Questions On Sikh Teachings

[MyNameIsChris]

Thanks for the replies everyone! Sorry it's taken me so long to reply, I've been busy with school and I wanted to give myself time to think about everything that was said on here.

Firstly, don't blame my parents for my lack-of-sikhi upbringing. They were raised in a similar manner. Although religion obviously had more importance in the older generation plus they grew up in India which is naturally more religious, neither came from a Gursikh family and were "cultural Sikhs" at best. And please don't tell me that I know nothing. My parents taught me about Indian culture, and I speak Punjabi fluently (more fluently than most people around here). They were not "lazy", they taught me what was taught to them. I have one living grandmother who tells me that she didn't come from a Gursikh family either, so this trend does go a few generations back at the very least.

To everyone who posted videos, thank you very much. I have already watched some and am looking forward to watching the rest when I have more time.

I think that Sikhi is a a very beautiful path and I agree with most of what I've come across thus far and I wish that people wouldn't get Punjabi culture mixed up with it like one veerji said. That's not to say that Punjabi culture isn't a good thing, it's just that I find the typical Punjabi mindset to be pretty close-minded, especially with regards to other races and skin colors etc...

By "Golden Rule" I mean: "Treat others the way you would want them to treat you". In other words, don't do or say anything to/about anyone that you wouldn't want to have said/done to you. What goes around comes around, if you treat others kindly and with respect you will get plenty in return.

I very much agree that speaking the truth and living a truthful life are the most important things one can do in life. But you don't think it's possible to do these things without religion? Some of the most amazing people I have ever known in my life have not been religious, I can't imagine that they are bad people who are going to get punished just because they didn't pray or do any of that stuff.

Probably the first three things I look at when assessing a religion's value are how that religion teaches its followers to behave with followers of other faiths, what that religion teaches about equality of ALL human beings regardless of race religion or gender and what that religion teaches happens to good, decent people who do not believe in organized religion or who do not believe in God. Sikhism takes the cake with respect to the first two, it's just the last one that I have trouble grasping and believing. Sure Sikhi doesn't teach that you'll burn forever if you don't believe in God, but punishing good people by making them go through a cycle of millions and millions of lives, suffering and dying all because they weren't religious isn't really something to gloat about either.