How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 17.06.2025 10:35
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
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.
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.
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
Is there a correlation between being a medium and mental health?
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
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!
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Why cant a narcissist admit when they are wrong?
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
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, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
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.
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
Is the Democrat party connected with organized crime in America?
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
What are some of the best photos of your favorite Korean model?
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
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He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
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.
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
NOW…
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
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We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
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.
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
Kabir (a weaver)
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
I am like a fish out of water,
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
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…
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
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 ॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
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.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
then who is there to know what happens without?
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||
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
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ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
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.
CONCLUSION:
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
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.
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Now here in this verse
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
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.
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
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
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 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.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
Sain (a barber)
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
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ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
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.
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥