Manmat in family

Waheguru Ji aka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh

I'm the only Amritdhari in my family and sometime family members will say things to me or do things that could be considered disrespectful to Sikhi. Some family members act like this more than others and it's easy to tell when someone said something by mistake vs saying it on purpose. I used to get really frustrated but now I'm starting to become more composed, even though I still get frustrated. What's the best way to deal with these kind of situations?

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh

There are many ways you can approach this situation but definitely getting angry and losing patience are not viable options. Foremost thing to do is to lead your life totally in accordance to Gurmat i.e. to strictly maintain Amritvela which starts around 2am, chanting Gurmat Naam and Gurbani Paath throughout Amritvela, getting Gurmat virtues e.g. patience, love, affection, tolerance, fearlessness, not holding grudge etc. As your family notices positive change in you, they will be intrigued and may get interested.

If on the other hand you get angry or enter unnecessary arguments with your hostile family members, they will get more upset and the conflict will only worsen. Worse of all, your own spiritual state will be affected adversely and your mind will not easily tune into Naam and Gurbani.

Lastly, do Ardaas,

Kulbir Singh

Thank you for the advice Bhai Sahib Ji. Some members in my family are starting to read Gurbani and go to the Gurdwara. One thing I'm really trying to work on is patience. That's been an area of weakness for me even before I took Amrit. I'm realizing too that getting frustrated and angry really has a negative effect on how much Anand I get out of Naam Simran and Gurbani.