How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 29.06.2025 00:05
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
10 Albums Out This Week You Should Listen to Now - Pitchfork
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
=======================================================
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
MindsEye team deploys first hotfix as they scramble to make the dang thing work - Polygon
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
Israel warns ‘Tehran will burn’ as Netanyahu hints at regime change - Financial Times
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ESA’s new asteroid hunter opens its eye to the sky - European Space Agency
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
Thoughts on an 8-1 Rangers win - Lone Star Ball
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
What’s going on with measles, bird flu, and COVID? Here’s a guide to the latest. - The Boston Globe
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
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 young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
Have you ever been forced to dress like a girl?
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
================================================================
Watch: Netanyahu's First Remark After US Bombs Iran Nuclear Sites - NDTV
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
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.
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.
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.
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
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.
Spotify Just Upgraded Its App with Some Cool New Features - Gear Patrol
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
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.
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…
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
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.
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
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I am like a fish out of water,
then who is there to know what happens without?
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
———————————————————————————————————————
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.
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.
Kabir (a weaver)
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
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.
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
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.
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
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!
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 have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
———————————————————————————————————————
CONCLUSION:
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.
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
Now here in this verse
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
NOW…
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
Sain (a barber)
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
———————————————————————————————————————
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
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.
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
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
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
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.