The Kamakhya temple in Guwahati is one of the most revered temples in India where Goddess Sati is worshipped in the form of Goddess Kamakhya. Considered as the oldest of the 51 Shaktipeeths in the world, this temple is enshrouded in mystery and wonder. Being at the heart of Tantric Hinduism, this temple is an enigmatic confluence of religion, faith, and legends meeting reality.
Visiting this temple is an experience of a lifetime. As a Bengali who has grown up worshipping Goddess Shakti, I have heard countless tales of the awe-inspiring Kamakhya Devi Mandir and the elusiveness of getting darshan of Kamakhya Devi. Decades have passed, and yet, the Kamakhya Devi Temple continues to live up to its reputation of being extremely difficult to visit and get darshan. Thousands of devotees are compelled to return from the temple premises after having waited for hours and yet without having obtained darshan.
In this post, I have tried to put down my learnings so that you can have a relatively smooth darshan experience.
How to Reach Kamakhya Devi Mandir
The enigmatic Kamakhya temple is situated on top of a hill range called the Nilachal Hills in Guwahati. The location is very close to the Brahmaputra River. To reach Guwahati, you can take a flight from your home city or you can take the Kamakhya Express and get down at Kamakhya Junction Railway Station. The temple is situated at a distance of 20 km from the airport, and it will take about half an hour to reach.
For those traveling by train, the Kamakhya Junction Railway Station is situated near Paltan Bazaar. Kamakhya Devi Mandir is situated at a distance of 8 km from the Paltan Bazaar area in Guwahati, from where you can take an auto to reach the temple premises. An auto charges 250 rupees to drop you at the gate of the temple steps. Ensure that you negotiate with the driver.
Once you reach on top of the hill (cars, autos, and buses travel up to this stage), you will see the stairs lined with shops selling puja samagri, that lead to the temple gate.
Kamakhya Mandir Legend / Story
What adds to the fascination surrounding the Kamakhya Mandir is the fact that here we find legend meeting reality. The thought that the stories we heard as children are true gives me goosebumps. According to legends, the following is the story behind the temple.
It is believed that Lord Shiva was insulted by Goddess Sati’s father which was so unbearable to the Goddess that she jumped into a pyre and chose to die. Lord Shiva, livid with rage and full of grief carried around Goddess Sati’s burnt corpse, performing the ‘Dance of Destruction’ or Rudra Tandav dance. When He refused to stop, Lord Vishnu decided to cut Goddess Sati’s body in the hope that once the corpse ceased to exist on his shoulders, Lord Shiva would stop.
As Lord Shiva carried around the body, the 51 places where the parts fell came to be called the Shaktipeeths. It is believed that Goddess Sati’s yoni (i.e. female genitals or the womb) fell here and it is this body part that is worshipped to this date. So, the Kamakhya Devi temple has no idol. It is a cave, where there is a rock in the shape of a yoni with a natural spring around it. Every year, during the annual Ambubachi Mela festival that happens here in June/July, this spring water turns red for 3 days when it is believed that Goddess menstruates. It is during this time that the temple is closed.
So the most fascinating aspect of the Kamakhya temple is that it celebrates and worships womanhood in the purest form. Even today there is a lot of taboo around the topic of female menstruation and here is a temple that celebrates this in the form of a festival.
It is believed that the temple was founded by Kama, the God of Love, who was cursed and by finding this part and establishing this temple, he could rid himself of his curse.
Kamakhya Temple Timings
The Kamakhya Mandir opens at 5.30 am daily, but the gates for devotees only open at 8.00 am. During festivals, like the Durga Puja, etc the gates open an hour later, i.e. at 9.00 am.
Further, the temple doors close at 1.00 pm for cooked offerings to the Goddess and reopen only at 2.30 am. These timings do not change based on the season i.e. these timings are the same in winters and summers.
The temple gates close for the devotees one final time at sunset which is 4.30 pm during winters and 5.00 pm during summers. For more details on temple timings, refer to their website.
An important point to note is, that even if you are on the temple premises, once the gates close as per the above-mentioned timelines, you will not be allowed to get darshan of Kamakhya Devi.
Kamakhya Devi Mandir Darshan Process (Must Read, entire process in detail)
Getting the darshan of Kamakhya Devi is extremely difficult. There are 2 queues that the management allows, the general queue for free darshan and the VIP queue. The general free darshan queue takes anything between 6 to 7 hours on a normal non-festival day. The VIP queue on the other hand takes about 3.5 to 4 hours. During festivals, this time is even longer and you need a lot of patience for this.
Once you reach on top of the Nilachal Hills, you will see the entry point where you have stairs leading to Kamakhya Devi Mandir. The starting stairs have shoe racks on both sides, where you can safely deposit shoes or you can also leave them in the shops that come next and from where you can buy puja samagri. There is a washroom on the right-hand side as well.
When you climb up the stairs, you will see shops selling different wares and overwhelming crowds. Just take care of your wallets and belongings and continue to the top where you will come across the gate of Kamakhya Temple. If you want to join the general queue then you will have to take the right, where after walking further you will find a counter where you will be issued tickets, but this will be free of charge.
Kamakhya Temple VIP Ticket Counter
However, if you wish to take the VIP route, you need to walk straight past the gate, cross the length of the temple, and reach the end where you will find a counter below a large digital watch. This is the counter where you will get VIP tickets, thrice a day at specific predetermined timings. VIP darshan tickets cost Rs. 501 and you will be given a ticket only if you tender exact change for this.
The tickets are sold thrice daily, at 6.00 am, 12.00 noon and 4.00 pm. In each time slot, only 100 tickets are sold and people queue up for an hour before these time slots. No matter when you buy the VIP tickets, the temple timings are such that you will need to wait for 3.5 to 4 hours for your turn. For example, if you buy a ticket at 6.00 am you will have to wait until 8.00 am when the temple gates open for devotees and then in the queue leading to the inner sanctum.
Once you buy the VIP tickets, you are made to sit in a separate room that has only 100 plastic chairs until the temple doors open for the devotees. Once the temple doors open, the management lets the VIP queue and General Queue devotees alternately into a waiting chamber. The difference is, that the general queue starts on top of another hillock and is much more winding until this waiting chamber.
There are 3 cave-like chambers, devotees are allowed only in 2 of them and 3rd chamber is the inner sanctum where the Devi resides. The steps to the inner sanctum are extremely narrow and the lighting and aura of this sanctum santorum gives you the feeling of actually stepping into the womb of the Goddess. Cameras are not allowed inside these cave-like chambers.
Kamakhya Devi Darshan Experience
Visiting Kamakhya Mandir is an experience of a lifetime. The moment you step into the temple premises, you will feel an energy, an ethereal vibration. When you start towards the temple, you will be overwhelmed by the crowds climbing through the stairs dotted with shops selling wares on the sides. They sell everything from puja samagri to sweets to stone handicrafts.
On stepping inside the temple gate, in addition to feeling the palpable energy you will notice various people fervently performing rituals like lighting diyas, giving offerings of garlands, and preparing themselves to join the ever-lengthening queue. Women from all over the world come and worship this Goddess in the hope of being able to conceive.
You will also see buffalos, goats, and pigeons smeared with vermilion (sindoor) and decked with garlands being dragged towards the chamber where animals are sacrificed. You will also notice stains of blood and vermilion, making these sights and sounds gory and mystical. The temple’s ceremonial animal sacrifice is part of the daily rituals of invoking the Goddess, wherein an animal is sacrificed before the temple doors open. Such animal sacrifices unfortunately continue to be a part of the tantric practices in this temple.
The long waiting hours will also demand your patience and energy but all of this will just converge into awe and reverence once you reach the inner sanctum santorum of the temple, the dimly lit cave where Maa Kamakhya resides and is worshipped. The energy, the vibration, the goosebumps, and the reverence, are palpable in the air and every devotee’s heart. It is and will remain one of the most astonishing confluences of faith and reality.
QnA
Q. Where is the Kamakhya Temple?
A. Kamakhya Devi Temple is located on Nilachal Hills in the western part of Guwahati, situated close to the Brahmaputra river.
Q. Who Built Kamakhya Temple?
A. The core of Kamakhya Mandir is a huge cave, and it is in this cave that the yoni-shaped deity resides. However, the temple around the cave was erected originally in the 8th Century by the Mlechha dynasty. Subsequently, a few centuries later it was rebuilt by Koch King Nara Narayan.
Q. Are men allowed in Kamakhya temple?
A. Yes, men are allowed in the temple and inside the inner sanctum. It is only during the 3 days when the Goddess menstruates i.e. the Ambubachi Mela that men are not allowed inside.
Q. When is Kamakhya Devi Mandir closed?
A. Kamakhya temple is closed during the annual Ambubachi Festival that takes place in June/July for 3 days. Daily, for devotees, the temple gates are closed from 4.30 pm to 8.00 am.
Q. Are mobile phones allowed in the Kamakhya Temple?
A. Yes, mobiles and bags are allowed inside the temple. However, you cannot use your mobile inside the inner sanctum and there is a fine of Rs. 2000 on devotees who do not follow the same.
Q. Can I visit Kamkhya temple at night?
A. No, Kamakhya Mandir closes at sunset which happens at about 4.15 pm during winter and 5 pm during summer.
Q. Can you wear Jeans inside Kamkhya Temple?
A. Yes, you can. However this being a religious place, it is best if you dress appropriately keeping in mind the religious sentiments. Traditional clothes are NOT mandatory.
Do let me know if you have any further questions regarding the temple visit. I will be more than happy to answer your queries. Please reach out using the contact page. If you are looking for the perfect and detailed itinerary for a Northeast India getaway, please click here.
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We will be arriving in Guwahati airport at 11:30 am on 4th june, what would be the best way to take darshan on the same day? We are ready to pay for VIP tickets
Hi Shubhangi, you can go directly to the temple and buy for the 4 pm slot. However remember that they give only 100 tickets per slot, and people queue up like really early. So I would suggest try to reach by 10.30-11 am the next day and buy the tickets.