How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 22.06.2025 01:40
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
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Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
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— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
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.
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Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
Why are people with Asperger syndrome unenthusiastic?
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
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यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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NOW…
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.
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.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
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ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
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…
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How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
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.
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
I am like a fish out of water,
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!
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
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.
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
Kabir (a weaver)
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
then who is there to know what happens without?
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
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.
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.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
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.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
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 do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
Sain (a barber)
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
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
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
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Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
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
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
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Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
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.
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
Now here in this verse
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
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.
CONCLUSION:
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
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ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
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.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
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.
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.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?