How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 22.06.2025 13:53
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How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
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
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
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Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
Why do men think I’m easy just by looking at me?
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
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I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
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Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
What are the 10 things you regret doing in your life?
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.
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Why is that Hag Hillary Clinton so quiet these days? She is the dog that isn't barking
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Now here in this verse
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.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
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.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
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…
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
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Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
CONCLUSION:
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
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.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
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.
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ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
NOW…
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
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.
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
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.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
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.
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
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!
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
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.
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
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.
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
Sain (a barber)
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Kabir (a weaver)
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.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
then who is there to know what happens without?
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
I am like a fish out of water,
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
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.
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
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.
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
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Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
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.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore