Sikhism prohibits idolatry, in accordance with mainstream Khalsa norms and the teachings of the Sikh Gurus, a position that has been accepted as orthodox.

Growing Sikh popular discontent with Gurdwara administration and practices during the 1800s, revivalist movements in the mid-1800s who opposed idol worship like the Nirankaris and the Namdharis (who however have followed a living guru since its inception), and the encroachment of Brahmanical customs in the Golden Temple during that period, led to the establishment of the Singh Sabha Movement in 1873, in which the Tat Khalsa faction, dominant since the early 1880s, pushed to renew and standardize the practice of Sikhism. After a period of political advancement, the Khalsa faction re-established direct control over Gurdwara management over the Udasi and Hindu mahants, who institutionalized idol worship and would eventually identify with the Sanatan Sikhs, who identified with the Brahmanical social structure and considered idol worship as not harmful. The mahants had gained control of Gurdwaras after heavy Mughal persecution forced the Khalsa to relinquish control of the Gurdwaras and vacate the Punjab plains in the 1700s; they were most prominent in the 1800s.

In 1905, after re-establishing institutional control, the Khalsa managed to have removed the idols installed during the preceding period, as well as ending mahant administration and the practice of other non-Sikh, Brahmanical rituals in the process, considering them "Hindu accretions" and "Brahmanical stranglehold," amidst a major controversy within the Sikh community of that era. The prohibition, state Fenech and McLeod, has also served a means to assert Sikhism differs from Hinduism.

Idol worship is mentioned as a futile and worthless practice in the Sikh texts such as the Guru Granth Sahib and the Dasam Granth. In the Guru Granth Sahib, the teachings of Guru Nanak call the practice of worshipping stones as useless and ridiculous. These stones cannot answer any questions nor provide spiritual guidance as the guru can, states Nanak, and only the guidance of a guru can carry one across the "Ocean of Existence". For example, in the following hymn of Guru Granth Sahib, Bhagat Namdev rejects idol worship.

One stone is lovingly decorated, while another stone is walked upon. If one is a god, then the other must also be a god. Says Naam Dayv, I serve the Lord.

— Bhagat Namdev, Guru Granth Sahib 525

Idolatry is criticized in the Dasam Granth traditionally attributed to the tenth Guru Gobind Singh. The Dasam Granth includes idolatry along with other practices such as smearing sandal paste, offering food, visiting graves and tombs, bowing and others as futile and unhelpful in knowing God.

According to the Indologist Harold Coward, the Sikh scriptures critique idolatry and Guru Nanak's words protest and condemn empty, magical worship of idols. But, states Coward, an icon treated as a symbol that does not confuse the physical with the spiritual, and with the "right motivation and understanding", the Sikh scripture does not exclude the reverence of the Guru Granth, which accompanies ritual devotional singing in Sikh Gurdwaras.