How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 18.06.2025 04:24
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
I have a bad reputation and need help. What should I do?
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
then who is there to know what happens without?
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
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.
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
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— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
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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
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
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.
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
What's the hardest part about marriage that no one ever talks about?
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
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.
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
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ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Would the word literate carry the same meaning with public (common wealth) in 1900 vs today 2020?
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
How do you get started in bestiality with a dog as a male?
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
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ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
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.
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
Why am I sweating so much when I try to do anything?
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
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||
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
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.
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
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.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
NOW…
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As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
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.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
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.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
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.
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
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ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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.
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 here in this verse
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
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ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
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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
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
CONCLUSION:
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
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ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
I am like a fish out of water,
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 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.
Kabir (a weaver)
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
Sain (a barber)
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!
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
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.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
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…
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥