How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 18.06.2025 04:40
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
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ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
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 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.
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
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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.
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
Single psilocybin trip delivers two years of depression relief for cancer patients - ScienceDaily
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.
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥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.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
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.
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
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NOW…
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
———————————————————————————————————————
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
then who is there to know what happens without?
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
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.
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
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!
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
Sain (a barber)
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
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There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
=======================================================
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…
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
Kabir (a weaver)
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
———————————————————————————————————————
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
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.
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
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.
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
CONCLUSION:
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.
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
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.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
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.
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
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
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
Now here in this verse
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
I am like a fish out of water,
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
———————————————————————————————————————
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
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.
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
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.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.