How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 17.06.2025 05:09
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
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.
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Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
What CIA front organizations operated in the United States during the 1960s?
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
then who is there to know what happens without?
CONCLUSION:
How can parents identify and address early signs of racial bias in young children?
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
What are some disadvantages of living in rural areas? What are the advantages?
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
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ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
Kabir (a weaver)
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
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There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
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ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
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If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Now here in this verse
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
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
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
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.
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
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.
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥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.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
I am like a fish out of water,
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
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.
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
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
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
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.
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
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.
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
Sain (a barber)
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
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.
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
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.
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
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…
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.
NOW…
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
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.
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
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.
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
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.
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As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
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But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
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.
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
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||
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||