Primarily associated with the Tantric Shakti cult of worship, Ambubachi celebrates the menstruation period of Goddess Kamakhya. The gates of the Kamakhya temple in Guwahati remain closed for three days while lakhs of believers, who gather at the temple from all across the country, chant from the sciptures and sing devotional songs. The gates are opened on the fourth day for a ‘darshan’ of the Devi.
Sanyasis, black clad Aghories, Baul singers, Tantrics, Sadhus and Sadhvis, along with ordinary pilgrims from rural Assam and West Bengal visit the Kamakhya temple during Amububachi.
Another photo-essay on the Ambubachi, shot and developed jointly by Ayush Dinker and I, appeared in the August, 2012 issue of The Eclectic Northeast.
Abhishek Saha 