How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 18.06.2025 01:14
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
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Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
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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 went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
Kabir (a weaver)
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ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
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.
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
What caused the decline of the Soprano crew?
Now here in this verse
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Sain (a barber)
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
Why do some men like anal sex?
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
Would you raise your children like your parents raised you?
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
What factors contributed to The Beatles' bitterness?
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.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
What is your craziest/worst Halloween story?
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
What can anal toys bring to straight men?
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
What do you do you do if your motorcycle chain snaps while riding on the highway?
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
NOW…
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
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.
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.
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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.
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
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.
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
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As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
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.
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.
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
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.
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
then who is there to know what happens without?
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
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.
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
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…
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
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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.
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
I am like a fish out of water,
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
CONCLUSION:
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
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
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
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.
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
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.
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
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!
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
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There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥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
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
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.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325