A wise man is only jealous of a wise man, a mighty man of a mighty man, and a rich man of a rich man

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A wise man is only jealous of a wise man, a mighty man of a mighty man, and a rich man of a rich man

A wise man is only jealous of a wise man, a mighty man of a mighty man, and a rich man of a rich man

A person's tendency is to envy someone similar to him or someone in a similar field, and not someone distant whose occupation is different.

("Agrippas, the army commander, asked Rabbi Gamaliel: It is written in your Torah (Deuteronomy 4): 'For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.' Is anyone jealous except a wise man of a wise man, a mighty man of a mighty man, and a rich man of a rich man!"—Avodah Zarah 55a. And likewise: "It is also known that jealousy found among humans exists only among those who are close in status, for a king does not envy a villager, and a villager does not envy a king, because they are so distant from each other. As the Sages said (Avodah Zarah 55a): 'A person is only jealous of a wise man for a wise man, a mighty man for a mighty man, a rich man for a rich man.' This is clear. For a wise man is not jealous of a fool, for he has no need for him, and the fool is not jealous of the wise man, because he has no understanding at all to recognize his own worth or that of the wise man, for they are opposites."—Rabbeinu Bahya, Exodus ch. 6)

Translation

Expression (Hebrew)

אֵין חָכָם מִתְקַנֵּא אֶלָּא בֶּחָכָם, גִּבּוֹר בַּגִּבּוֹר וְעָשִׁיר בֶּעָשִׁיר

Definition (Hebrew)

נְטִיָּתוֹ הַטִּבְעִית שֶׁל הָאָדָם הִיא לְקַנֵּא בְּאָדָם הַדּוֹמֶה לוֹ אוֹ בַּעַל עִסּוּק דּוֹמֶה וְלֹא בְּאָדָם רָחוֹק שֶׁעִסּוּקוֹ שׁוֹנֶה.

("שָׁאַל אגריפס שַׂר צָבָא אֶת ר"ג, כְּתִיב בתורתכם (דְּבָרִים ד) כִּי ה' אלהיך אֵשׁ אָכְלָה הוּא אַל קנא, כְּלוּם מתקנא אֶלָּא חָכָם בחכם וגבור בגבור וְעָשִׁיר בעשיר!"-עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה נה ע"א, וְכֵן:"וּמִן הַיָּדוּעַ עוֹד כִּי הקנאה המצויה בְּמִין האנושי, אֵינֶנָּה נִמְצֵאת כִּי אִם בְּאוֹתָם הַקְּרוֹבִים בַּמַּעֲלָה, כִּי הַמֶּלֶךְ לֹא יתקנא בכפרי, והכפרי לֹא יתקנא במלך, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהֵם בתכלית הרחוק זֶה מִזֶּה. וְכֵן אָמְרוּ רז"ל (עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה נה א) אֵין אָדָם מתקנא אֶלָּא חָכָם בחכם גִּבּוֹר בגבור עָשִׁיר בעשיר, וְזֶה בָּרוּר. כִּי הֶחָכָם אֵינֶנּוּ מתקנא בסכל לְפִי שֶׁאֵין לוֹ צֹרֶךְ בּוֹ, גַּם הסכל אֵינֶנּוּ מתקנא בחכם כִּי אֵין לוֹ דַּעַת כְּלָל כָּל כָּךְ שיכיר עֵרֶךְ עַצְמוֹ וערך הֶחָכָם, כִּי שְׁנֵיהֶם הפכי"-רַבֵּנוּ בְּחַיֵּי שְׁמוֹת פֶּרֶק ו)

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