How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 16.06.2025 13:11
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
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!
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
Why is Harley-Davidson dropping diversity initiatives after the right-wing anti-DEI campaign?
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
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There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
How did you get to be a leftist?
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
What are the pros and cons of a prospective bride/groom not having any siblings?
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 does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
There Is A Very Particular Reason Why Baboons Travel In Straight Lines - IFLScience
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
How many girls or guys keep extra pantyhose in their glove box or console of their vehicle?
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Trump Plans Biofuel Quota Boost, Seeks to Crimp Imports - Bloomberg
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
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.
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
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…
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
then who is there to know what happens without?
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
Kabir (a weaver)
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.
Now here in this verse
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
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.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
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 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.
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
NOW…
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
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.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
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.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Sain (a barber)
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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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.
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
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.
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!
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
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.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
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.
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
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That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
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.
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
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
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The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
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 am like a fish out of water,
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
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.
CONCLUSION:
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
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