The Sant tradition stands in a relationship to Hinduism that is at once intimate and critical, rooted and yet boundary‑crossing. Many of the Sants arose within Hindu cultural settings and drew deeply from existing bhakti currents, especially those centered on a personal relationship with the divine. Their compositions employ recognizably Hindu vocabulary—names such as Ram, Hari, Govind, Vitthala, and concepts like karma, dharma, moksha, and rebirth—while frequently reinterpreting these terms in light of an inner, experiential devotion. Practices such as bhajan, kirtan, satsang, and the formation of sangats show how closely their devotional life resonated with broader Hindu patterns. Figures like Namdev remained closely linked with specific Hindu devotional centers, such as the Vithoba tradition at Pandharpur, and many Sant hymns continue to be preserved and sung within Hindu temples and bhakti lineages. In this sense, the Sant current can be seen as a reformist stream flowing within the wider river of Hindu religiosity.

At the same time, the Sants articulated a powerful critique of what they perceived as the limitations of mainstream Hindu practice and social order. They emphasized nirguna bhakti—devotion to a formless, attributeless Absolute—and often rejected or downplayed temple worship, image worship, elaborate ritual, and priestly mediation. Caste hierarchy, birth‑based status, and Brahmanical claims to exclusive authority were subjected to sustained criticism, as were rigid sectarian boundaries between Hindu and Muslim communities. Their preference for vernacular languages over Sanskrit and their insistence on direct, unmediated experience of the divine made their message accessible to artisans, low‑caste groups, and other marginalized communities. While accepting ideas such as karma and rebirth, they offered liberation through devotion to the formless God, open to all irrespective of caste or social position. In this way, the Sant tradition both inhabits the Hindu religious world and reconfigures it from within, affirming inner devotion and spiritual equality over outer ritual and inherited hierarchy.