Urvasi Island in the Brahmputra River near Guwahati in Assam is also called Peacock Island. A British administrator named it so, perhaps because of its green vegetation and natural scenic beauty nature lovers enjoy visiting it because of its tranquility and unspoilt charm during the festival of Shiv Chaturdashi or Mahashivratri (6 March this year) the peace of the island is shattered. It is visited by thousands of pilgrims who come to worship Shiva at the Umananda temple. If this festival falls on a Monday the crowds are even larger as then it is considered a day of Bliss.
The temple, also known as Bhasmacala is built on a hillock on Urvasi Island in the middle of the mighty Brahamputra. As per legend, Shiva (Bhayananda) lived here and often meditated on the hillock. Once as he meditated Kamadev (cupid) disturbed him. Angered by this Shiva flew into a rage and burnt him to ashes (Bhasma). Ever since, the temple located on top of Bhasmacala Hill or Hill of Ashes has been known as such.
The Kalika Puran speaks of it as Urvasikunda as Urvasi lived here and hence the name Urvasi. Island exists to this day. The Urvasi Kund is located on the island. It is believed that Urvasi the celestial maiden fills it with nectar for Goddess Kamakhya.
The Umananda temple is the best known Shiva temple in the region and hence during Mahashivratri draws the maximum number of pilgrims. This year over 20,000 visited the temple. Boats mostly country boats took visitors to the island.
The present Umananda Temple was built in the late 17th century by the order of King Gadhadhar Singh of the Ahom dynasty. Damaged in the 1897 earthquake it was reconstructed by a local merchant. It is one of the most picturesque temples of Assam. The presiding deity is Umananda but the temple has rock cut sculptures of principal Hindu gods like Ganesha, Vishnu, Surya and Devi (with a scorpion as emblem). The Rock cut sculptures are fascinating and speak of the skill of the craftsmen.
As you climb the steps of the temple you see huge Temple trees or Frangipani (Plumera) in bloom with their all pervading fragrance. There are other trees as well providing shelter to a large monkey population who are constantly looking for gullible pilgrims to feed them.
Mahashivaratri is the night of Shiva. Some believe it is when he came down to earth others say it is the day he married Parvati. The significance of this day is great all over the country. The Mahadev Temple in Barabanki (Uttar Pradesh) is visited by the Kanwariyas who carry urns of holy water from the Ganges at Haridwar all the way to bathe the Shivalingam at this temple. All over the South offerings are made by devotes at the temples of Andhra Pradesh and Tamilnadu. The Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain (Madhya Pradesh) has a problem with crowd control as does the Srikalahasti Temple in Chitoor (Andhra Pradesh). The Kashmiri Pandits celebrate it as Herath, the marriage day of Shiva, with celebrations lasting a week
For Urvasi Island the nearest airport is Guwahati as also the railhead. From here take road transport to the shore of the river and from Kachari ghat take the ferry boat across to the island.