04-04-2017
Guwahati is a sprawling city beside on the banks of the Brahmaputra River in the northeast Indian state of Assam. It’s known for holy sites like the hilltop Kamakhya Temple, featuring shrines to the Hindu deities Shiva and Vishnu..We visited the Kamakhya Temple – one of the 51 Shakti Peethas in the country and andUmananda Temple situated on a small river island in River Brahmaputra. Here we enjoy a ferry ride and in the evening sailing over the River Cruise in Brahmaputra.
The history of Guwahati goes back to thousands of years. The city has references in the ancient Hindu texts such as the Puranas. It was believed to be the capital of many kingdoms during ancient times. According to Mahabharata, it was the capital of kings Narakasura and Bhagadatta. The ancient temple of Goddess Kamakhya is located in Guwahati. The city was under the Hindu kingdoms of Shunga-Kushana period, between the 2nd century BC and the 1st century AD, according to Ambari excavations. Earlier, the city was known as Pragjyotishpura and served as the capital of Assam under the Varman Dynasty of the Kamarupa kingdom. Under the rule of the Pala dynasty, Guwahati was the capital until the 10th-11th century. Under the Ahom kings, the city was the seat of the Borphukan. The Mughals tried to invade Assam seventeen times but were defeated by the Ahoms. The city was under Burmese rule from 1817 to 1826. Following the First Anglo-Burmese War, the city became a part of the British empire. It played an active role during the independence struggle of India and was the birthplace of activists such as Tarun Ram Phukan.
