Most important Purnima in Gujarat. Ambaji Mela at Mount Abu.
Bhadarvi Poonam, the full moon of Bhadrapad month, is one of the most important days for devotees of the Mother Goddess in Gujarat. It is the day of the great Ambaji Mela, held at the Ambaji temple in the Aravalli hills near the Gujarat-Rajasthan border. Ambaji is revered as one of the fifty one Shakti Peethas, the sacred sites where parts of Goddess Sati are said to have fallen, and the temple is among the most powerful Shakti shrines in the country.
In the days leading up to Bhadarvi Poonam, lakhs of devotees set out on padyatra, walking for miles from towns and villages across Gujarat to reach Ambaji, often barefoot and singing the praises of the Goddess. Roadside sevas offer food, water and rest to the walkers. At the temple, the sacred Visa Yantra is worshipped, and the hills echo with garba and devotional songs through the mela. It is a journey of faith that brings the whole of Gujarat together.
Bhadarvi Poonam 2026 is on Saturday, 26 September 2026, the full moon (Purnima) of Bhadrapad month, the main day of the Ambaji Mela.
The Ambaji Mela is the great fair held at the Ambaji Shakti Peetha on Bhadarvi Poonam, when lakhs of devotees come on padyatra to worship the Mother Goddess. It is one of the largest religious gatherings in Gujarat.
Ambaji is revered as one of the fifty one Shakti Peethas, the sacred places where parts of Goddess Sati are said to have fallen. This makes it one of the holiest shrines of the Mother Goddess and a major pilgrimage centre in Gujarat.