Pilgrimage of West Bengal & Assam

WEST BENGAL

Kalighat
This is the actual temple from which Kalikata (anglicized to Calcutta) takes it's name. According to the legends when Shiv's wife corpse was cut one of her fingers fell here and since then it has been an important pilgrimage center and is always busy.

It is said that Kali represents the destructive force hence every morning Goats are slaughtered here to satisfy the goddess blood thirst.

How to reach: It is in the main city of Calcutta, which is easily accessible from all corners of the world.

According to the Kalika Purana the genital organ of Sati fell here when her dead body was carried hither and thither in frantic sorrow by her husband Siva. The mountain represented the body of Siva himself and when Sati's genital organ fell on it the mountain turned blue.

The goddess herself is called Kamakhya, because she came there secretly to satisfy her amour (Kama) with him. Thus the derivations of the Kalika Purana make the mountain both a graveyard and a secret love - tryst of the goddess.

This temple is suppose to be the progenitor of Tantraism. It constitutes a symbol of the pre-Aryan sex-worship that was a part of the ancient social organization of the tribal people. It is Yoni (Vagina) symbol that is enshrined and worshipped in this temple.

How to reach: It is 8 kms from Guwahati which can be reached by flight from Calcutta & Delhi.