How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 16.06.2025 03:57
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
What are some common examples of human hypocrisy?
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
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.
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ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
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Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
Why do the majority of feminists hate men (not all feminists)?
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
How do military families balance personal political views with respect for civilian leadership?
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
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I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
Is there a possibility that we are living in a simulation and that there is a concept of rebirth?
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
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ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
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.
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
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Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
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.
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.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
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ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
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.
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
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.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
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 ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
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
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
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 ॥
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
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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!
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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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.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
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
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
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.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
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 do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
then who is there to know what happens without?
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
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.
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
I am like a fish out of water,
Kabir (a weaver)
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
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.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
NOW…
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
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.
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.
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
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…
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
CONCLUSION:
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Sain (a barber)
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Now here in this verse
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||