III.]
BENGALI LANGUAGE & LITERATURE.
121
by this Bengali poet for the lady of his heart. His songs, though in one of them he addresses Rāmi as "mother," were considered very offensive by Hindu Society, and he was excommunicated, and dismissed from his office in the temple of Vāçulī being proclaimed by beat of drum as fallen from the Brāhmanic order. A Brāhmin in love with a washerwoman! It was monstrous, and as if he had been a putrid corpse, all contact with him was declared unholy.
Nakul intercedes.Now Chandī Dās had a brother named Nakula, who enjoyed great popularity with the Brahmin community. By his earnest intervention on behalf of his brother it was settled, though after repeated opposition, that Chandī Dās could be taken back into caste, if he would give an undertaking of good conduct in future and provide a feast for the Brāhmins. Nakula arranged the feast, and when the Brahmins assembled at the dinner party, information reached Rāmī and the wonderful vision about her.Rāmī, the washerwoman, that Chandī Dās was being restored to caste on the promise of deserting her for ever. She fainted at the news, and when consciousness returned, began to weep, in violent paroxysms of grief. In great agony, she went to the Vokul groves where she had so often waited to catch a glimpse of Chandī Dās's face. But she could not by any means control her feeling and rest here; she went onward to the place where the invited party were partaking of the banquet served for them. She gazed at Chandidās and tears flowed from her eyes in unceasing stream. Never before had Rāmi looked in public upon the face of Chandīdās!16
