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 Arasur. Many of us would tend to believe that this is a name of a remote village in Tamil Nadu, as it sounds very much like a Tamil name. But Arasur is the shrine of Ambika, or Ambaji, as She is more popularly known, in the southwest end of the Aravalli mountain range in northern Gujarat, near mount Abu. This is a very ancient temple, one of the very important Shakti Peethas in the country.
There are three celebrated Shakti Peethas in Gujarat, one of which is Arasur and the other two are Chunval where She is known as Bala and Pavagadh (near Champaner) where she is worshipped as Kali.
The temple of Ambika or Ambaji is as old as the hills. It has a hoary past that eludes all kinds of calculations and it enjoys a distinct reputation of having been mentioned in Srimad Bhagavata. The 34th discourse of Book Ten of Srimad Bhagavata says this: “Their interest having been aroused in (undertaking a pilgrimage for the worship of a god on a certain occasion, the cowherds (of Vraja) rode in their carts drawn by bullocks to (a forest known as) Ambika Vana (which was sacred to Goddess Parvati, the Mother of the universe). Having bathed in the Saraswati River there, they worshipped the almighty Lord Siva as well as Goddess Ambika (His Consort) with devotion through (various) articles of worship, O protector of men!” (Sloka 1, 2).
The above Sloka mentions that Lord Krishna and other gopas came to this temple and worshipped Lord Siva and Ambika, after having a holy dip in the River Saraswati. It was to this temple that Rukmini came to worship before her proposed marriage with Sisupala and it was from this temple that Krishna carried her away in His chariot. “And, guarded by soldiers, the maiden (Rukmini) drove out of the
gynoecium's to the shrine of Goddess Ambika (Parvati),” says Srimad Bhagavata, in Book Ten (Discourse LIII, Sloka 39). So old is this temple that it is mentioned in many other Puranas like the Devi Bhagavata, Devi Gita, Kalika Purana etc.
Daksha and his Yajna
 According to Devi Bhagavata, Daksha who was the father of Sati, the Consort of Lord Siva performed a Yajna to which he invited all the celestials; but his bloated pride did not permit him to invite Lord Siva. Sati, who despite being stopped by the Lord, came to the Yajna was insulted and she performed self-immolation in the sacrificial fire. The anger of the Lord knew no bounds when he saw what happened to his Consort and carrying the half-burnt body of Parvati, he started His delirious all-destructive dance - Tandava - from which there was no stopping Him.
 To stop His Tandava and to save the universe and all the frightened souls, Vishnu with the tip of His bow - another version says it was his divine Disc that he used - severed the body of Sati into pieces, as to pacify Sankara and stop his destructive dance. The severed pieces fell in different places and those places became Shakti Peethas where Shakti worshipped with awe and reverence.
Where Her bosom is
Arasur is the place where the left breast is believed to have fallen and that is why so veneration is attached to Ambika of Arasur. Unlike all the other temples, one is not able to see Her in the form of a deity in Arasur. A triangular Viswa Yantra, with several inscriptions and the syllable ‘Shree’ at the centre, represents Her. That such an ancient temple has no idol in the sanctum sanctorum has led several scholars to conclude that idol worship is a later development in our culture. Opinions differ.
Where is Arasur
To reach Arasur, one has to travel approximately 198 km. from Ahmedabad, which is very well connected by all modes of transportation. The distance from Ahmedabad to Arasur can either be covered by local surface transport or the State transport service. It is one of the three places River Saraswati rises up. The first of her appearance is in Plaksha Prasravana (in the Himalayas) and she disappears somewhere near Kurukshetra. Her second appearance is near Mount Abu, near Arasur Hills and she disappears in the desert of Kutch. She appears again in the jungles of
Gir.
Festivals
On every Full Moon day crowds throng the temple, especially on the months of Ashvin, Kartik, Chaitra & Bhadrapad, when Ambaji is worshipped as Shakti Swaroopini Mata Ambica. The Bhadrapadi Purnima is the main festival when a big fair of devotees is organized and more than a million devotees gather together to worship Ma Amba on this auspicious day.
Hari
Krishnan
harikrishnan@vsnl.net
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