The verdant Narail subdivison of the district of Jessore (undivided Bengal) is a lush natural haven where man, animal and plant co-exist in symbiotic harmony. Here, on the banks of the pretty river Chitra lies the small hamlet of Mohishkhola (see green placemarker in the center of the image above). This is the birthplace of Sri Radharaman Charan Das Dev.It was a dark stormy night in the month of April, 1853. Babu Mohan Chandra Ghosh, the kayastha zemindar of Mohishkhola was eagerly awaiting the birth of their third child from his second wife, the demure and loving Kanaksundari Devi. Outside, there was a deluge and the gale winds played havoc with the trees in its wake, uprooting many, even as brilliant flashes of lightning illuminated the silvery-blue waters of the Chitra in short bursts. The thunder Gods roared in all their splendour and sowed fear into the hearts of all living things. Inside, within the confines of a small room at the Ghosh mansion, a small assembly of midwives put their experiences to effect. As the turbulent night gradually eased its fury and gave way to a new dawn, a bonny male child was born to the Ghosh's.
Over the first six days, the newborn refused to suckle and this gave the anxious parents much to worry about. All efforts to feed the baby proved futile and apprehensions about the child's survival were rife. On the sixth day, a devout neighbour suggested that they offer the infant some 'prasadi' milk (milk that has first been offered to the Lord Hari; sacred milk) and thereafter, bathe him in 'charanamrita' (water with which the lotus feet of the deity have been cleansed). The exasperated parents tried this as well and lo, the baby drank up the prasadi milk and even began to suckle his mother thereafter.
The child was named Raicharan. Little known to his family then, this child would grow up to be a saint among men, an allayer of ignorance and darkness, a divine manifestation of unconditional love and devotion; to bless the world as Radharaman Charan Das Dev.
