How are Hinduism and Sikhism related, considering they both originated in Punjab, India?
10.06.2025 04:05
Without looking into one's heart, how can one reach paradise?
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.
Because in my previous life, I did not practice penance and intense meditation. ||1||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Sriraag / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 92
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.
Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating against anyone by gender, class or caste and they included even people from humble origins like
Why do people believe that global warming is man made?
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.
ਮਰਤੀ ਬਾਰ ਮਗਹਰਿ ਉਠਿ ਆਇਆ ॥੨॥
For many years, I practiced penance and intense meditation at Kaashi;
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You are totally pervading and permeating in all.
I am like a fish out of water,
ਬਹੁਤੁ ਬਰਸ ਤਪੁ ਕੀਆ ਕਾਸੀ ॥
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ
Sain (a barber)
I wasted my whole life in the city of Shiva;
What thing happened to you as a child that you haven’t let go of to this day?
ਏਕ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰ ਲੇ ਰਿਦੈ ਨਮਸਕਾਰਉ ॥੩॥
I have searched through all the Vedas and the Puraanas.
ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ਪੰਚਪਦੇ ॥
Why is our generation so unhappy?
Ramarchan Paddati gives more info about his teachings.
From Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 1195
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven. ||4||10||
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
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.
Sant Kabir was staunchly against cow slaughter.
How can they kill the mother, whose milk they drink like that of a wet nurse?
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If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage,
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.
Ravidas (a chamar shoemaker)
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
NOW…
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ । तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मन इति ।
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.
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Says Kabeer, this is what I say:
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Where the demi-gods and the munis are unnumbered, where millions of Saraswatis, goddess of music play the vina,
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Where should I go? My home is filled with bliss.
ਬ੍ਰਹਮ is Brahm i.e the Brahman of vedanta but it gets interpreted as an all-pervading lord god.
Says Kabeer, the Guru and Ganaysha and Shiva all know
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I serve the One Lord, and not any other. ||2||
ਕਬੀਰ ਨਿਰਗੁਣ ਨਾਮ ਨ ਰੋਸੁ ॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਜੀ ਘਰੁ ੧
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ਪੂਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਹਉ ਤਪ ਕਾ ਹੀਨਾ ॥੧॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਕਾਟੈ ਕੋਟਿ ਕਰਮ ॥੩॥੧॥
You have cut through all my confusion and doubt.
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.
He who has highest Bhakti of Deva (God), just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
At the time of my death, I moved to Magahar. ||2||
I do not perform Hindu worship services, nor do I offer the Muslim prayers.
The Word of the Guru's Shabad eradicates the karma of millions of past actions. ||3||1||
— Kabir, Ramaini 1, Translated by David Lorenzen
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
ਕਤ ਜਾਈਐ ਰੇ ਘਰ ਲਾਗੋ ਰੰਗੁ ॥
Meeting with the Guru, my Spiritual Teacher, I realize God, my Lord and Master. ||5||3||
As long as the mind is filled with the desire for heaven,
ਅਲਹ ਰਾਮ ਕੇ ਪਿੰਡੁ ਪਰਾਨ ॥੪॥
ਨਾ ਹਮ ਹਿੰਦੂ ਨ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਨ ॥
There is my Lord self-revealed, and the scent of sandal and flowers dwells in those deeps.
I left Benares - I had little common sense. ||1|| Pause ||
ਮਰਨੁ ਭਇਆ ਮਗਹਰ ਕੀ ਬਾਸੀ ॥੩॥
ਸੋ ਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਬਤਾਇਓ ਗੁਰ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ॥੧॥
Recklessly they display boundless pride while explaining their own aims, they kill cows.
Where millions of Shivas are lost in contemplation, where millions of Indras dwell in the sky,
Kabeer: O worthless mortal, do not lose the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
Again we see that the originator of this Sant Sampraday himself talks about Brahman even in Gurbani.
ਘਸਿ ਚੰਦਨ ਚੋਆ ਬਹੁ ਸੁਗੰਧ ॥
ਪੂਜਨ ਚਾਲੀ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ਠਾਇ ॥
Look within your heart, for there you will find both Karim and Ram;
We have searched the turaki Dharam (Turk's religion, Islam), these teachers throw many thunderbolts,
ਕੈਸੇ ਬੂਝੈ ਜਬ ਮੋਹਿਆ ਹੈ ਮਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Where spring, the lord of seasons reigneth, there the unstruck music sounds of itself,
If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?
ਓਛੀ ਭਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰੀ ॥੪॥
Kabir (a weaver)
I ground up sandalwood, along with several fragrant oils.
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 326
There, where millions of Krishnas stand with hands folded,
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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.
I went to God's place, and worshipped Him there.
ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰਉ ਨ ਨਿਵਾਜ ਗੁਜਾਰਉ ॥
Now that my time to die has come, I have come to dwell at Magahar! ||3||
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮੈ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੀ ਤੋਰ ॥
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.
He accepted even women (Sursuri and Padywati) as disciples. Bhagat Pipa and Dhanna were Rajput and Jat who were also his disciples.
Let’s look at the most used verse by McSikhs to show that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.
Sikhism is a NIRGUN path descending from the Sant Sampraday of Ramanandacharya and traces its ideas to VEDANTA!
— Kabir, II.57, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
To him who is high-minded, these teachings will be illuminating.
ਏਕੋ ਸੇਵੀ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ॥੨॥
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With inadequate devotion, how can anyone swim across? ||4||
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
But we have actually seen how much Kabir is also rooted in the Vedantic concept of “supreme realization” but in a non-mainstream path.
ਤੂ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਹੈ ਸਭ ਸਮਾਨ ॥
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.
ਜਿਨਿ ਸਕਲ ਬਿਕਲ ਭ੍ਰਮ ਕਾਟੇ ਮੋਰ ॥
Says Kabeer, unto whom should I tell this?
ਅਬ ਕਹੁ ਰਾਮ ਕਵਨ ਗਤਿ ਮੋਰੀ ॥
Let's look at the views of Sant Kabir
ਏਕ ਦਿਵਸ ਮਨ ਭਈ ਉਮੰਗ ॥
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.
ਤਜੀ ਲੇ ਬਨਾਰਸ ਮਤਿ ਭਈ ਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹੁ ਕੀਆ ਵਖਾਨਾ ॥
ਕਾਸੀ ਮਗਹਰ ਸਮ ਬੀਚਾਰੀ ॥
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
All the men and women of the world are His living forms.
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He does not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||3||
ਜਿਉ ਜਲ ਛੋਡਿ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਭਇਓ ਮੀਨਾ ॥
I am a sacrifice to You, O my True Guru.
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!
That Kabeer died chanting the Lord's Name. ||5||15||
ਕਹੁ ਕਬੀਰ ਇਹ ਕਹੀਐ ਕਾਹਿ ॥
I do not make pilgrimages to Mecca, nor do I worship at Hindu sacred shrines.
Let’s see what Gurbani has about Ramanandacharya’s views.
There the streams of light flow in all directions, few are the men who can cross to that shore!
I would go there, only if the Lord were not here. ||2||
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
Kabir, Ravidas and ultimately the NINE SIKH GURUS are a product of this very Sant Sampraday founded by Ramanandacharya!
I have taken the One Formless Lord into my heart; I humbly worship Him there. ||3||
Bhagat Kabir ji / Raag Gauri / / Guru Granth Sahib ji - Ang 325
ਤਬ ਲਗੁ ਹੋਇ ਨਹੀ ਚਰਨ ਨਿਵਾਸੁ ॥੩॥
— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Raamaanand Jee, First House:
These morons know nothing, they wander about in ignorance,
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.
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.
One day, a desire welled up in my mind.
Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6.23)
Wherever I go, I find water and stones.
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Now tell me, Lord, what will my condition be?
ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਸਭ ਦੇਖੇ ਜੋਇ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪੀਰ ਮਿਲਿ ਖੁਦਿ ਖਸਮੁ ਪਛਾਨਾ ॥੫॥੩॥
CONCLUSION:
My body and breath of life belong to Allah - to Raam - the God of both. ||4||
Now here in this verse
ਜਬ ਲਗੁ ਮਨਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠ ਕੀ ਆਸ ॥
Raamaanand's Lord and Master is the All-pervading Lord God.
Sadhna (a Muslim butcher) and
ਊਹਾਂ ਤਉ ਜਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਈਹਾਂ ਨ ਹੋਇ ॥੨॥
ਰਾਮਾਨੰਦ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਰਮਤ ਬ੍ਰਹਮ ॥
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…
ਮੁਆ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਰਮਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਰਾਮੈ ॥੫॥੧੫॥
So in the same spirit Kabir finds pilgrimages to holy cities futile as his mind is fixated on Rama!
Gauree, Kabeer Jee, Panch-Padas:
That God showed me the Guru, within my own mind. ||1||
Kabir is the child of Allah and of Ram: He is my Guru, He is my Pir.
Hari is in the East, Allah is in the West.
Kaashi and Magahar - I consider them the same.
ਸਗਲ ਜਨਮੁ ਸਿਵ ਪੁਰੀ ਗਵਾਇਆ ॥
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.
ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਨ ਚਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਭਇਓ ਪੰਗੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Here ਨਿਰਗੁਣ is Nirgun and not just lord. This is just another example to show that Kabir himself continued in the NIRGUN BHAKTI path.
How can people understand You, when they are entranced by Maya? ||1|| Pause ||
Where millions of Vishnus bow their heads, where millions of Brahmas are reading the Vedas,
ਕਹੁ ਗੁਰ ਗਜ ਸਿਵ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਜਾਨੈ ॥
ਹਜ ਕਾਬੈ ਜਾਉ ਨ ਤੀਰਥ ਪੂਜਾ ॥
then who is there to know what happens without?
ਜਹਾ ਜਾਈਐ ਤਹ ਜਲ ਪਖਾਨ ॥
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਬੈਕੁੰਠੈ ਆਹਿ ॥੪॥੧੦॥
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.
I am not a Hindu, nor am I a Muslim.
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥