Kamakhya Temple

Getting there

• By air

  Guwahati airport, Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International, is about 20 km from the temple. Taxis and buses run from there to the city.

• By train

  Kamakhya station is the nearest to the temple. Guwahati station is the main station of the city, and cabs and local buses run from both.

• By road

  Buses from Assam and nearby states stop at Adabari, Paltan Bazar and the ISBT in Guwahati. From there, take a cab or local bus towards Kamakhya.

Elderly visitors

• Darshan inside the main temple needs a free entry coupon or a special ticket, so arrange one before you travel.
• Counter booking for special darshan tickets stopped from 15 June 2026; the official notice asks devotees to book online.
• After Ambubachi reopened the doors in June 2026, devotees queued through the night, so an ordinary week may suit older visitors better.
• The Chinnamasta temple on the hill is reached by a steep, narrow flight of stairs.

Book and check

Official pages only. We do not sell darshan passes or tours.

• Official site: special darshan and free general queue bookingmaakamakhya.org

Rules to know

• Photography is strictly prohibited inside any of the temples on Kamakhya Hill.
• Footwear is not allowed beyond the main entrance; in June 2026 it was left at camps on the approach road.
• The whole Nilachal Hill area is a no-tobacco zone.
• Only the hereditary Shebait priests may perform puja here, so do not pay anyone on the hill or online to do it for you.

Why devotees come here

Kamakhya Temple stands on Nilachal Hill in Guwahati, Assam, and is counted among the oldest of the 51 Shakti Peethas. The inner sanctum holds no image. Devi Kamakhya is worshipped as a natural rock cleft, kept wet by an underground spring.

Kamakhya is among the most revered Shakti shrines in India. The Kalika Purana says this is where Sati's yoni fell when her body was carried across the land after her death. The hill is called Nilachal, the Blue Hill, and the region around it was once known as Kamarupa.

Inside, there is no carved image. The sanctum lies below ground level and holds a rock cleft shaped like a yoni, which is always filled with water from a spring below. A smaller, movable image of the Devi is kept in the next chamber.

The present temple was rebuilt in 1565 under the Koch king Naranarayan, using the ruins of an older stone temple. Its brick dome, ringed by smaller spires, gave Assam a new style of temple building, called the Nilachala style. The Ahom king Rajeswar Singha added the dance hall, the natmandir, in 1759.

The hill is also home to shrines of the ten Mahavidyas, including Kali, Tara, Bhairavi and Chinnamasta, and to five Shiva temples.

Festivals

• Around 21 or 22 JuneAmbubachi Mela

  Honours the Devi as Mother Earth in her annual monsoon cycle. In 2026 the doors closed from 23 to 25 June and reopened on 26 June.

• August, from Sravana SankrantiManasa Puja and Deodhani

  Three days of worship in the natmandir, with the Deodhani shamanic dance.

• September or OctoberSharadiya Durga Puja

  A fortnight of worship from Krishna Navami to Shukla Navami, also called Pakhua Puja.

• December or JanuaryPuhan Biya

  The marriage day of Devi Kamakhya.

• February or MarchMaha Shivratri

  Observed at the Shiva temples of the complex.

Tips for your visit

• Plan the visit around the afternoon break; the doors close from about 1 PM to 2:30 PM.
• Allow at least two days if you also wish to see the Mahavidya and Shiva temples on the hill.
• Book your stay early if you come for Ambubachi or Durga Puja.
• Use only the official sites, maakamakhya.org and maakamakhyadevalaya.org; the Devalaya warns that other sites sell online pujas in its name.

Questions people ask