01The yantra and the hill
In the inner shrine the priests worship the Visa Yantra, a gold-plated yantra of the Devi, behind a niche hung with cloth and ornaments. Devotees are not allowed to look at it with open eyes during the puja, and it is never photographed. Three km away rises Gabbar hill, which tradition holds to be the original seat of the Devi; a lamp burns on its top and the steps to it are climbed by lakhs. The marble temple in the town was rebuilt in the 20th century and is run by the Shri Arasuri Ambaji Mata Devasthan Trust.
02Bhadarvi Poonam
The great mela falls on the full moon of Bhadrapada, when padayatris walk in from all over Gujarat carrying the Devi’s red flags, some for a week. Navratri brings garba in the temple chowk. A short drive away is Kumbhariya, with five 11th–13th-century Jain temples carved in the same white marble as Dilwara. Around Gabbar the trust has built a parikrama path with replicas of all 51 Shakti Peethas, so a pilgrim can take darshan of each in one round.
About 180 km from Ahmedabad and 45 km from Abu Road station. Gabbar has steps and a ropeway; go at dawn in summer.
