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Bīrbal
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Bīrbal

Indian courtier
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Also known as: Mahesh Das
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Last Updated: • Article History
Quick Facts
Pseudonym of:
Mahesh Das
Born:
1528, near Kalpi, Mughal Empire [now in Uttar Pradesh, India]
Died:
February 1586, northwestern India [now Pakistan]
Also Known As:
Mahesh Das
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Bīrbal (born 1528, near Kalpi, Mughal Empire [now in Uttar Pradesh, India]—died February 1586, northwestern India [now Pakistan]) was a Brahman courtier of the Mughal emperor Akbar. With a reputation as a skilled poet and a charismatic wit, he joined Akbar’s court early in the emperor’s reign and became one of his closest advisers. Indeed, Bīrbal was the only Hindu follower of Akbar’s elite religious movement, the Dīn-i Ilāhī. After Bīrbal’s death in battle, his relationship with Akbar became the basis for humorous stories that endure in Indian folklore. A beautiful house at Fatehpur Sikri bears Bīrbal’s name, although it is doubtful that he lived there.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.