How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
11.06.2025 11:07
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
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Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
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ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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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.
He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
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.
Why do nice guys rarely or never win?
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
Sain (a barber)
If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
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…
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
What is the funniest joke you've been told that you still think about to this day?
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
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.
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
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ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
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ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
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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
Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
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.
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
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.
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
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.
Kabir (a weaver)
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.
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
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
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
NOW…
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
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.
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
The young and the old drink milk pudding, but these fools eat the cow's body.
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
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You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
Now here in this verse
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.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
I am like a fish out of water,
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
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Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
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!
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
My consciousness does not go out wandering. My mind has become crippled. ||1|| Pause ||
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
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.
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
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.
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
then who is there to know what happens without?
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
=======================================================
With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
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.
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
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.
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
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.
CONCLUSION:
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
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Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥