The
Ambubachi Mela of Assam is an annual Hindu
mela that is held at
Kamakhya Temple in
Guwahati,
Assam. This yearly
mela is celebrated during the monsoon season that falls in the Assamese month Ahaar, which is around the middle of June. It is the celebration of the yearly menstruation course of the Goddess Kamakhya. It is believed that the presiding goddess of the temple, Devi Kamakhya, also known as Mother Shakti, goes through her annual cycle of menstruation in this stretch of time. It is also believed that during the monsoon rains, the creative and nurturing power of the 'menses' of Mother Earth becomes accessible to devotees at this site during the
Ambubachi mela. There is no idol of the presiding deity, however, she is worshipped in the form of a yoni-like stone instead over which a natural spring flows.