As Vaisnavas we are informed that envy is one of our enemies in spiritual life along with lust, anger, greed, madness, and illusion. I have been trying to figure out how to help people deal with envy.

What is envy? According to the dictionary the most commonly used definition of envy is: “A feeling of discontent and resentment aroused by and in conjunction with desire for the possessions or qualities of another.”

In the sastras we have one methodology for dealing with envy. In the Isopanisad we find in mantra 1: “Everything animate or inanimate that is within the universe is controlled and owned by the Lord. One should therefore accept only those things necessary for himself, which are set aside as his quota, and one should not accept other things, knowing well to whom they belong.”

If one thinks like that one will understand that everyone is getting what he needs as his quota, and that ultimately everything belongs to Krishna. We are simply borrowing Krishna’s property (including our body, mind, etc) and we should not claim ownership of anything. In fact the pure devotees like Bhaktivinode Thakura state: “I am Yours. Whatever I possess—my body, mind, words, family, riches—I am now offering at Your lotus feet. Please do with me as You like.”

Certainly we accept that by becoming a pure devotee, all envy will disappear from the heart.

I would like to do a further analysis of envy that perhaps could help us understand this impediment better and deal with it in a Krishna conscious way while we are still practicing Krishna consciousness.

Ultimately all material envy is focused on Krishna-because He owns and controls everything.

But let us get back to the question of what envy actually is and where it comes from. The dictionary defines envy as a feeling.

Is it actually a feeling? A feeling comes from the heart and is a foundational emotion without having to be processed by the brain or the thought processes, whereas envy is stated as: “I want what someone else has, or I am upset with what someone else has.”

So there are several possible judgments and/or desires implicit in these statements. One judgment could be that: “the person does not deserve to have what he/she has.” Another could be: “I deserve it more than him/her.” Another could be: “I should have what that other person has.” Another could be: “This person deserves to suffer, why he/she enjoy like this.” Another could be: “I want to be the center and get the attention.” I am sure there are many other thoughts that are passing through our minds when we experience what we call “envy.”

We are also experience an enemy image in our minds of the person or persons that we are focusing on.

We beat ourselves up when we identify “envy.” We call ourselves names: “ I am so envious.” We experience guilt, shame, etc.

Also we label others with this static definition: “you are so envious”

Then we propose a strategy that is so vague it will never work: “I have to give up envy,” or “you have to give up envy.”

First we should understand that no one “is” envious. One may experience envy, but to be envious would have to be experiencing it 24 hours a day and have it as an integral part of their identity. The only thing that one “is”, is part and parcel of Krishna, an eternal spirit soul.

Of course we are using the word “is” in the context of a static definition. Sometimes “is” can be used to indicate a temporary state. But for the purpose of this discussion let us assume “is” refers to a state that continues to exist without change.

How does one give up something without being aware of what that thing is (the actual underlying causes of the manifestation)?

How do you do a don’t? It is impossible. How do you do a “don’t be envious?’

So, the end result is we continue to overcome with guilt, and our self esteem drops to near zero, and we may become hopeless in our spiritual life.

My proposal is to understand “envy” from a different perspective. Let us analyze it. Depending on the circumstance it may be a judgment, a strategy, a demand, a diagnosis, an indirect expression of anger, etc. But, whatever it is, it indicates an unfulfilled need.

It is not a good strategy to eliminate the indicator of some need. Rather, by dealing with the need the indicator is dealt with. For example a red light on the dashboard of the car can indicate that the auto is low on oil. One could disconnect the light and not be bothered by the light anymore, but that does not obviate the need for oil. In fact the need for oil will soon cause the entire vehicle to come to a stop. Better to accept the light for what it is and try to find out the cause. What is the use of trying to negate the light?

The cause of the experience of envy is some unfulfilled need. It could be the need for love, appreciation, recognition, social interaction, happiness, etc. When these needs are fulfilled the manifestation that we call envy will disappear.

There is always some productive strategy that one can employ to fulfill one’s needs. By productive I mean one that doesn’t fulfill needs at the expense of other personal needs; and one that doesn’t fulfill one person’s needs at the expense of another person’s needs. Of course it would not be possible to fulfill one person’s needs at the expense of another because everyone has the need to contribute to others’ welfare, so if we ignore the other, we are ignoring some of our own needs too!

To sum it up; if (and when) you experience envy, go deep into your heart (the intellectual brain is secondary in this) and ascertain what needs you have that are causing you to act like that. It is not the other person or persons who are the cause of your envy. It is your unfulfilled needs. Then come up with a practical strategy.