How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 17.06.2025 01:50
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
What happened to The Simpsons deleted onscreen footage?
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
================================================================
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
How do I get over a long-term relationship breakup?
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
NOW…
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
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
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
Why does my crush make me jealous about having a girlfriend?
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
How does a 45-year-old man get a girlfriend?
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
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.
then who is there to know what happens without?
What will the legacy of Jimmy Carter be in light of his death today at 100?
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.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
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.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
How is TikTok able to censor porn?
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
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 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.
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
Sain (a barber)
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
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.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
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.
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.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
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
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
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 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.
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
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?
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
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.
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.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
=======================================================
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
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.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
Now here in this verse
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Kabir (a weaver)
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
———————————————————————————————————————
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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.
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
I am like a fish out of water,
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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…
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
———————————————————————————————————————
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
CONCLUSION:
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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!
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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.
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!
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!