Ambubachi Mela is an annual Hindu 4-day fair to mark the annual menstruation of the goddess at Kamakhya temple in Guwahati, Assam. It is celebrated during the monsoon season around the middle of June that happens to fall during the Assamese month Ahaar, when sun transit to the zodiac of Mithuna, when the Brahmaputra river is in spate.
It is that time of the season when Mother Nature or the mother goddess residing in the temple of Kamakhya menstruates.
This ritualistic fair is one of the reasons why the taboo associated with menstruation is less in Assam compared to other parts of India.
Ambubachi Mela is also seen as an occasion to promote awareness on menstrual hygiene.
‘Tuloni Biya’, meaning small wedding is celebrated with a ritual the attainment of womanhood of girls in Assam.
- Kamakhya, atop Nilachal Hills in Guwahati, is one of 51 shaktipeeths or seat of Shakti followers, each representing a body part of Sati,Lord Shiva’s companion.
- The temple’s sanctum sanctorum houses the yoni — female genital — symbolised by a rock.
- According to Hindu mythology, it is believed that the goddess Shakti killed herself when her father insulted her husband, Shiva, in front of a number of people. Hearing the news of her death; Shiva became extremely angry, and performed the Tandava or the dance of destruction with her body on his shoulder. In order to stop him, Vishnu released his Sudarshan chakra which sliced her body into 52 pieces, each part falling in different direction. It is said where the parts fell, the devotees built a temple dedicated to the Goddess like the Kamakhya temple. It is also believed that the temple of Kamakhya was destroyed once in the early 16th century and was rebuilt by the king of Cooch Behar.
What a diverse country India is. At some places women aren't allowed to enter into temples during this phase but here people celebrate.
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