HINDĀL (HANDĀL), BHĀĪ (d. 1648), a prominent Sikh of the time of Gurū Rām Dās, was the son of Gājī, a resident of Jaṇḍiālā, 19 km east of Amritsar. His mother's name was Sukkhī. He was married to Uttamī, daughter of Hamzā, a Chahal jaṭṭ. He received initiation at the hands of Gurū Amar Dās and continued to be in attendance upon his successor, Gurū Rām Dās. He spoke but little, and remained absorbed in devotion. As he once sat kneading flour in the Gurū kā Laṅgar, Gurū Rām Dās suddenly stepped in. Hindāl rose instinctively to make his obeisance. Since the wet flour was adhering to his hands, he, as says Srī Gur Pratāp Sūraj Granth, put them behind his back so that they did not smear the Gurū's feet when he touched them, and threw himself at his feet. The Gurū was pleased with his humble devotion. "Thy love is pleasing to my heart, Hindāl, " he said. "Thou hast my blessing. Completed is thy service. Return now to thy native town and spread the True Name." Hindāl went back to Jaṇḍiālā and began to preach as instructed by the Gurū. He lived to a ripe old age and remained a true Sikh to the end. As a preacher he had made many disciples who were called Hindālīās or Nirañjanīās, i.e. the unsullied ones. However, after his death the Hindālīās became an heretic sect under his son, Bidhī Chand, who compiled a granth and a janam sākhī of his own. In both he sought to exalt Hindāl and belittle Gurū Nānak. In the eighteenth century, the Nirañjanīās helped the government in persecuting Sikhs. Haribhagat Nirañjanīā of Jaṇḍiālā was a notorious informer who caused the arrest and execution of countless Sikhs. Among them were Bhāī Tārū Siṅgh and Matāb Siṅgh Mīrāṅkoṭīā.