How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 18.06.2025 02:08
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
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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.
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
What would you change in Rings of Power?
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
What should I do if I love a girl and she apparently doesn't love me?
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
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.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
What are some questions obviously just asked for sexual gratification?
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
Sain (a barber)
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
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 here in this verse
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Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
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.
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
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Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
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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 young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
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To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
then who is there to know what happens without?
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
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.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
I am like a fish out of water,
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
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
CONCLUSION:
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
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
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
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.
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
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.
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
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Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
Kabir (a weaver)
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
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.
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
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.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
NOW…
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
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.
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
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.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
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.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
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.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
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 326
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
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.
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥