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

Last Updated: 23.06.2025 01:30

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

ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

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

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

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

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

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How will the article end in Part III of Gleissner's hit piece?

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

ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥

ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥

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

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

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

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

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

Kabir (a weaver)

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ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥

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

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

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I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;

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

You are totally pervading and permeating in all.

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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.

Sain (a barber)

ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥

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

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.

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

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

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

Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!

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Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?

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

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

ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥

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

ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥

ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥

Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:

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

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

ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥

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.

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

ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥

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!

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

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

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

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

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.

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.

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

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

ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥

ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥

I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.

ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥

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.

You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.

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

ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥

ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥

— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore

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

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

ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥

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.

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

then who is there to know what happens without?

ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥

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

ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥

ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥

These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,

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

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧

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.

Now here in this verse

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

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

ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥

— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore

Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.

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

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Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir

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

ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥

I am like a fish out of water,

ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥

ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥

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Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥

From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195

ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥

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

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

There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,

ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥

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

ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥

ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥

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

Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)

ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥

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

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

Wherever I go, I find water and stones.

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

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

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

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

Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.

Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know

I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.

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

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

ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥

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

ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥

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

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.

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

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

NOW…

ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ

ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥

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

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

Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.

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

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

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ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥

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…

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

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

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

ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥

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.

— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen

ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥

Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like

ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥

ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥

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

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.

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

One day, a desire welled up in my mind.

Raamaanand Jee, First House:

ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥

Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and

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

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.

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.

Says Kabeer, this is what I say:

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

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

ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥

CONCLUSION:

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.

ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥

ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥