The Tale of the Bleeding Goddess

Every year, during the month of Ahar (June), thousands of devotees, flock to the temple premises of Maa Kamakhya, to celebrate the menstruation of the Goddess. The Kamakhya temple, with its unique ritual and history, continues to intrigue people from all over the world. In our story, we are going to narrate a popular legend behind the origin of the Goddess Kamakhya, and its connection with the peculiar ritual of Ambubachi, celebrated in the temple every year.

The temple of Ma Kamakhya, Assam. Source: Indiaview

One of the oldest temples in India, the Kamakhya Mandir has been the centre of many religious activities for the people in Assam. It is situated atop the Neelachal hills in West Guwahati, Assam and is constructed in the form of a cave.  There is no image of the Goddess inside the temple. Instead, the devotees worship a Yoni (the female reproductive organ), out of which flows an underground natural spring.

According to historians, the site of the Kamakhya Temple originally used to be a sacrificial centre of the Austroasiatic Tribal Goddess, Kameikha, worshipped by the Khasi and Garo tribes.

But according to legends and popular beliefs, the temple is dedicated to Kamakhya, an incarnation of the Goddess Sati. The Kalika Purana, an ancient Sanskrit scripture, too identifies Kamakhya as the Goddess of desire and the bride of Shiva.

There is an interesting mythological tale that explains how the Goddess Sati became Kamakhya.

The Goddess Sati had married Shiva against her father, Daksha’s approval. Once, Daksha organised a *yajna (*sacrificial ritual) but he did not invite his daughter or her husband, Shiva. But Sati showed up nonetheless, demanding to know why her father left her and Shiva out of the yajna. Daksha scolded Sati and insulted Shiva in front of her. Sati, being the ideal wife she was, did not accept her husband’s humiliation so she jumped into the fire of the yajna, killing herself.

When Shiva came to know about this, he got very angry. Carrying Sati’s dead body over his shoulders, Shiva began the tandav dance which threatened to destroy the entire universe. As the dance continued for days, the other Gods became more and more worried. They approached Vishnu and asked him to intervene, and possibly stop Shiva. Vishnu agreed and used his Sudarshan Chakra to break Sati’s dead bodies into pieces.  These pieces then fell in different parts of the country.

The reproductive organ, i.e. the yoni, is said to have fallen atop the Neelachal Hill in Assam, the site where the Kamakhya Temple stands today.

The Kamakhya Temple is one of the 51 Shakti Peethas found in India. It is also one of the most important sites that celebrate Tantric rituals and practices in Assam.

In honour of the Mother Goddess, the Kamakhya temple in Assam organizes the Ambubachi Mela, the annual festival that celebrates the menstruation of Maa Kamakhya.

Every year, during the last week of June, the entire temple complex shuts down for three days, to give the Goddess the much-needed privacy and rest. Except for the priests, no one else is allowed inside the temple complex during these three days. On the fourth day, the temple re-opens, welcoming thousands of pilgrims from all over the country. The Ambubachi tradition has been going on in Assam for many years.

The Assamese people also honour this tradition in the private spaces of their homes. Widows fast and eat only uncooked food during these three days. On the fourth day, people clean their houses, signifying the end of the Mother Goddess’ menstruation cycle.

The temple has undergone many changes since its inception in the 8th-9th centuries. It is widely accepted that the modern architecture of the temple owes immensely to the royal patrons of ancient and medieval Assam. The entire complex today comprises of many individual temples dedicated to the ten Mahavidyas of Saktism including Kali, Tara, Bhairavi, Dhumavati and others.

The first archaeological evidence of the temple comes from an inscription, acknowledging the Mleccha king as the earliest patron of the temple. Subsequently, the Palas and the Ahoms also contributed to the maintenance of the temple.

Menstruation is associated with impurity and is considered taboo in Indian society. Ironically, it is this same ‘impure’ thing that brings people from various parts of the country together to the Kamakhya temple, every year. Thus, the Kamakhya temple and the ritual of Ambubachi is unique because it celebrates womanhood and removes all taboo, even if it’s only for a few days in a year.

People gather around the Kamakhya Temple during the annual Ambubachi Mela. Source: Bharatstories