Logo

How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?

10.06.2025 05:08

How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?

Kabir (a weaver)

ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥

ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥

Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour Review - IGN

That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||

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.

He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),

Hulu’s ‘Predator: Killer Of Killers’ Lands Predator’s Best Critic Score Ever - Forbes

— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore

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 326

I just cannot wake up early, even if I sleep on time. What should I do?

ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥

For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;

Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and

The Best Of Roots Picnic Made Up For The Absolute Worst - HuffPost

Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.

— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore

ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥

How to Watch Tonight's NBA Finals Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Game 1 for Free - CNET

Says Kabeer, this is what I say:

You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.

ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥

Log in to your Samsung account by the end of next month or forever hold your peace - Android Police

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

Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,

Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like

Scientists Predict a Million-Fold Drop in Oxygen — Here’s What it Means for Earth’s Future - The Daily Galaxy

ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥

Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.

ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥

Fox News Entertainment Newsletter: Tom Hanks addresses daughter’s allegations, Keith Urban’s sobriety journey - Fox News

Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.

To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.

Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||

ISS Research & Development Conference Cancellation - NASA Watch

I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.

Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know

ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥

How much stronger is an average man than an average woman?

Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)

ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195

Why should you never do drugs? Will this story absolutely shock you?

Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir

I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;

ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥

Is it possible for buyers to negotiate after an inspection if the appraisal is lower than expected?

ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥

You are totally pervading and permeating in all.

The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||

Why do American conservatives say that America is a constitutional republic and not a democracy? Would it not make sense to call America a constitutional republican democracy?

ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

Sain (a barber)

ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥

What are some things that normal people do that religious people call sins?

He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.

Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.

Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.

Why is Jack Smith arguing that presidents should not have full immunities as Trump is requesting?

ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥

With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||

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.

The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||

ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥

ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥

I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.

ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥

Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;

I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||

================================================================

There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,

I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||

At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||

Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,

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.

I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.

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!

ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧

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.

ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥

These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,

He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||

ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥

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!

ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥

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.

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.

Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.

I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.

Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.

Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.

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.

ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥

Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.

Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.

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.

ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥

If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,

Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?

I am like a fish out of water,

ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥

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.

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.

Raamaanand Jee, First House:

यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।

Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92

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.

=======================================================

Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.

ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥

My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||

The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.

ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥

ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥

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.

ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥

NOW…

There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!

Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325

———————————————————————————————————————

Now here in this verse

ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥

Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325

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.

There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.

All the men and women of the world are His living forms.

But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.

Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.

Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,

Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||

Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,

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 long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,

ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥

How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?

———————————————————————————————————————

— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen

then who is there to know what happens without?

ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥

ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥

CONCLUSION:

Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?

I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||

That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||

ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥

One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:

Wherever I go, I find water and stones.

Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)

ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥

One day, a desire welled up in my mind.

Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!

ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥

ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥

Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:

We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,

I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.

ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥

ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.

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

Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.

I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.

Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||

I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||

ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥

If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?

How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||

———————————————————————————————————————

Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!

Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?

ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥

Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.

ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥

ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ

ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥

I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.

I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.