Avoid Conflict by Ignoring the Lesser Evil

witnessing the sight of their houses going up in flames and of rivers of blood flowing all around them. People very easily take to advising others and pointing out their errors because this gives a tremendous boost to their ego. It makes them imagine that they are right and that others are wrong. But the fact is that this work of advising others and admonishing them is only proper for those who are ready to pay the price for it. And the price for this is to be willing to exercise patience in the face of difficulties. If you scold someone and criticise him for his faults, he is bound to get angry. So, when faced with a situation where someone is provoking you, you must become as soft as snow. But if instead of doing that you react by getting angry, you will be guilty of behaving in the same way as him—and that is not something that God wants. You can save yourself from getting angry when faced with difficulties that you are bound to encounter when you try to advise and admonish others only if you do this work just for the sake of God. If you want to make people God-conscious, you must first be God-conscious yourself. If you get angry in reaction to the difficulties that you face at the hands of others, you only prove that you seek reward for your actions from fellow human beings, not from God. And when you fail to reap the reward that you expect from fellow human beings, you get angry. On the other hand, if you hope to receive the reward for your deeds from God, you will not mind at all if people praise your work or criticize it.