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A prayer for courage, fearlessness and unshakeable strength

Ajai Alai

ਅਜੈ ਅਲੈ ਅਭੈ ਅਬੈ

Ik Achhree Chhand from Jaap Sahib — Unconquerable, Undying, Fearless, Ageless

  • Sri Dasam Granth Sahib — Jaap Sahib
  • Ik Achhree Chhand (Chhand 189–196)
  • Guru Gobind Singh Ji (Patshahi 10)
  • Released September 20, 2026

Sing this when you need to stand firm — before a difficult conversation, an exam, a shift, a decision you cannot walk away from. Each word is a name of the One who cannot be defeated.

Now on Spotify and Apple Music — YouTube and other platforms coming shortly.

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Gurmukhi · Hindi · Transliteration · Meaning

Ajai Alai — lyrics and meaning

Read each line in layers: the original Gurmukhi, the same line in Devanagari (Hindi script), a Roman transliteration to sing from, and the English meaning. Line numbers follow the order sung in the recording.

1
Title line

ਅਜੈ ॥ ਅਲੈ ॥ ਅਭੈ ॥ ਅਬੈ ॥

अजै ॥ अलै ॥ अभै ॥ अबै ॥

Ajai alai abhai abai.

Unconquerable, undying, fearless, ageless.

2

ਅਭੂ ॥ ਅਜੂ ॥ ਅਨਾਸ ॥ ਅਕਾਸ ॥

अभू ॥ अजू ॥ अनास ॥ अकास ॥

Abhoo ajoo anaas akaas.

Beyond the elements, unborn, imperishable, all-pervading like the sky.

3

ਅਗੰਜ ॥ ਅਭੰਜ ॥ ਅਲੱਖ ॥ ਅਭੱਖ ॥

अगंज ॥ अभंज ॥ अलक्ख ॥ अभक्ख ॥

Aganj abhanj alakh abhakh.

Indestructible, unbreakable, invisible, needing no sustenance.

4

ਅਕਾਲ ॥ ਦਿਆਲ ॥ ਅਲੇਖ ॥ ਅਭੇਖ ॥

अकाल ॥ दिआल ॥ अलेख ॥ अभेख ॥

Akaal diaal alekh abhekh.

Timeless, merciful, beyond all reckoning, without any religious garb.

5

ਅਨਾਮ ॥ ਅਕਾਮ ॥ ਅਗਾਹ ॥ ਅਢਾਹ ॥

अनाम ॥ अकाम ॥ अगाह ॥ अढाह ॥

Anaam akaam agaah adhaah.

Nameless, desireless, unfathomable, impossible to tear down.

6

ਅਨਾਥੇ ॥ ਪ੍ਰਮਾਥੇ ॥ ਅਜੋਨੀ ॥ ਅਮੋਨੀ ॥

अनाथे ॥ प्रमाथे ॥ अजोनी ॥ अमोनी ॥

Anaathe pramaathe ajonee amonee.

Without a master, the supreme destroyer of evil, not born from a womb, not bound by vows of silence.

7

ਨ ਰਾਗੇ ॥ ਨ ਰੰਗੇ ॥ ਨ ਰੂਪੇ ॥ ਨ ਰੇਖੇ ॥

न रागे ॥ न रंगे ॥ न रूपे ॥ न रेखे ॥

Na raage na range na roope na rekhe.

Without attachment, without colour, without form, without outline.

8

ਅਕਰਮੰ ॥ ਅਭਰਮੰ ॥ ਅਗੰਜੇ ॥ ਅਲੇਖੇ ॥

अकरमं ॥ अभरमं ॥ अगंजे ॥ अलेखे ॥

Akarmang abharmang aganje alekhe.

Beyond karma, beyond illusion, indestructible, beyond all reckoning.

Gurbani is quoted from Sri Dasam Granth Sahib — Jaap Sahib. English renderings draw on the Sant Singh Khalsa translation and are lightly clarified for readers new to Gurbani.

Meaning

Ajai Alai — meaning

“Ajai Alai” (ਅਜੈ ਅਲੈ) opens the Ik Achhree Chhand of Jaap Sahib and means “Unconquerable, Undying.” Almost every word in the passage begins with the negating prefix a- (“without” or “beyond”): jai is conquest, so ajai is the One who cannot be conquered; bhai is fear, so abhai is the One who is without fear. Line by line, Guru Gobind Singh Ji describes the Creator by removing every human limit — birth, age, name, form, colour and karma.

Ik Achhree Chhand (also written Ik Achhri or Ek Akhri Chhand) is named for its meter: each unit is a single short word, set off by ॥, four to a line. It forms chhands 189–196 of Jaap Sahib, the opening composition of Sri Dasam Granth Sahib, which Sikhs recite daily as part of Nitnem and at Amrit Sanchar.

Sung at pace, the short words land like steady footsteps. That is why MedRise Gurbani offers it as a shabad for courage — before an exam, a hard conversation, a shift or a race — as a reminder that the One you lean on cannot be defeated.

Frequently asked

Ajai Alai — questions and answers

What does “Ajai Alai” mean?

Ajai means unconquerable and alai means undying — the One who can never be defeated and never passes away. The line continues “abhai abai”: fearless and ageless.

Where is Ajai Alai found and who wrote it?

It is the Ik Achhree Chhand of Jaap Sahib (chhands 189–196), the first bani of Sri Dasam Granth Sahib, composed by Guru Gobind Singh Ji.

What is Ik Achhree Chhand?

A meter in which each unit is one short word. It is spelled many ways — Ik Achhree, Ik Achhri, Ek Akhri Chhand — and all refer to this passage of Jaap Sahib.

Why do so many words start with “A”?

“A-” is a negating prefix meaning “without” or “beyond.” The passage describes God by what God is not: not conquered, not born, not named, not bound by form or karma.

Is Ajai Alai part of Nitnem?

Yes. Jaap Sahib is one of the daily Nitnem banis, and this passage is recited within it.

About this shabad

Sing this when you need to stand firm — before a difficult conversation, an exam, a shift, a decision you cannot walk away from. Each word is a name of the One who cannot be defeated.

Composed by Guru Gobind Singh Ji (Patshahi 10) in Ik Achhree Chhand (Chhand 189–196). MedRise Gurbani presents it in a gentle, meditative arrangement so the words stay in front — sung for listeners who want to understand as they listen.

When to listen

A prayer for courage, fearlessness and unshakeable strength. Play it in the morning before the day begins, or whenever the situation it speaks to is on your mind. Reading the meaning first turns listening into simran.

Available on Spotify, Apple Music.

Also searched as

Common spellings and ways people search for this shabad, so you can find it however you remember it.