Short answer
The Guru Granth Sahib, which Sikhs honour as their living Guru, says two things about Muslims. Guru Nanak praises the sincere Muslim and turns the five prayers into five virtues. Guru Arjan says he keeps no fast or Ramadan, goes on no Hajj and offers no namaz, the Muslim prayer. The Bhagat (devotee) Kabir, whose hymns are in the Granth, questions Muslim prayer, fasting and pilgrimage. Islam agrees that worship without a sincere heart is empty, and the Qur'an says so itself. It differs on one point. Islam holds that God (﷾) Himself commanded the prayer, the fast and the Hajj, so no later teacher can set them aside. The real question is whose word is God's (﷾), and the Qur'an asks to be tested.
Full explanation
Guru Nanak: what makes a true Muslim
Guru Nanak (Sikhs say Guru Nanak Dev Ji) speaks of the Muslim in Var Majh, a set of verses in the Guru Granth Sahib. Verses are cited by Ang, a page of its standard 1,430-page edition. These are on Ang 140 and 141. He says it is hard to be a true Muslim, and that the name belongs to the one who is kind to all. He then takes the parts of Muslim practice and gives each a meaning of conduct. The mosque becomes kindness, the prayer-carpet sincerity and the fast civility. The Kaaba becomes right conduct, and the creed and prayer become good works. The five prayers become truth, what is right, charity, good intentions and the praise of God (﷾). These lines redefine Muslim practice. In them the Guru does not tell the reader to pray namaz, and he does not call it false.
“To be a Musalman is difficult; if one be really so, then one may be called a Musalman. Let one first love the religion of saints, and put aside pride and pelf as the file removeth rust. Let him accept the religion of his pilots, and dismiss anxiety regarding death or life; Let him heartily obey the will of God, worship the Creator, and efface himself— When he is kind to all men, then Nanak, shall he be indeed a Musalman.”
“Make kindness thy mosque, sincerity thy prayer-carpet, what is just and lawful thy Quran, Modesty thy circumcision, civility thy fasting, so shalt thou be a Musalman; Make right conduct thy Kaaba, truth thy spiritual guide, good works thy creed and thy prayer, The will of God thy rosary, and God will preserve thine honour, O Nanak.”
“There are five prayers, five times for prayer, and five names for them— The first should be truth, the second what is right, the third charity in God's name, The fourth good intentions, the fifth the praise and glory of God.”
Guru Arjan: no fast, no Ramadan, no Hajj, no namaz
Ang 1136 is in Raga Bhairao, a musical mode, in the section of Guru Arjan. The hymn is given whole here. Its speaker says he keeps no fast and no Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting. He goes on no pilgrimage to Mecca, and he neither worships as the Hindus nor prays as the Muslims. He serves the one Formless God (﷾) in his heart. He says that God (﷾) judges Hindus and Muslims alike, and that he is neither a Hindu nor a Muslim. The hymn closes by naming Kabir, and Macauliffe heads it as written on a theme of Kabir. Its Gurmukhi has the word Allah in the line Macauliffe renders as "my God". This page does not soften the hymn.
“I practise not fasting, nor observe the Ramzan: I serve Him who will preserve me at the last hour. The one Lord of the earth is my God, Who judgeth both Hindus and Musalmans. I go not on a pilgrimage to Makka, nor worship at Hindu places of pilgrimages. I serve the one God and none other. I neither worship as the Hindus, nor pray as the Musalmans. I take the Formless God into my heart, and there make obeisance unto Him. I am neither a Hindu nor a Musalman. The soul and body belong to God whether He be called Allah or Ram. Kabir hath delivered this lecture. When I meet a true guru or pir, I recognize my own Master.”
Kabir: the mosque, the month, the prayer and the pilgrimage
The Bhagat (devotee) Kabir was not one of the ten Gurus, but his hymns are in the Guru Granth Sahib. At Ang 1349 he asks where Allah (﷾) lives, if He lives only in the mosque. He sets the Hindu's "south" and the Muslim's "west" against searching the heart. He says the Muslims fast one month and set aside the other eleven. At Ang 1350 he asks what the mosque and the pilgrimage to Mecca are worth when the heart holds deceit. The same hymn asks why people kill birds if God (﷾) is in everything. And it ends with a stern verdict on the priest it speaks to. At Ang 1374 he asks why the mullah climbs the minaret. At Ang 1375 he tells of God (﷾) asking him, on the road to Mecca, who ordered him to go there. In the same group of couplets, he warns those who kill by force and call it lawful.
“If God dwell only in the mosque, to whom belongeth the rest of the country? They who are called Hindus say that God dwelleth in an idol: I see not the truth in either sect. O God, whether Allah or Ram, I live by Thy name, O Lord, show kindness unto me. Hari dwelleth in the south, Allah hath His place in the west. Search in thy heart, search in thy heart of hearts; there is His place and abode. The Brahmans yearly perform twenty-four fastings on the eleventh day of the dark and light halves of the lunar month; the Musalmans fast in the month of Ramzan. The latter put aside eleven months of the year, and say that the Treasure is in one alone. What availeth the Hindus to bathe at Jagannath in Urisa (Orissa), what the Musalmans to bow their heads in a mosque? With deception in their hearts they repeat prayers; what availeth them to go on a pilgrimage to Makka?”
“What avail thy purifications, thy rinsings of the mouth, and thy prostrations in the mosque? If thou pray with deception in thy heart, what availeth thee thy pilgrimage to Makka?”
“Say not that the Hindu and Musalman books are false; false is he who reflecteth not on them. If you say that the one God is in everything, then why kill fowls?”
“Kabir, why, O Mulla, ascendest thou the minaret? the Lord is not deaf: Search within thy heart for Him for whose sake thou callest to prayer.”
“Kabir, I was going on a pilgrimage to the Kaaba, and I met God on the way; The Lord fell a-quarrelling with me, 'Who ordered thee to go to that place?'”
In a couplet of the Bhagat Kabir, who is in the Guru Granth Sahib and was not one of the ten Gurus, he asks what will become of those who kill living beings by force and call it lawful (halal) when God calls for their account. The next couplet says that using force is tyranny and that the Lord will call the doer to account.
Two more groups of hymns, named so that nothing is hidden
At Ang 477, one hymn of Kabir argues that a mark on the body cannot make a person a Muslim. It tells the Qazi, a Muslim judge, to leave his books and remember the Lord. And it ends with a harsh verdict on the Muslims. Guru Nanak also has hymns on the invasion of Babur, at Ang 360, 417-418 and 722-723. They grieve over the killing and ruin it brought. In them he names Hindu women and Muslim women together among those who suffered. This page quotes none of the Ang 477 hymn, and only summarises the Babur hymns. It answers both below.
In a hymn of the Bhagat Kabir, whose hymns are in the Guru Granth Sahib, he asks where Hindus and Muslims came from and who set them on their different paths. He argues that a bodily mark cannot make a person a Muslim. He tells the Qazi to leave his books and remember the Lord. The hymn ends with a harsh verdict on the Muslims.
Guru Nanak's hymns on the invasion of Babur lament the killing and ruin it brought. At Ang 360 he says Babur attacked Khurasan and terrified Hindustan. At Ang 417-418 he describes the ruin of the great houses and names Hindu women, Muslim women, Bhattis and Rajputs together among those who suffered. At Ang 722-723 he says Babur came from Kabul as with a wedding party of sin, that modesty and righteousness had vanished, and that the Muslim women read the Kateb and call on God in their misery.
Three kinds of lines, and what each does
The lines fall into three kinds. Guru Nanak's lines give each part of Muslim practice a new meaning as a virtue. They say the name Muslim belongs to those who are kind and sincere. Guru Arjan's hymn is the plainest, because its speaker keeps none of the four acts for himself. Most of Kabir's questions about prayer and Hajj depend on a condition: they ask what these are worth when the heart holds deceit. His couplet on the road to Mecca does not, and nor do his line on Ramadan and his lines on slaughter. Reading them together shows what is in the text and what is not. Guru Arjan sets these acts aside for himself, and Sikhs follow the Gurus' way. In one hymn Kabir says not to call the books false (Ang 1350). In another he tells the Qazi to leave them (Ang 477). None of these lines calls the Qur'an false.
“Make kindness thy mosque, sincerity thy prayer-carpet, what is just and lawful thy Quran, Modesty thy circumcision, civility thy fasting, so shalt thou be a Musalman; Make right conduct thy Kaaba, truth thy spiritual guide, good works thy creed and thy prayer, The will of God thy rosary, and God will preserve thine honour, O Nanak.”
“I practise not fasting, nor observe the Ramzan: I serve Him who will preserve me at the last hour. The one Lord of the earth is my God, Who judgeth both Hindus and Musalmans. I go not on a pilgrimage to Makka, nor worship at Hindu places of pilgrimages. I serve the one God and none other. I neither worship as the Hindus, nor pray as the Musalmans. I take the Formless God into my heart, and there make obeisance unto Him. I am neither a Hindu nor a Musalman. The soul and body belong to God whether He be called Allah or Ram. Kabir hath delivered this lecture. When I meet a true guru or pir, I recognize my own Master.”
“What avail thy purifications, thy rinsings of the mouth, and thy prostrations in the mosque? If thou pray with deception in thy heart, what availeth thee thy pilgrimage to Makka?”
“If God dwell only in the mosque, to whom belongeth the rest of the country? They who are called Hindus say that God dwelleth in an idol: I see not the truth in either sect. O God, whether Allah or Ram, I live by Thy name, O Lord, show kindness unto me. Hari dwelleth in the south, Allah hath His place in the west. Search in thy heart, search in thy heart of hearts; there is His place and abode. The Brahmans yearly perform twenty-four fastings on the eleventh day of the dark and light halves of the lunar month; the Musalmans fast in the month of Ramzan. The latter put aside eleven months of the year, and say that the Treasure is in one alone. What availeth the Hindus to bathe at Jagannath in Urisa (Orissa), what the Musalmans to bow their heads in a mosque? With deception in their hearts they repeat prayers; what availeth them to go on a pilgrimage to Makka?”
“Say not that the Hindu and Musalman books are false; false is he who reflecteth not on them. If you say that the one God is in everything, then why kill fowls?”
Islam agrees: worship without the heart is empty
The Qur'an makes this point itself. It says righteousness is not only turning the face to east or west. It is belief, giving to those in need, steadfast prayer and keeping promises, all together (2:177). It pronounces woe on worshippers who neglect their prayers and want only to be seen (107:4-7). It says the meat and blood of the sacrifice do not reach Allah (﷾), but piety does (22:37). It tells those who say "we believe" that faith must enter the heart (49:14). The Prophet (ﷺ) said that Allah (﷾) looks at hearts and deeds (Muslim 2564). Guru Nanak and Kabir warn against hollow worship, and so does Islam.
“It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces Towards east or West; but it is righteousness- to believe in Allah and the Last Day, and the Angels, and the Book, and the Messengers; to spend of your substance, out of love for Him, for your kin, for orphans, for the needy, for the wayfarer, for those who ask, and for the ransom of slaves; to be steadfast in prayer, and practice regular charity; to fulfil the contracts which ye have made; and to be firm and patient, in pain (or suffering) and adversity, and throughout all periods of panic. Such are the people of truth, the Allah-fearing.”
“So woe to the worshippers Who are neglectful of their prayers, Those who (want but) to be seen (of men), But refuse (to supply) (even) neighbourly needs.”
“It is not their meat nor their blood, that reaches Allah: it is your piety that reaches Him: He has thus made them subject to you, that ye may glorify Allah for His Guidance to you and proclaim the good news to all who do right.”
“The desert Arabs say, "We believe." Say, "Ye have no faith; but ye (only) say, 'We have submitted our wills to Allah,' For not yet has Faith entered your hearts. But if ye obey Allah and His Messenger, He will not belittle aught of your deeds: for Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."”
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: Allah does not look at your faces or your wealth, but He looks at your hearts and your deeds.
Where Islam differs: God (﷾) commanded the acts
Islam does not offer prayer, fasting and Hajj as options. The Qur'an says to be steadfast in prayer (2:110) and that prayers are enjoined on believers at stated times (4:103). It says fasting is prescribed (2:183). It calls the pilgrimage to the Sacred House a duty men owe to Allah (﷾), for those who can afford the journey (3:97). On this reading no teacher can set these aside, however sincere. Kabir has God (﷾) ask who ordered him to go to Mecca. The Qur'an gives an answer: Allah (﷾) ordered the pilgrimage (3:97). So the difference is not sincerity against ritual. It is whose word is God's (﷾). If God (﷾) did command these acts, a later teacher cannot cancel them. If He did not, the Qur'an is not His word. The Qur'an asks to be tested on that.
“And be steadfast in prayer and regular in charity: And whatever good ye send forth for your souls before you, ye shall find it with Allah: for Allah sees Well all that ye do.”
“When ye pass (Congregational) prayers, celebrate Allah's praises, standing, sitting down, or lying down on your sides; but when ye are free from danger, set up Regular Prayers: For such prayers are enjoined on believers at stated times.”
“O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint,-”
“In it are Signs Manifest; (for example), the Station of Abraham; whoever enters it attains security; Pilgrimage thereto is a duty men owe to Allah,- those who can afford the journey; but if any deny faith, Allah stands not in need of any of His creatures.”
“Kabir, I was going on a pilgrimage to the Kaaba, and I met God on the way; The Lord fell a-quarrelling with me, 'Who ordered thee to go to that place?'”
Each act carries its own inner aim
The Qur'an joins the outward act to the inward aim. Prayer restrains from shameful and unjust deeds (29:45). Fasting is prescribed so that people may learn self-restraint (2:183). On Hajj the best provision is right conduct (2:197), and what reaches Allah (﷾) from the sacrifice is piety (22:37). This is Islam as a whole way of life, with belief, worship and character together. It answers Kabir's questions. The call to prayer is addressed to the believers. On Friday they are told to hasten to the remembrance of Allah (﷾) when it is proclaimed (62:9). Ramadan is one month inside a year of remembrance, because believers are told to remember Allah (﷾) often (33:41) and in every posture (3:190-191). Muslims face the Sacred Mosque as a direction (2:144). Wherever one turns is the presence of Allah (2:115), and He says, "I am indeed close" (2:186).
“Recite what is sent of the Book by inspiration to thee, and establish regular Prayer: for Prayer restrains from shameful and unjust deeds; and remembrance of Allah is the greatest (thing in life) without doubt. And Allah knows the (deeds) that ye do.”
“O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint,-”
“For Hajj are the months well known. If any one undertakes that duty therein, Let there be no obscenity, nor wickedness, nor wrangling in the Hajj. And whatever good ye do, (be sure) Allah knoweth it. And take a provision (With you) for the journey, but the best of provisions is right conduct. So fear Me, o ye that are wise.”
“It is not their meat nor their blood, that reaches Allah: it is your piety that reaches Him: He has thus made them subject to you, that ye may glorify Allah for His Guidance to you and proclaim the good news to all who do right.”
“O ye who believe! When the call is proclaimed to prayer on Friday (the Day of Assembly), hasten earnestly to the Remembrance of Allah, and leave off business (and traffic): That is best for you if ye but knew!”
“O ye who believe! Celebrate the praises of Allah, and do this often;”
“Behold! in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day,- there are indeed Signs for men of understanding,- Men who celebrate the praises of Allah, standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and contemplate the (wonders of) creation in the heavens and the earth, (With the thought): "Our Lord! not for naught Hast Thou created (all) this! Glory to Thee! Give us salvation from the penalty of the Fire.”
“We see the turning of thy face (for guidance to the heavens: now Shall We turn thee to a Qibla that shall please thee. Turn then Thy face in the direction of the sacred Mosque: Wherever ye are, turn your faces in that direction. The people of the Book know well that that is the truth from their Lord. Nor is Allah unmindful of what they do.”
“To Allah belong the east and the West: Whithersoever ye turn, there is the presence of Allah. For Allah is all-Pervading, all-Knowing.”
“When My servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them): I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me: Let them also, with a will, Listen to My call, and believe in Me: That they may walk in the right way.”
Kabir's invitation: reflect on the books
Kabir says not to call the books false, and that false is the one who does not reflect on them. He puts the Vedas (the Hindu scriptures) and the Kateb (the books of the Jews, Christians and Muslims) on the same footing. He asks for reflection, not acceptance. In another hymn he tells the Qazi to leave his books and remember the Lord (Ang 477). Islam takes the invitation to reflect seriously, and its answer to the second is the same: read the book before leaving it. The Qur'an asks readers whether they consider it with care, and says a book from other than Allah (﷾) would hold much discrepancy (4:82). It asks whether their hearts are locked against it (47:24). Islam asks the reader to read the Qur'an and test it, not to take it on trust. The pages on the Gurus' word, on testing a scripture and on the last Prophet (ﷺ) set out how.
“Say not that the Hindu and Musalman books are false; false is he who reflecteth not on them. If you say that the one God is in everything, then why kill fowls?”
In a hymn of the Bhagat Kabir, whose hymns are in the Guru Granth Sahib, he asks where Hindus and Muslims came from and who set them on their different paths. He argues that a bodily mark cannot make a person a Muslim. He tells the Qazi to leave his books and remember the Lord. The hymn ends with a harsh verdict on the Muslims.
“Do they not consider the Qur'an (with care)? Had it been from other Than Allah, they would surely have found therein Much discrepancy.”
“Do they not then earnestly seek to understand the Qur'an, or are their hearts locked up by them?”
Line by line
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1136 — Raga Bhairao, Guru Arjan
“I practise not fasting, nor observe the Ramzan: I serve Him who will preserve me at the last hour. The one Lord of the earth is my God, Who judgeth both Hindus and Musalmans. I go not on a pilgrimage to Makka, nor worship at Hindu places of pilgrimages. I serve the one God and none other. I neither worship as the Hindus, nor pray as the Musalmans. I take the Formless God into my heart, and there make obeisance unto Him. I am neither a Hindu nor a Musalman. The soul and body belong to God whether He be called Allah or Ram. Kabir hath delivered this lecture. When I meet a true guru or pir, I recognize my own Master.”
Cited for
Guru Arjan says he keeps no fast, no Ramadan and no Hajj and offers no namaz, so the Granth sets Muslim worship aside.
The response
That is what the hymn says, and Islam does not hide it. The answer is about authority. The Qur'an says God (﷾) commanded the prayer (2:110; 4:103), the fast (2:183) and the Hajj (3:97), so on Islam's reading no teacher can cancel them. Whether the Qur'an is God's (﷾) word is a question to test, not to assume (4:82).
Where it lands — The hymn shows that the Guru chose another way of worship. It does not show that God (﷾) cancelled His commands, and that is the point to test.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 140 — Raga Majh (Var Majh), Guru Nanak
“Make kindness thy mosque, sincerity thy prayer-carpet, what is just and lawful thy Quran, Modesty thy circumcision, civility thy fasting, so shalt thou be a Musalman; Make right conduct thy Kaaba, truth thy spiritual guide, good works thy creed and thy prayer, The will of God thy rosary, and God will preserve thine honour, O Nanak.”
Cited for
A true Muslim is known by kindness, sincerity and honest living, so the outward forms are not what counts.
The response
Islam agrees these matter, and puts them in the same verse as prayer and charity (2:177). The Qur'an does not choose between the two. Prayer, the fast and the Hajj each carry an inner aim (29:45; 2:183; 2:197).
Where it lands — In Islam the inner and the outer are both required. The Guru's lines redefine the forms, and the Qur'an joins them.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1349 — Raga Prabhati, the Bhagat Kabir
“If God dwell only in the mosque, to whom belongeth the rest of the country? They who are called Hindus say that God dwelleth in an idol: I see not the truth in either sect. O God, whether Allah or Ram, I live by Thy name, O Lord, show kindness unto me. Hari dwelleth in the south, Allah hath His place in the west. Search in thy heart, search in thy heart of hearts; there is His place and abode. The Brahmans yearly perform twenty-four fastings on the eleventh day of the dark and light halves of the lunar month; the Musalmans fast in the month of Ramzan. The latter put aside eleven months of the year, and say that the Treasure is in one alone. What availeth the Hindus to bathe at Jagannath in Urisa (Orissa), what the Musalmans to bow their heads in a mosque? With deception in their hearts they repeat prayers; what availeth them to go on a pilgrimage to Makka?”
Cited for
The Muslims fast one month and set aside eleven, as if the treasure were in one alone. They put Allah in the mosque or in the west.
The response
No Islamic teaching puts God (﷾) only in a mosque or in the west. Wherever one turns is the presence of Allah (2:115), and He says, "I am indeed close" (2:186). Believers are told to remember Him often (33:41) and standing, sitting and lying down (3:190-191). The qibla is a direction (2:144), and righteousness is not in turning to east or west (2:177).
Where it lands — Ramadan is one month inside a year of remembrance, and the Qur'an does not shut God (﷾) into a place.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1350 — Raga Prabhati, the Bhagat Kabir
“What avail thy purifications, thy rinsings of the mouth, and thy prostrations in the mosque? If thou pray with deception in thy heart, what availeth thee thy pilgrimage to Makka?”
Cited for
Prayer, bowing in the mosque and the pilgrimage are worth nothing when the heart holds deceit.
The response
Islam says the same of showy prayer (107:4-7) and teaches that Allah (﷾) looks at hearts and deeds (Muslim 2564). The Qur'an adds that the best provision for Hajj is right conduct (2:197). The warning is against hypocrisy, which Islam also condemns.
Where it lands — The charge lands on hypocrisy, which both condemn. It does not touch the practice itself.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1374 — Salok Kabir, the Bhagat Kabir
“Kabir, why, O Mulla, ascendest thou the minaret? the Lord is not deaf: Search within thy heart for Him for whose sake thou callest to prayer.”
Cited for
Why does the mullah climb the minaret? The Lord is not deaf.
The response
The call to prayer is not made to inform God (﷾). It summons the believers: on Friday they are told to hasten to the remembrance of Allah (﷾) when it is proclaimed (62:9). Prayer is itself a remembrance that restrains from wrong (29:45).
Where it lands — The call is addressed to people, not to a God who needs to hear it.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1375 — Salok Kabir, the Bhagat Kabir
“Kabir, I was going on a pilgrimage to the Kaaba, and I met God on the way; The Lord fell a-quarrelling with me, 'Who ordered thee to go to that place?'”
Cited for
God met Kabir on the road to Mecca and asked who ordered him to go there.
The response
The Qur'an answers that Allah (﷾) ordered the pilgrimage: it is a duty men owe to Allah (﷾), for those who can afford the journey (3:97). Another English translation reads the question as "Who told you that I am only there?". Islam agrees with that too, because wherever one turns is the presence of Allah (2:115).
Where it lands — On either reading the line is met. God (﷾) commanded the Hajj, and He is not only at the Kaaba.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 1350 — Raga Prabhati, the Bhagat Kabir
“Say not that the Hindu and Musalman books are false; false is he who reflecteth not on them. If you say that the one God is in everything, then why kill fowls?”
Cited for
If you say the one God is in everything, why kill fowls? Those who kill by force and call it lawful will answer to God.
The response
Islam does not teach that God (﷾) is in His creatures, because nothing is like Him (42:11). It makes cattle lawful as food (16:5) and commands that slaughter be done well: a sharp blade, and the animal spared needless suffering (Muslim 1955). The page on kindness to animals gives the detail.
Where it lands — Islam allows eating animals and commands kindness in how it is done. The question is aimed at the belief that God (﷾) is in everything.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 477 — Raga Asa, the Bhagat Kabir
In a hymn of the Bhagat Kabir, whose hymns are in the Guru Granth Sahib, he asks where Hindus and Muslims came from and who set them on their different paths. He argues that a bodily mark cannot make a person a Muslim. He tells the Qazi to leave his books and remember the Lord. The hymn ends with a harsh verdict on the Muslims.
Cited for
A bodily mark cannot make a person a Muslim, the Qazi should leave his books, and the Muslims have failed.
The response
Islam agrees that no mark makes a Muslim. The first pillar is the declaration of faith (Bukhari 8), and the Qur'an says that faith must enter the heart (49:14). Circumcision is part of the natural way (fitra) the Prophet (ﷺ) taught (Bukhari 5889), but it is not what makes a person a Muslim. On leaving the books, the Qur'an asks to be considered with care and tested before anyone leaves it (4:82; 47:24).
Where it lands — Islam judges by faith and deeds, not by a mark or a name.
Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 360, 417-418 and 722-723 — Raga Asa and Raga Tilang, Guru Nanak
Guru Nanak's hymns on the invasion of Babur lament the killing and ruin it brought. At Ang 360 he says Babur attacked Khurasan and terrified Hindustan. At Ang 417-418 he describes the ruin of the great houses and names Hindu women, Muslim women, Bhattis and Rajputs together among those who suffered. At Ang 722-723 he says Babur came from Kabul as with a wedding party of sin, that modesty and righteousness had vanished, and that the Muslim women read the Kateb and call on God in their misery.
Cited for
Guru Nanak laments the cruelty of an invading Muslim army, and the Granth records it.
The response
Islam does not defend an invader's cruelty. Its written law allows fighting only against those who fight, and forbids transgressing limits (2:190). The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade the killing of women and children (Bukhari 3015; Muslim 1744). The Guru's own hymn names Hindu and Muslim women together among the victims.
Where it lands — A ruler's crime is judged by the law he broke, and does not judge the law.
Perspectives
Sikh: the Guru Granth Sahib puts the heart above outward form
Sikhs read the Guru Granth Sahib as teaching that God is met in a sincere heart and a good life. They do not look for Him in a mosque, a month or a journey. Guru Nanak, Guru Arjan and the Bhagat Kabir are cited for this.
Guru Nanak says a true Muslim is the one who is kind to all. He turns the mosque, the prayer-carpet and the five prayers into virtues.
Rebuttal
That is what the lines say. The Qur'an asks for the same inner standard and puts it beside prayer and charity in one verse. It does not trade the forms for the virtues.
Guru Arjan says he keeps no fast, no Ramadan and no Hajj and offers no namaz. He serves the one Formless God in his heart.
Rebuttal
The hymn says this, and it is not softened here. Islam's answer is about authority: God (﷾) Himself commanded prayer, fasting and Hajj. Whether the Qur'an is His word is a question to test.
The hymn says God judges Hindus and Muslims alike, and that its speaker is neither. So the label matters less than the Lord.
Rebuttal
Islam agrees that God (﷾) is Master of the Day of Judgment. It adds that messengers came so that no one would have a plea against Him. So the question is where His guidance is found.
Kabir says Allah is not only in the mosque, or in the west. And he says the Muslims set aside eleven months for one.
Rebuttal
Islam does not shut God (﷾) into a place either: wherever one turns is His presence. The Qur'an tells believers to remember Him often, so Ramadan is not the only time.
Kabir says prayer, the mosque and the Hajj are worth nothing when the heart holds deceit.
Rebuttal
True, and the Qur'an says it first: woe to worshippers who pray to be seen. The warning is against hypocrisy, not against the prayer or the pilgrimage.
Kabir asks why the mullah climbs the minaret when the Lord is not deaf.
Rebuttal
The call to prayer is not made to inform God (﷾). It summons the believers: on Friday they are told to hasten to the remembrance of Allah (﷾) when it is proclaimed (62:9).
Kabir says God stopped him on the road to Mecca and asked who ordered him to go there.
Rebuttal
The Qur'an answers that Allah (﷾) ordered it, as a duty for those who can afford the journey. Another translation, "Who told you that I am only there?", also meets the Qur'an: God (﷾) is not only there.
Kabir asks why people kill fowls if God is in everything. He warns that those who kill by force and call it lawful will answer to God.
Rebuttal
Islam does not teach that God (﷾) is in His creatures. It makes cattle lawful food and commands that slaughter be done well: a sharp blade, and the animal spared needless suffering.
One hymn of Kabir says a bodily mark cannot make a Muslim and tells the Qazi to leave his books. It ends by saying the Muslims have failed.
Rebuttal
Islam agrees that no mark makes a Muslim. The first pillar is the declaration of faith, and faith must enter the heart. Circumcision is part of the natural way (fitra) the Prophet (ﷺ) taught. But it is not what makes a person a Muslim. As for the books, the Qur'an asks readers to think about it with care before they leave it.
Guru Nanak grieves over the cruelty of Babur's invading army. And his hymns name Hindu and Muslim women together among those who suffered.
Rebuttal
Islam does not defend an invader's cruelty. Its law forbids killing women and children and any transgression of limits. A ruler's crime is judged by the law he broke.
The Islamic perspective
Islam agrees that worship without a sincere heart is empty. It holds that God (﷾) Himself commanded prayer, fasting and Hajj, each with an inner aim. So the question between the Guru Granth Sahib and the Qur'an is whose word is God's (﷾). The Qur'an asks to be tested.
The Qur'an joins faith, charity and prayer in one verse, and it condemns prayer made to be seen.
The Prophet (ﷺ) taught that Allah (﷾) looks at hearts and deeds, so no outward act replaces a sincere heart.
The Qur'an says that prayer at stated times, fasting and the pilgrimage are commanded by God (﷾).
In the Qur'an, each act has an inner aim. Prayer holds a person back from wrong. Fasting teaches self-control. And the best provision for Hajj is right conduct.
The Qur'an asks to be thought about with care, and tested for contradictions. In the same way Kabir invites readers to think about the books.