How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
Last Updated: 26.06.2025 02:51
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 wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
Why are people becoming increasingly hostile to pro-lifers? I am pro-life.
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
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Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
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He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||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.
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
Sain (a barber)
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
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.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
then who is there to know what happens without?
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
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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.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
Unde non omnis quia ut et magni ea.
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
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:
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
Now here in this verse
How do you know if your husband loves you truly and deeply?
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
Why do boobs of some girls bounce when they walk?
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
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ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
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.
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
I am like a fish out of water,
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.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
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
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
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ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
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.
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
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If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
NOW…
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
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.
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 ॥
Kabir (a weaver)
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
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!
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.
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.
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
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…
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.
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
=======================================================
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
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ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
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.
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
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.
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.
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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.