A Tribute to My Bibi: Art, Faith, and Mental Health Across Generations
- Preeti (Rajpreet Taneja) Taneja, R.S.W, M.S.W, B.S.W
- 5 days ago
- 6 min read
I lay in bed, watching the dim glow of Guru Gobind Ji’s portrait. My Bibi slept beside me — her presence a fortress, her breath a rhythm that stilled my restless heart. That picture was more than just art. It was a mirror of our values, our roots, our faith. Years later, I asked if I could take it. With hesitance, my sisters said, ‘Fine.’ Now it hangs in my boys’ room. Each night, as they ask to do Japji Sahib Paath, I hear my Bibi’s voice echo in theirs. I wonder — what do we do with the morals and values passed down to us? Do they survive, or do they fade in the noise of modern life? My Bibi gave me peace through faith. Now, I hope to give that to my children. But in this fast, collapsing world, where mental health struggles creep into every home, how do we hold on?
The Art in the Eye of the Beholder
We often hear the phrase: “Art is in the eye of the beholder.” For me, art was not a painting in a museum or a canvas bought at an auction. It was the framed (or unframed) image of Guru Gobind Ji that hung in my Bibi’s room. This art was alive — it breathed meaning into sleepless nights, whispered strength in moments of self-doubt, and reminded me of the unshakable foundation my grandmother built for me.
What I’ve come to realize is that objects like these become anchors—they steady us when
everything else feels uncertain. Research from Harvard Business School shows that rituals, even the simplest ones, can ease anxiety and enhance our ability to cope in daily life (Brooks et al.,2016). These findings echo what many of us know intuitively: it’s not just about going through motions, but about the quiet, intentional acts of faith and resilience that hold us together when we feel most fragile.
That portrait of Guru Gobind Ji was never just an image on the wall. Each time I looked at it, I wasn’t just seeing a picture—I was stepping into a sanctuary shaped by faith and mental health, where prayer, tradition, and memory intertwined to create a calm I couldn’t find anywhere else.
Passing Down Values: Who Will Carry Them?
I often ask myself: What do I do with the morals and values my Bibi handed down to me? Who do I pass them onto? Will my children, growing up in a world so different from mine, ever feel rooted in the same way?
These are questions many millennials grapple with. Growing up in diasporic households, we hold a dual responsibility: to honor tradition while adapting to modern life. In my case, I watched my Bibi live her values, not just preach them. She embodied faith, resilience, and kindness. Her legacy is not just in the memories we share, but in the nightly Japji Sahib my children recite.
Researchers in intergenerational trauma remind us that unresolved pain and resilience are both inherited. Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart (1998) explained that generational trauma is carried through families, but so are tools for survival. This is intergenerational healing through traditions. My Bibi’s portrait represents that duality — a reminder that while pain exists, faith offers a path to wholeness.
The Struggles of Mental Health: A Universal Journey
But let’s be honest — faith and tradition don’t make us immune to mental health struggles. Like many, I have faced moments of sadness, numbness, and overwhelming collapse. At times, I’ve asked: Why do I feel this way? How did I get here?
These questions are familiar to millions. According to the World Health Organization (2023), 1 in 8 people globally live with a mental health condition. In Canada alone, nearly 1 in 4 adults reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, or PTSD during the pandemic (Statistics Canada, 2022).
The truth is: no matter how strong our roots are, we all stumble. What matters is how we respond and ask ourselves “what is this emotion or pattern trying to teach me?”
You Can’t Pour From an Empty Cup
My Bibi poured endlessly into her family — her wisdom, her faith, her time. But as I grew older, I realized something vital: we cannot keep pouring if our own cup is empty.
As women, mothers, wives, and caregivers, the demands of daily life are endless — pick up the kids, cook dinner, meet deadlines, check a million tasks off the list. The result? Burnout.
The Canadian Mental Health Association (2023) emphasizes that self-care is not indulgence, but necessity — a preventative measure against anxiety, stress, and depression. Yet, most caregivers, especially women, place themselves last.
So how do we change that? We start small:
5 minutes of silence before the kids wake up.
Saying no to one responsibility that drains us.
Reframing self-care not as selfishness, but as survival.
Because my Bibi’s lesson was clear: you cannot guide others to God, to peace, to surrender, or to resilience if you are disconnected from yourself.
Living in Truth: The Price of Authenticity
Another struggle I face, and perhaps you do too, is this: How many of us live in our truth?
When we dare to live authentically, society judges us. In therapy, this is often described as a
double bind — being yourself risks rejection, but hiding yourself causes internal harm. Research published in Frontiers in Psychology (2021) confirms that people who suppress authenticity are more likely to experience depression, anxiety, and psychosomatic illness (Lenton et al., 2021).
My Bibi never had a platform or social media, but she lived unapologetically. Her authentic truth was her faith. Mine, perhaps, is still unfolding — balancing tradition with modern struggles, culture with individuality. But if I’ve learned anything, it is this: the cost of self-abandonment is far greater than the cost of judgment.
Art, Memory, and Healing
That portrait of Guru Gobind Ji is not framed. It is imperfect, fragile, and yet the greatest
blessing in my home. It hangs in my boys’ room, radiating presence — a silent guardian.
Art therapy research suggests that meaningful visual reminders of love, belonging, or faith act as emotional anchors during crises. A meta-analysis on art therapy confirmed that engaging with symbolic or meaningful imagery can reduce anxiety, improve emotional regulation, and even support trauma healing (Haeyen et al., 2017).
When my children look at that portrait, I see a cycle of healing: from my Bibi to me, from me to them. It is a generational dialogue in color and canvas.
Practical Lessons: Carrying Bibi’s Teachings into Mental
Health
Honor Your Anchors – Keep one piece of art, memory, or prayer close. Let it remind you of your strength.
Pass It On – Share traditions with children. Mental health thrives on continuity and
belonging.
Pour Into Your Cup – Small acts of self-care are revolutionary.
Live Your Truth – Authenticity heals more than it hurts.
Seek Support – Therapy, community, and faith are not opposites. They are allies.
Conclusion: A Tribute to Bibi
Bibi’s teachings remind me that peace is not found in escaping life’s chaos, but in grounding
ourselves through faith, tradition, authenticity and kindness.
The portrait of Guru Gobind Ji will forever remain the greatest art I have ever owned. Not
because it is perfect, but because it holds within it the essence of survival, of belonging, of
healing.
As I watch my boys whisper Japji Sahib before bed, I know that the cycle continues. My Bibi’s
legacy is not gone. It lives in their voices. It lives in mine. And perhaps, it will live in yours too — if you choose to hold onto the art, the faith, and the truth that grounds you.
References
Brave Heart, M. Y. H. (1998). The return to the sacred path: Healing the historical trauma
response among the Lakota. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 68(3), 287–305.
Brooks, A. W., Schroeder, J., Risen, J. L., Gino, F., Galinsky, A. D., Norton, M. I., &
Schweitzer, M. E. (2016). Don't stop believing: Rituals improve performance by
decreasing anxiety. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 137,
71–85.
Canadian Mental Health Association. (2023). Self-care and mental health.
Haeyen, S., van Hooren, S., van der Veld, W. M., & Hutschemaekers, G. (2018).
Measuring the contribution of art therapy in multidisciplinary treatment of personality
disorders: The construction of the Self-expression and Emotion Regulation in Art
Therapy Scale (SERATS). Personality and Mental Health, 12(1), 3–14. https://doi.org/10.1002/pmh.1379
Lenton, A. P., Bruder, M., Slabu, L., & Sedikides, C. (2012). How does “being real” feel?
The Experience of state authenticity. Journal of Personality, 81, 276– 289. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.2012.00805.x.
Statistics Canada. (2022). Mental health of Canadians during the pandemic.
World Health Organization. (2023). Mental health. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-
sheets/detail/mental-health-strengthening-our-response
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