How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 24.06.2025 08:40
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.
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Why can't we send flat Earthers to space and show them the shape of Earth?
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
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.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
What's the funniest thing you heard in a movie theater?
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
Windows 11 Pro Is Going for Pennies on the Dollar, a 92% Price Drop Makes It Almost Free - Gizmodo
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
NOW…
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
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I've written three books, but I haven't been able to promote them yet. What should I do?
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
Wrongly deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia returning to U.S. to face criminal charges - Axios
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.
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
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.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
Horoscope for Tuesday, 6/10/25 by Christopher Renstrom - SFGATE
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
DC-area pediatrician on CDC urging summer camp operators to screen for measles immunity - WTOP
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
Scientists delve into Hells Canyon cave to solve mystery of America's deepest gorge - Live Science
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
Does turmeric help fight cancer? If so, how?
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
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॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
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.
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Sain (a barber)
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
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.
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
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
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
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.
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
Kabir (a weaver)
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
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, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
then who is there to know what happens without?
CONCLUSION:
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
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.
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
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.
Now here in this verse
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
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.
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
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ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
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.
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
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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…
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
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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!
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
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
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
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ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
I am like a fish out of water,
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
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.
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
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.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.