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In the medieval period, the seeds of Bhakti poetry sprouted in different provinces of the country and flourished in their own different ways. Baul poetry and music were born in undivided Bengal, in which a mixture of Buddhist, Vaishnav, Nath, Sufi etc. traditions is found. Its most prominent Bhakti poet was Lalan Shah Fakir (1774-1890 AD). Lalan Shah Fakir's songs include the memories and traditions of Chandidas, Chaitanya, Kabir, Raidas of the saint-devotee tradition. Lalan Fakir was against caste and religion, due to which the learned Hindus considered him a fallen person and the fanatic Muslims insulted him by calling him a Besra and a Kafir. But despite this, the common Hindus and Muslims of that time adopted him and his acceptance in the rural Bengali society expanded a lot. Even today, he is considered very important in the identity of the culture and literature of West Bengal and Bangladesh. This book has been selected and edited by Madhav Hada, who is renowned as an expert on the Bhakti period. Madhav Hada, former professor and president of Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur, has been a fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla. Presently, he is a member of the General Assembly and Hindi Advisory Board of the Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi.