White and black envy: what does it mean and what is the difference?

Every person has experienced envy at least once in his life. It is very easy for some people to recognize this emotion, others are simply gnawed at from the inside, but they are not ready to admit it. From childhood, each parent instills in his child that it is bad to envy others. In their explanations, they compare this feeling with a worm that will sit in the chest and eat away at the soul. However, with age, parental explanations are forgotten. And the feeling of envy sometimes overtakes at the most inopportune moment. They distinguish white and black envy. How they differ from each other and how they manifest themselves, we will find out in the article.

In many literary works, you can find a negative manifestation of the feeling of envy. For example, Snow White and Stepmother, Scar and Mufasa (characters from The Lion King). Even in the Bible, the feeling of envy between the brothers Cain and Abel is clearly expressed. In fact, envy is a rather complex phenomenon. And in order to understand its basis, one should consider what this feeling consists of:

• rivalry;
• anger;
• hatred;
• dissatisfaction;
• comparison.

Feeling envy means that the envious person wants to have something that the other has.... For example, a woman wants a natural fur coat. But life circumstances force her to wear an ordinary down jacket or an artificial sheepskin coat. And now her friend gets for herself a mink coat on the floor.Accordingly, the woman has a feeling of anger, since she really wanted to complement her wardrobe with just such an element of outerwear, but she could not achieve this. The fulfillment of their desires for others is an unbearable feeling. And as a so-called defensive reaction, the envious person begins to take revenge on the one who succeeds. In the example about a woman with a fur coat, a lady dissatisfied with life begins to spread gossip about her friend, tell stories. But in fact, such examples are found in everyday life at every step.

Researchers have found that people between the ages of 18 and 30 are susceptible to feelings of envy. It is extremely rare for elderly people and children to envy others. In the modern world, the phenomenon of envy is divided into white and black types. It is believed that white envy is not terrible at all. However, even white is actually a bad emotion. Of course, it is softer, contains less negative emotions, even plays a kind of role of a push that motivates to move forward.

Emotional scheme of white envy: he envied, made up his mind, rallied his strength, got what he wanted. Roughly speaking, white envy is a motivator that guides a person to achieve success. Black envy is much worse than white envy. It evokes the most negative emotions in the envious person, sets him up for anger and rudeness. Sometimes it even requires the destruction of the one who is envied. For this reason, intrigues, deceptions, and sometimes even murder always hover around black envy. White envy can arise in a kind and unconscious way, while black envy can arise on purpose. It can be experienced by rich, beautiful, talented, successful and healthy people. In reality, a person can feel a feeling of envy only for what he himself does not have. In fact, this is a powerful aggression that causes unpleasant sensations in the soul.

If a person experiences black envy in his soul, his aura is saturated with anger and complete negativity, anger and hatred. Such a person can harm the owner of the desired good without a twinge of conscience. Black envy can push a person to do terrible things. For example, throw paint on a car or write a slander to the management on an employee who has received a promotion. A person experiencing white envy does not have bad emotions in his soul. He does not seek to harm a person who has achieved success. A white feeling of envy allows you to improve, believe in yourself and your strengths, thereby achieving the desired heights.

Many people know how white envy differs from black envy, but they cannot convey in words. The main difference between these feelings is that white envy is a stimulant and motivator, and black envy is anger and hatred. It is black envy that kills the emotional state of a person. It happens that it is extremely difficult for a person to cope with feelings of envy. The only solution is the help of a highly qualified psychologist.

The reasons for the feeling of envy are different for each person. It all depends on personality and character. However, according to psychologists, the main ones are low self-esteem, a love of bragging, a desire to have the best benefits, a difficult childhood, improper upbringing and weakness of spirit... The love of power can also be attributed to this list. Despite the variety of reasons for envy, they are united by an important component, namely the desire to possess what the other person has.

There are many different stories, small stories, legends and parables about white and black envy. For example, once an old Indian told his grandson that in the soul of every person there is a constant struggle between two wolves. The first beast is anger, hatred and jealousy. The second brings goodness, peace, love and happiness.The little Indian, listening to this story attentively, asked his grandfather what kind of wolf wins in the end, to which the old Indian replied that the one you feed wins.

Many psychologists believe that feelings of envy are contagious. If such an emotion appeared in the head of 1 person, it will certainly amaze a neighbor. For example, a man was jealous of a colleague's professional success for a long time, which is why he began to discuss this employee with the entire team, began to tell tales about him, collect gossip, and even put a colleague under attack in front of the management. Having heard this information, 1 out of 10 employees will surely side with the envious, and a war against a successful person will be built with double strength.

Psychologists pay special attention to people with low self-esteem due to difficult childhood and poverty. They are jealous of social injustice, which is much more difficult to overcome. It is almost as difficult to get rid of envy for people who consider themselves losers and complete nonentities. They are constantly gnawed at the lack of the best in life. Moreover, they themselves perceive even small victories as defeats.

Do not forget that the envious himself, experiencing a feeling of envy, plunges into a maelstrom of suffering and feelings that devour him... Quite often it happens that it is impossible to throw out negative emotions on a successful person. Then you have to keep the felt anger in yourself. Constant negative emotions cause many diseases - not only mental, but also physical.

In addition, an envious person in a fit of intense anger can create a situation in which innocent people can suffer. The most interesting thing is that any of them can turn out to be a very serious opponent, then the envious will have a hard time.

Unfortunately, you cannot always control yourself. That is why envy comes unexpectedly and can gnaw a person from the inside for a long time. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to determine the root cause of envy and work with a psychologist. It is advisable to indulge yourself more often with beautiful things, delicious food, trips to interesting events, go out of town, visit distant countries. To eradicate the feeling of envy, you need to constantly work on yourself. In no case should you compare yourself with other people. Freed from envy, a person's life is completely and completely changed. He has new priorities, interests, acquaintances. The emotional background is changing for the better, and the question "Why not me?" fades into the background.

It is very difficult for a person to curb jealousy on their own, but with the right approach, this feeling can be turned into ideal motivation. For example, women who want to lose weight just need to look at the beautiful bodies of the fair sex in the gym. Those who want to get rich should work hard and look for their destiny. One of the most important tips from psychologists to cope with feelings of envy is to increase your own self-esteem.