Ambubachi Mela at Kamakhya temple: Significance of major Assam religious festival

The festival is associated with fertility, with the onset of monsoon, and the common historical association across cultures of the Earth as a fertile woman. The name ‘Ambubachi’ itself translates to water flowing.

Highlighting this association with fertility, sociologist Sangeeta Das in her paper ‘Ambubachi Mela in Assam’s Kamakhya Temple: A Critical Analysis’, has written: “What is worshipped at Kamakhya during Ambubachi Mela is not an image of the Goddess but rather a process: a formal process of menstruation. It is believed that during monsoon rain the creative and nurturing power of the ‘menses’ of mother Earth becomes accessible to devotees at this site during Ambubachi. During this period, there is an entire cessation of all ploughing, sowing and other agricultural activities. Fragments of cloth stained with the blood-mark of the Goddess are distributed to the devotees and pilgrims preserve these in their houses as protective amulets.”

What are the arrangements made for the rush of devotees to the city?

It is estimated that several lakh devotees visit the temple during this period, with last year’s footfall estimated at around 7 lakh.

The Guwahati Traffic Police has ordered several movement restrictions during this period for safe access to the temple.

Assam Tourism Minister Ranjit Kumar Dass had announced that the state government has allocated Rs 4.55 crore for arrangements, which include setting up two pilgrim campps, toilets and bathing facilities, drinking water, medical camps, and so on.

This year’s festival also comes at a time when the Assam government has announced that promoting tourism centred around the Kamakhya Temple is a priority for it.