How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?

Last Updated: 02.07.2025 01:43

How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?

Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?

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.

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ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥

Raamaanand Jee, First House:

Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,

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I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.

Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92

You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.

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Sain (a barber)

ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥

ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

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Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||

Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||

I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;

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Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)

ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥

Wherever I go, I find water and stones.

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That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||

He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.

ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥

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How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?

Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.

Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.

How do you relax?

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!

I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||

Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||

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Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?

ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥

ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥

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ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥

Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.

If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?

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ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥

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॥

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Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.

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.

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ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥

ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥

ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥

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You are totally pervading and permeating in all.

Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.

Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!

Are there any men who have sex with male dogs?

Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and

ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥

If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,

One day, a desire welled up in my mind.

ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥

ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥

ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥

Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;

ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥

Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)

Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.

I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.

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.

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

Now here in this verse

We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,

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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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.

I am like a fish out of water,

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!

Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,

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…

Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:

ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥

Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.

There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!

The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||

Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,

ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ

ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.

Kabir (a weaver)

With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||

I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.

As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥

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ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥

Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325

— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore

At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||

Says Kabeer, this is what I say:

Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir

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.

I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.

Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know

NOW…

CONCLUSION:

ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥

I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.

I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||

Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.

Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.

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.

ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥

The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.

ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥

Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,

My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||

How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||

ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥

Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.

ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥

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

ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥

I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.

From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195

ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥

Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326

ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥

He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),

Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.

ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧

I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||

ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥

ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥

then who is there to know what happens without?

Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?

ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.

ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥

All the men and women of the world are His living forms.

ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥

There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,

One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:

ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥

For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;

There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.

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ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥

ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥

My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||

ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥

So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!

ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥

To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.

These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,

I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||

That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||

He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||

ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥

Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.

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.

यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।

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.

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥

I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.

— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen

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.

The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||

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.

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.

ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥

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.

But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.

— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore

I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.

ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥

Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.