Kamakhya
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
Kamakhya
A temple, sacred to Sati, which stands on the beauti- ful Nilachal hill overhanging the Brahmaputra, about 2 miles west of Gauhati, in Kamrup District, Eastern Bengal and Assam, in 26 1o' N. and 91 degree 45' E. According to tradition, the temple was originally built by Naraka, a prince who is said to have flourished at the time of the Mahabharata, and to have constructed a stone-paved causeway up the hill, which is still in existence. It was rebuilt by Nar Narayan about a.d. 1565, and on the occasion of its consecration 140 human heads were offered to the goddess, but only a small portion of Nar Narayan's temple now remains. Sati's organs of generation are said to have fallen on the place now covered by the temple, and this fact renders the spot an object of pilgrimage to devout Hindus from every part of India. Six other temples stand on the hill, and from the summit a magnificent view is obtained over the river and the surrounding country. A grant of revenue-free land, nearly 8,000 acres in extent, made to the goddess by the native rulers of Assam, has been confirmed by the British Government. The most important festivals are the Pous Bia, about Christmas time, when Kamakhya is married to Kameswar, and the Basanti and Durga pujas, which are celebrated, the former in the spring, the latter in the autumn.
