'The Cradle of Tantra': Modern Transformations of a Tantric Centre in Northeast India from Nationalist Symbol to Tourist Destination. Issue 2 (4th March 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Urban, Hugh B.
• Is Part Of: South Asia. Volume 42:Issue 2(2019)
• Page Start: 256
• Page End: 277
• Publication Date: 2019-03-04
• Subjects: Ambuvācī Melā -- Assam -- blood -- development -- Hindutva -- Kāmākhyā -- sacrifice; South Asia -- Periodicals; South Asia -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; 954.005
• DOI: 10.1080/00856401.2019.1570609
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0085-6401

Abstract

Abstract: This article examines the modern transformations of the temple of the goddess, Kāmākhyā, and her most important festival, Ambuvācī Melā, in Assam. Since at least the eighth century, Kāmākhyā has been revered as one of the most important 'seats of power' or centres of the goddess that dot the landscape of South Asia. However, during the last century, this temple and its festivals have undergone a series of profound transformations—first, in the context of Hindu nationalism and attempts to imagine a unified sacred landscape of 'Mother India', and second, in the context of spiritual tourism and efforts to develop the Northeast region as a new economic powerhouse for the twenty-first century.