpleasant attitudes towards others, and which comes with its share of consequences …
