Chaper XVII

The root cause of all anxieties and calamities of man is ENVY. We can find from the Bhagavad Gita that Krishna warns Arjuna off and on "Arjuna! You have to be envy- less. Do not get infected by envy." Envy is invariably accompanied by hatred. These two are twin villains. They are poisonous pests. They attach the very roots of one's personality.

A tree may be resplendent with flowers and fruits. But when the inimical worms set to work on the roots, imagine what happens to the splendour! Even as we look on admiringly at its beauty, the flowers fade, the fruits fall off and the leaves turn yellow and are scattered by the wind. At last, the tree itself dries up, it dies and falls. So too, when envy and hatred infect the heart and set to work, however intelligent and however highly educated the man, he falls. He is turned into an enemy of society. He becomes the target of ridicule because he is no longer human. He cannot be counted as a member of the community. In the end, even his trusted friends desert him and become his foes. He loses the respect of his group and does not evoke even ordinary courtesies from others. He spends his days perpetually in misery.

No enemy can be so insidious as jealousy. When one sees a person more powerful, or more knowledgeable, or with greater reputation or more wealth or more beauty, or even wearing better clothing, one is afflicted with jealously. One finds it difficult to acknowledge and accept the situation. One's mind seeks means to demean them and lower them in the estimation of people. Such propensities and evil tendencies should never strike root in the minds of students and the educated. These should not pollute their character.