THE TEMPLES IN BIRBHUM

"Chandidas has immortalized the washer woman Rami in his poems, and numerous are the stories told about their loves. The poet was informed that he could not performsadhan till he had a faircompanion, not by marriage, for money, but one to whom his heart would be spontaneously drawn at the first sight.

Our poet went out in search of washer woman was washing clothes on the river side, the poet saw her and was fascinated. Day after day he would go to the riverside, with a fishing rod as a pretext and sit there, gazing on the woman. Words followed and
love ensued, and the poet left his home and parents, and ever afterwards lived with Rami, a washerwoman as she was by caste.

Chandidas was a renowed singer. One day, it is said, he went to a neighboring village Matipur to sing with his paramour; and when they were returning, the house in which they had taken shelter fell down, and they were both crushed and died in each other's arms. The story has perhaps little foundation in fact."4

The passage of time has added more importance to the temple of Bishalakshmi at Nannur. Although there are rival theories as to the birth place of Chandidas and the most formidable of them is that he was born at village Chatna in Bankura district it is now commonly accepted that Nannur village in Birbhum district has that unique honor. Poets of those days frequently used a bhanita (a line) at the end of their verses in which they mentioned their names.

4 Literature of Bengal by R.C. Dutt.

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