How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 21.06.2025 11:51
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
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ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
How do you confront your own family for not inviting you or leaving you out of things?
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
How can you know if they are your twin flame and not limerence or obsession?
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
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Why is my elder sister so mean?
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
How do the youth in Taiwan perceive their national identity in relation to China?
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Why did we evolve to have so many nerve endings in our anuses?
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
What techniques can be used to sing like Freddie Mercury if one is unable to hit high notes?
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
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ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
From where did the word Maya come? Isn’t it a typical Vedantic concept discussed profoundly in Advaita? It definitely isn’t a concept pioneered by Kabir or even his teacher Ramanandacharya! It is ultimately from Sanatana Dharma!
Here ਰਾਮੈ is Rama and not just lord. Kabir died chanting the name of Rama DESPITE him not finding any result of penances done in holy cities in his previous birth. Another example to show how much Kabir valued personal devotion to Rama in his own NIRGUN style.
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ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
For a superficial McSikh who is interested only in separation and not enlightenment the views of Kabir can be easily shown as a denouncement of Hindu practices.
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
Guru Nanak (right) and Bhai Mardana (foreground) with Bhagat Kabir (left). This painting is found in the B-40 Janamsakhi, written and painted in 1733. The painting was made by Alam Chand Raj
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
We can see that great saints like Kabir and Ravidas etc… descended from the Ramananda sampradaya which is still the largest ascetic order in India.
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
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Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Ramanandacharya was a 14th-century Hindu Vaishnava devotional poet saint who amalgamated Advaita with Vaishnava Bhakti. He was the pioneer in validating NIRGUN and SAGUN Bhakti as parallel paths.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
The Sant Sampraday of Sikh panth integrates the warrior spirit of the Nihangs and Khalsa, the service of Seva panth and the renunciation of Udasi/Nirmala saints.
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
NOW…
Sain (a barber)
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
The divergence of Kabir’s views from Vedanta is seen in the fact that he fully opposed religious symbolism of ALL KINDS and not just IDOLS.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
As mentioned above Guru Arjan Dev was talking from the perspective Sant Kabir whose views we have discussed much earlier here. We know that Sant Kabir continuing in the Ramanandi Sampradaya went further away from the mainstream ritualistic Hinduism and was journeying more towards a SEAMLESS Dharma.
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
For him Dharma was beyond everything physical including the desire for heaven because was fully into the NIRGUN . The last verse shows that according to him the company of the enlightened Sadhus is heaven which is again a typical teaching of Sanatana Dharma.
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
CONCLUSION:
Ramanandacharya’s teachings were centered on pure and personal connection with the God Rama and didn’t believe in any kind of formal ritualism. He used the common vernacular language instead of Sanskrit so that everyone could understand.
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Sikhism is fundamentally rooted in BHAKTI tradition and thus ultimately in Sanatana Dharma. There is no doubt about it despite what modern McSikh acrobatics try to claim otherwise
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
The views of Kabir are very much in parallel to the Advaita philosophy and it is obvious that as the disciple of Ramanandacharya he will carry forward with his chosen NIRGUN BHAKTI.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
Now here in this verse
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ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
Bhakti movement began in South (Tamil Nadu to be precise) and slowly spread to Northern parts of India. This movement was extremely popular because of its simple fundamentals which could be understood by even commonfolk. Vaishnavism, Shaivism etc… were already connecting with commonfolk from a long time and this Bhakti movement reinforced it by making the devotee feel a personal connection with the deity.
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
I am like a fish out of water,
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
There is a reason why I mention ROOTED and thus NOT implying that it belongs to one of the numerous sects in Sanatana Dharma like Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism, Smartism etc…
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
Kabir (a weaver)
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
The influence of Kabir is significant on Sikhism. The following Bani from Ang 1136 is attributed to GURU ARJAN DEV but if you observe at the end you can see that he was talking in the spirit of Sant Kabir.
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
Actually, this part of the Ang 326 is widely used by McSikhs to show that Sikhism considers Hindu pilgrimages as useless and thus drives home the point again that the “religion” has got NOTHING to do with Hinduism.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
then who is there to know what happens without?
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
We can understand that Kabir despite being in favor of formless worship was very much embedded in the Dharmik fold but always preached in the spirit of the transcendental nature of Brahman to the point that HE LOST THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN HINDU AND MUSLIM.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like