Bhai Nand Lal Ji, known by his pen name Goya, was a scholar and poet in Persian who became a devoted Sikh of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. His poems of love and longing for the Guru are sung in Gurdwaras to this day.
Life
Bhai Nand Lal Ji was born around 1633 in Ghazni, in present-day Afghanistan, where his father served the Mughal administration. He became highly skilled in Persian and Arabic and wrote poetry under the pen name Goya, meaning 'the one who speaks'. He later served as a scholar and secretary in the Mughal service. His learning in languages shaped the whole of his later work.
Around the 1680s he came to Anandpur and met Guru Gobind Singh Ji. According to tradition, the meeting transformed him, and he became one of the Guru's most devoted Sikhs, spending long periods at the Guru's court among its poets and scholars. Sikh accounts describe him as both a poet and a practical servant of the sangat, and say the Guru valued both his company and his verse.
His Persian works include the Zindagi Nama (also called Bandagi Nama), the Ghazals (the Divan-e-Goya), the Ganj Nama and Jot Bigas, filled with love for the Guru and for the Divine. Some Rehatnamas are also attributed to him; scholars discuss their dates and authorship. The Sikh Rehat Maryada permits his compositions, with those of Bhai Gurdas Ji, to be sung in the sangat. Tradition holds that he later settled in Multan, where he ran a langar and a school, and passed away there in the early eighteenth century.
Why Sikhs remember Bhai Nand Lal Ji
- His Persian poetry is part of the living kirtan tradition of Gurdwaras.
- He shows how people from very different backgrounds were drawn to the Gurus.
- His writings are important sources for the ideals of the Khalsa period.
Key events
- c. 1633
Birth in Ghazni Historical record
Born into a family serving the Mughal administration.
- 1680s
Comes to Anandpur Historical record
Meets Guru Gobind Singh Ji and becomes his devoted Sikh.
- —
Poet at the Guru's court Historical record
Writes Persian poetry of devotion under the name Goya.
- 1710s
Multan Traditional account
Tradition holds he ran a langar and school in Multan, where he passed away.
For children
Bhai Nand Lal Ji was a poet who wrote in the Persian language. When he met Guru Gobind Singh Ji, he felt so much love that he became a devoted Sikh. He wrote beautiful poems about loving the Guru and Waheguru. Today, ragis in Gurdwaras still sing his poems. He shows us that we can use our talents — like writing or music — to share love.
Lessons for today
Use your gifts for good
Bhai Nand Lal Ji offered his poetry to the Guru. Whatever you are good at can become seva.
Love is the heart of faith
His poems are full of longing and love. Faith is not only rules; it is a relationship.
Further reading & sources
- Harbans Singh (ed.), The Encyclopaedia of Sikhism, Punjabi University, Patiala
- Sikh Rehat Maryada, SGPC
- W. H. McLeod, Sikhs of the Khalsa: A History of the Khalsa Rahit, Oxford University Press