Sanad and Semantic Analysis of the Narration

Firoozi, Neʿmatollah

doi:10.22034/hsr.2026.52388.1153

Sanad and Semantic Analysis of the Narration "Envy Almost Overcomes Divine Decree"

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Neʿmatollah Firoozi

Assistant Professor, Department of Theology and Islamic Studies, Imam Reza International University, Mashhad, Iran .

10.22034/hsr.2026.52388.1153

Abstract

In hadith sources, envy is introduced as one of the moral vices and deadly afflictions of the heart, regarded as the origin of many individual and social corruptions. The narration "Envy almost overcomes divine decree" (Kāda
al-Ḥasadu an Yaghliba al-Qadara) reflects the profound negative impact of this trait on human destiny within the order of creation. The present study, adopting an analytical approach, examines the chain of transmission and the semantic implications of this narration and a similar hadith reported in two early sources, namely "ʿUyūn Akhbār al-Riḍā (AS)" and "Uṣūl al-Kāfī." The findings of the Sanad analysis indicate that the narration reported by Shaykh Ṣadūq is considered weak due to the presence of narrators whose status is unknown or neglected. However, the narration in "Kāfī," through its chain of transmission and the key term "Yaghliba," confirms the wording and meaning of the report. The semantic analysis also shows that the term Qadar (divine decree) in this narration does not refer to a deterministic and inevitable fate, but rather to conditional decrees that operate according to divine laws and the system of causes and effects. Within the framework of these divine laws, envy, by creating obstacles to the realization of favorable decrees and altering conditions and circumstances, can act as a barrier to the flow of divine mercy and ultimately lead human destiny toward ruin. Finally, by clarifying the threatening dimensions of envy, this study proposes approaches such as education based on trust in God and contentment, the institutionalization of gratitude, and avoidance of blameworthy social comparisons as means to preserve psychological and social security.

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