Monthly E-Magazine

March – 2007
published on the Poonam (i.e. full moon night) of every month

Shree Arasuri Ambaji Mata Devasthan Trust, Ambaji

Taluka – Danta, Dist – Banaskantha, (North Gujarat)
Pin Code – 385 110 INDIA.
Ph. No – (02749) – 262136, 262930, 262636
WebSite - www.ambajitemple.org
E-Mail – jayambe_ad1@sancharnet.in
- jayambe_ad1@rediffmail.com

Devotees and pilgrims visiting Ambaji are most welcomed with our
good wishes and BLESSINGS of Adyshakti Maa Ambica

Rajendra Raval(G.A.S) Hareet Shukla (I.A.S)

Administrator Collector
&Dy. Collector Banaskantha Dist. & Chairman
Shree Arasuri Ambaji Mata Devasthan Trust, Ambaji
 The ancient and holy place of pilgrimage- the
temple of Goddess Ambaji, situated in the Aravali hills of
North Gujarat is a centre of the faith of crores of people.
This place of pilgrimage of Maa Amba is popular in the
scriptures and is a 'Shaktipith'

The original story of the Appearance of

Goddess
According to a legend based on the ‘puranas',
Prajapati Daksh had performed great yagya named
'Bruhaspati-sak'. He had invited all the Gods but his son-
in-law Lord Shankar was not invited. On the other side,
when Devisati the daughter of Daksh, came to know
about the yagya at her father's place, reached there
despite the objection of Lord Shankar. Having come to
know that no invitation was given to lord shankar for the
great yagya held there and having heard the criticism of
her husband by her father, she jumped into the altar and
gave up her life.
 On seeing the lifeless body of Devisati, Lord
Shankar started ‘Tandava' and carrying the body of
Goddess Sati on his shoulder began to roam in universe.
Then out of the fear of total devastation of universe,
Lord Vishnu sent his Chakra which made small pieces of
the dead body he got them scattered on the earth. The
ornaments and the pieces of the Goddess' body fell at 51
places. One 'Shakti' and one 'Bhairav' taking tiny forms
settled at each of these places.
There is a reference of these 51 'Mahapeeths' in
'TANTRA CHUDAMANI'. The 'Shaktipeeth' of Goddess
Arasuri Ambaji is considered one of them. It is believed
that the heart of Goddess Devisati had fallen on the
Arasur and her lips had fallen on the Arbudachal ( Mount
Abu ). So, the Goddess is worshipped as ' Devi Ambica'
on the Arasur and as 'ddhar Devi' on the Arbudachal.

The Chaulkarma of Shri Krishna at Arasur

It is referred in the 'Bhagavat Mahapuran' that

the 'chaulkarma' (i.e. the ritual of the first hair-cut of a
child) of Lord Shri Krishna was held at the shrine of
Goddess Amba. On this occasion Nand-Jashoda had
sown 'Jawara’(sprouts of barley) and stayed at Ambaji
for seven days. We can see the place where jawaras
were sown at that time on a holy place named the
Gabbar hill situated three kms away from Ambaji.
 Lord Ram received the arrow from
Goddess
Lord Ram and Lakshman had gone to the
hermitage of sage Shrungi while they were in search of
Sitaji. The sage sent them to get the blessings of
Goddess Amba. Both Ram and Lakshman prayed to
Goddess and then, it is believed that, the pleased
Goddess gave 'Ajayban' (i.e. an arrow that can't be
defeated) to Lord Ram. There is a belief that Ravan
was killed with this arrow only.

Killed Mahishasur

According to 'Devi Bhagavat',a demon named

Mahishasur who had a boon from Lord Agni that he
could not be killed by any male was spreading terror.
All Gods prayed to Lord Shankar to kill this demon. At
that time a lustre appeared and mother goddess
'Adyashakti' killed Mahishasur. That is why HER
ALMIGHTY is also known as ' Mahishasur-mardini'
 Jagadamba saved the ship of Akheram

Akheram, a merchant of Mandsaur, was caught in a

sea storm. He prayed to the Maa Jagdamba in the
moment of crisis. There was a miracle....... Gradually the
storm was pacified and the ship became stable. Here at
Ambaji the priest had a dream. The Goddess told him to
change her wet clothes. This happened two to three
times.

Thereafter when Priest opened the temple and

looked into the Shrine of the Matati, he found that drops
of water were falling from her clothes and the TRISHUL
was bent. Priest rushed in and changed Mataji's
clothes.

When Akheram came to Ambaji with half of his

property to fulfill his pledge on the twenty first day and
told the whole story to priest, he understood the matter
why the Goddess had told him in dream to change her
clothes. On that day Akheram offered an 'akhand deep'
[i.e. a lamp that is never extinguished] and that lamp
has been burning since then.
 The Gabbar hill

The Gabbar hill situated at a distance of three

kms from Ambaji has a glorious history.The goddess
Amba descended on this hill from the heaven first and
thereafter she sat in the temple. There are facilities of
steps as well as rope way to go up the hil. There is a
beautiful temple of the Goddess here.

Not an idol, but a 'Visa Yantra'-

There is no idol of the Goddess in the Ambaji

temple but a ' Visa Yantra' is worshipped.The decoration
of the 'VisaYantra' is arranged with the crown and
'Chunari' in such a way that it appears like an idol of the
HER ALMIGHTY riding her SAVARI. The 'visa Yantra' is
made of pure gold. Every day this decoration is done
with different SAVARI on animals [ Simha-the lion,
Vyaghra - the tiger, Gaja-the elephant, Airavat - the
mythical elephant with seven trunks, Nandi - the bull,
Garuda - the eagle, Hansa - the swan etc. according to
the day of the week.
 The temple of Goddess Ambaji is based on the 'Visa
Yantra'. There is a belief that this is a 'Shree Yantra'. It is
believed that this golden yantra having the back of a
tortoise is connected with the original yantras of the
'Shaktipeeth's of Ujjain and Nepal. The yantras in these
Shaktipeeths are worshipped as per the rituals of tantric
scriptures. It is so said that there are 51 letters in this
yantra. It is prohibitted to look at this yantra with open
eyes, therefore the priest also worships the yantra blind
folded. This yantra is considered to be a 'Kalpavruksha'
[i.e.the mythological heavenly tree that fulfills all desires].

Poonam (i.e. the Full Moon Night)

posh, the day of Goddess incarnation
The full moon night of the Hindu month 'Posh' is
celebrated as the day of incarnation of the Goddess. This
birthday of the Adyshakti is celebrated with a great pomp,
much enthusiasm and in an atmosphere of great joy and
devotion. A grand procession is taken out. A 'Shatchandi'
yagya is performed in the campus of the temple.

Kings- devotees of the Mother Goddess

Shiladitya of Valabhgi, the Ranas of Mewad,the
kings of Danta and Idar, King Karan of Anhilpur Patan
and his wife Minaldevi also were great devotees of the
Goddess.It is cited that Siddharaj Jaysimha went to
Ambaji, the shrine of Goddess Amba and performed a
sacrifice after he had defeated Yashovarma, the king of
Malwa. The last ruler of danta state the Maharana
Bhavanisinhji was great devotee of Maa Jagadamba and
worshipped till his last breath.
 The Penance Performed by the Pandavas

We can see the reference in the scriptures that the

Pandavas came here while their exile and stay in the
forest and stayed here to perform a penance of the
mother goddess.

Shri Arasuri Ambaji Mata Devasthan

Trust-
Shri Arasuri Ambaji Mata Devasthan Trust was
formed in the year 1963 A.D.The District Collector of
Banaskantha district is its chairperson as per the
designation. Moreover,prestigious citizens are also
included in the committee. The Government of Gujarat
appoints a full time Administrative Officer of the rank of
deputy collector for the administrative work of the
temple management.

The timings of Aarati and Darshan in

the Ambaji Temple
{This time changes in accordance with the time of
sunrise and sunset}

Present timings
Morning Aarati -- 7 - 30 To 8 - 00 AM
Morning Darshan -- 8 - 00 To 11- 30 AM
Afternoon Darshan -- 12-30 To 04 - 15 PM
Evening Aarati -- 06-30 To 07 - 00 PM
Evening Darshan -- 07-00 To 09 - 00 PM
 Places worth seeing at Ambaji

ƒ The sacred and ancient Maan Sarovar situated

very close [ about 100 metres] to the east of the
Ambaji temple.
ƒ The Gabbar hill
ƒ Koteshvar
ƒ Kumbhariya Jain temples
ƒ Rinchhadiya Mahadev

Places worth seeing nearby Ambaji

Name of the Place Kms.

Balaram 45

Pataleshvar Mahadev [Palanpur] 60

Mount Abu [Rajasthan] 50

Mokeshvar 46

Khedbrahma temple 50

Agricultural University [Dantivada] 78

 The nearest railway station from Ambaji-

Aburoad 20 kms.
Palanpur 60 Kms.
These stations are on the Ahmedabad-Delhi line.
Railway station inquiry phone number
Aburoad – (02974) – 222222
Palanpur – (02742) - _______________

The nearest airport from Ambaji-

Ahmedabad 180 kms.
Contact phone numbers, Ahmedabad Air port
(1) Indian Airlines(Domestic) :- 22869233 - 44

(2) Indian Airlines(International) :- 22869238

(3) Jet Air ways :- 22868307 – 22866240

(4) Air Sahara :- 22858002 -22858003

(5) Spy Jet :- 18001803333

(6) Air India :- 22867237 – 22869540 -

22865211
(7) King Fisher Air Lines :- 22858040 - 22858070

(8) Air Duccan :- 22861195

(9) Go Air :- 55426481 – 2255426485

Air Port Director

Mr. Suresh Dutt Avasthi = 22869211
 DETAILS OF THE RELIGIOUS AND
DEVELOPMENTAL PROGRAMMES HELD IN
AMBAJI IN THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY-
2007

Pratishtha of 'Ambalsara'and 'Dhvajdanda'

[flagpost] of 7.25 kg of Gold on the
'Shikhar' of the Ambaji temple

The 'Pratishtha' of eight 'Ambalsara's of 6.04 kg of

gold on the 'Shikhar'of the temple and other parts and
a flagpost of 1.249 kg of gold was performed with the
auspicious hands of the Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri
Narendrabhai Modi on 9th Feb.2007. The gold used in
these was obtained through the donation by 182
devotees of the mother goddess.The donors got the
chance to participate in the ritual of the'Pratishtha'
held in the ' Chachar Chowk'with their spouse.
 The pilgrims feel overjoyed just by the sight of the
flag on the ' shikhar' of the temple.The 28.5 feet long
flagpost is made of gold plated copper pipe of 7 inches
diametre filled with rosewood inside.
There are total 358 golden pitchers and 8 golden '
Ambalsaras' on the Ambaji temple now.This temple
possesses the highest number of golden pitchers among
all the 'Shaktipeeths' in the nation.

“The sacred and Mythological Maan Sarovar

of Ambaji – made full of facilities and
beautiful at an expense of Rs.1.05 crore –
was dedicated to the people”
The sacred and mythological Maan Sarovar situated
at a distance of hardly 100 metres to the east of the
Ambaji temple has a very glorious history. It is said that
the ‘Chaulkarma’ ritual i.e. the ritual of the first hair-cut of
Lord Shri Krushna was performed here. Plenty of people
come here for the ‘Chaulkarma’ [popularly known as
‘Babari’] of their children. Recently it has been renovated,
made full of facilities and beautified with an expenditure
of Rs.1.05 crore by the assistance of Gujarat Pavitra
Yatradham Vikas Board, Gandhinagar. It was dedicated to
the public by the auspicious hands of the Chief Minister of
Gujarat Shri Narendrabhai Modi on 9th Feb. 2007
 “The newly built ‘Yagnashala’ in the
temple-campus dedicated to public”
The devotees perform ‘Navchandi’, ‘Sahasrachandi’
and all types of yagyas in the ‘Yagnshala’ situated in
the campus of the Ambaji temple. Removing the old
‘Yagnashala’ with iron-sheet shade, the newly built
‘Yagnashala’ at an expense of Rs.70 lac recently was
dedicated to the public by the auspicious hands of the
Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Narendrebhai Modi on 9th
Feb. 2007. As per the tradition of scriptures the ‘
Yagnashala’ must touch the earth directly. So, it has
been made by filling up earth from the ‘Chachar chowk’
of the temple upto the land. Seven altars including one
main and six small ones have been built. The devotees
of the mother goddess will find it extremely
comfortable to perform their yagyas in the new
‘ Yagnashala’.

Request :- Please forward this mail to all the

devotees of the Goddess known
to you.
 “The details of other developmental
programmes at Ambaji performed by the
auspicious hands of Shri Narendrabhai
Modi, Chief Minister of Gujarat on 9th Feb.,
2007”
ƒ Ceremony of laying the foundation stone of the
proposed new hospital to be built at an expense
of Rs.6.39 crores in front of the Ambaji Arts and
Commerce College situated on the Ambaji-Danta
road.
ƒ Commencement of supplying sufficient water to
Ambaji through the water supply plan based on
the Dharoi Dam
ƒ Commencement of ‘Dudh Sanjivani Yojana’ of
providing Cardamam flavoured milk pouch of
Banas Dairy to the pupils of the primary schools
and Ashramshalas of Danta and Amirgadh
talukas.
 Important Phone numbers at
Ambaji(02749)

[1] Office of the Administrator : 262136, 262930,

262636
[2] Ambika Bhojanalaya : 262505
[3] Ambika Vishramgruh : 262143
[4] Shakti Pathikashram
{Holiday Home} : 262800
[5] S.T. Bus station : 262141
[6] Government Guest House : 262157
[7] Police Station : 264599
[8] Cottage Hospital : 262155

Important Phone Numbers at

Palanpur(02742)

Collector Office, Palanpur : 257171

D.D.O. Office, Palanpur : 254060
D.S.P. Office, Palanpur : 257015
D.C.F (General) : 257084
D.C.F (Extension) : 257056
R.D.C. Office, Palanpur : 254004
D.S.O. Office, Palanpur : 254309
S.D.M. Office, Palanpur : 257335
 The numbers of private hotels, guest
houses for lodging and boarding in
Ambaji (02749)

Akashganga - 262764
Panch Gam leua Patidar - 262134
Savita Govind Sadan - 262456
Umiya Pathikashram – 262169
Revaprabhu Sadan - 262124
PrajapatiBhuvan
[Kailas Tekri] - 262278
Ambaji International - 264540
Prajapati Bhuvan
[Near Holiday Home] - 262902
Asopalav Hotel - 264344
Samarpan Atithigruh - 262144
Chaudhary Vishramgruh - 262228
Rabari Samaj - 264829
Sunrise Hotel - 264570
Swargarohan - 262269
Hira Lakshmi Saraswati Sadan - 264319
Rajmandir - 264540
Yevla Bidi Dharmashala - 262126
Sitaba Sadan - 262605
Panchal Bhuvan - 262153
Panchal Dharmashala - 262342
Bhavani Palace - 262425
Hotel Rupali - 262194