How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 22.06.2025 00:09
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
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ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Now here in this verse
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
Rossendale man 'did not know what was wrong until I got NHS text' - BBC
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
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How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
Why is my ex trying to provoke an argument with me?
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.
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
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Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
Is there a possibility of call centres returning from outsourcing or offshoring in the future?
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
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
How do I become an intelligent man?
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
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.
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
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.
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
I am like a fish out of water,
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.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
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.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
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He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
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…
NOW…
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
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.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
Kabir (a weaver)
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.
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
then who is there to know what happens without?
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
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If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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.
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.
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
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.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
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
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
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.
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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.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Sain (a barber)
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
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.
CONCLUSION:
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
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.
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
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ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
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!
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like