Makara Sankranthi, or Sankranti / मकर संक्रान्ति: A Festival celebrated throughout India.

Makara Sankranthi, or Sankranti / मकर संक्रान्ति:

A Festival celebrated throughout India.

Happy Sankranthi / Pongal / Lohri / Uttrayan / Makara Vilakku etc., to you and your family, may god bless you all with health, wealth & happiness.

Sankranthi, or Sankranti (Sanskrit: मकर संक्रान्ति ), Makar Sankaranti marks the transition of the Sun into Capricorn on its celestial path. This is significant considering the Winter Solstice marks the beginning of the gradual increase of the duration of the day. Remember actually the shortest day on the earth is December 21st, 22nd and from this point onwards day begin to increase. Hence actual Winter Solstice begin on December 21st or December 22nd when the tropical sun enters Makara rashi. Now because of the earth's tilt of 23.45 degrees and sliding of equninoxes ayanamasha occurs and causing makara sankranti to slide further.

After 5000 years Makara sankranti will come in the end of february, begining of march. After 9000 years Makara sanranti will come in the june (it will be the time when summer will be already there). Hence actual Uttarayana is December 21st when the tropical (Sayana) sun enters capricorn. This is because at one point of time they were the same. Because of this precession of the equinoxes ayanamsa occurs and hence sliding of makara sankranti. Traditionally, this has been one of many harvest days in India.

Kites in the Sky

It mesmerizes me to see the sky full of colorful Kites flying like birds and people hovering around their terrace flying their own kites or appreciating their favourite kite up in the sky. Well this picture is common in the days of an Indian festival known as "Sankranti".

Sankranti is generally celebrated during winters and is based on the solar calender.The reason behind celebrating Sankranti is to welcome the Suns Sovereignty as it enters the northern hemisphere.

Almost every state in India has a different style and reason to celebrate Makar Sankranti and this is due to the difference in culture and practices followed in general. Makar Sankranti apart from being a kite flying festival also has a special cuisine which is specifically based on the cold weather therefore pakwans are made of such ingredients which are warm in nature.

Haryana and Punjab celebrate Sankranti as Lodhri. These states have a dominance of farming and thus Lodhri is celebrated on the occasion of the harvesting of winter crops. The celebartion is done in the form of a Bonfire in which a percentage of harvest is burned as a sacrifice to god. In Bengal and Orissa Sankranti is Celebrated in order to get moksh and forgiveness from sins. This is done by taking a dip in the holy river of Ganga.

Due to the geography and size of India, this festival is celebrated for innumerable reasons depending on the climate, agricultural environment, cultural background and location.

Origin of name & Significance

Sankranthi means transmigration of Sun from one Rashi (zodiac in Indian astrology) to the other. Hence there are 12 such Sankrantis in all. However, the Sankranthi festival usually refers to Makara Sankaranti, or the transition of the Sun from Dhanu rashi (Sagittarius) to Makara rashi (Capricorn). For this purpose, the Zodiac signs are considered sidereally, and not tropically, as in western astronomy, thus accounting for the Earth's precession. The festival therefore takes place around 21 days after the tropical winter solstice (between December 20 and 23rd) that marks the starting of Uttarayana, which means northward journey of Sun.

While the traditional Indian Calendar is based on lunar positions, Sankranti is a solar event. So while dates of all Hindu festivals keep changing as per the gregorian calendar, the date of Makar Sankranti remains constant, 14 January. Makar Sankranti is celebrated in the Hindu Calendar month of Magha.

There is another significance of this day - after this day the days start becoming longer and warmer and thus the chill of winter declines.

Regional variations

Sankranti is celebrated all over South Asia with some regional variations:

In India, it is known by different names and celebrated with different customs in different parts of the country:

Makara Sankranti or Sankranti - Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, orissa, Manipur, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Goa
Uttarayan- Gujarat and Rajasthan
Lohri - Himachal Pradesh, Punjab
Pongal - Tamilnadu
Makara Vilakku Festival - Sabarimala Temple
In other countries too the day is celebrated under different names and in different ways:
In Nepal, Tharu people - Maghi
Other people - Maghe Sankranti or Maghe Sakrati
In Thailand - ???????? Songkran
In Laos - Pi Ma Lao
In Myanmar – Thingyan

Subtle meaning in Sanskrit

Makar Sankranti is the day when the Sun God begins its ascendancy and entry into the Northern Hemisphere. Sun for Hindus stands for Pratyaksha Brahman - the manifest God, who symbolizes, the one, non-dual, self-effulgent, glorious divinity blessing one and all tirelessly. Sun is the one who transcends time and also the one who rotates the proverbial wheel of time. The famous Gayatri Mantra, is directed to the Sun God to bless them with intelligence and wisdom. Sun not only represents God but also stands for an embodiment of knowledge and wisdom. Lord Krishna reveals in the Gita that this manifested divinity was his first disciple, and we all know it to be indeed a worthy one too.

Mela

Many Melas or fairs are held on Makar Sankranti the most famous being the Kumbh Mela, held every 12 years at one of four holy locations, namely Haridwar, Prayag (Allahabad), Ujjain and Nashik. The Magh Mela (or mini-Kumbh Mela held annually at Prayag) and the Gangasagar Mela (held at the head of the Ganges River, where it flows into the Bay of Bengal).

How to make yellu bella the famous new year recipe in Karnataka ?

Yellu madabeke hagadare illi click madi: http://www.itslife.in/2008/12/shankranthi-yellu

A mixture of Sesame Seeds, Molasses, Coconut, Groundnuts and Fried Gram. In Karnataka this is prepared during Sankranthi festival and distributed among friends and family along with Sakkare Achchu/Sugar models, Plantain and Sugarcane piece.

Disclaimer: This article is solely a collection of some written & online content . So hence i don't take any responsibility on this.

By

Ram