MAKAR SANKRANTI

Makar Sankranti is a major harvest festival celebrated in various parts of India. According to the lunar calendar, when the sun moves from the Tropic of Cancer to the Tropic of Capricorn or from Dakshinayana to Uttarayana, in the month of Paush in mid-January, it commemorates the beginning of the harvest season and cessation of the Northeast monsoon in South India. The movement of the earth from one zodiac sign into another is called Sankranti and as the Sun moves into the Capricorn zodiac known as Makar in Hindi, this occasion is named as Makar Sankranti in the Indian context. It is one of the few Hindu Indian festivals which are celebrated on a fixed date i.e. 14th January every year.

MAKAR SANKRANTI TITHI

Sankranti means 'change' and 'Makar' means 'Capricorn', thus Makar Sankranti is the day when the glorious Sun-God begins its ascendancy and entry into the Northern Hemisphere. It is when Sun transits from Sagittarius and goes to Capricorn during the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere (Uttarayana). Unlike most of the other Indian Hindu festivals, the date of Makar Sankranti is fixed. It is celebrated on 14th January every year. In 2010, the Makar Sankranti is falling on Thursday.

BRIEF LEGEND

The Puranas say that on this day Sun visits the house of his son Shani, who is the swami of Makar Rashi. These father & son do not ordinarily get along nicely, but inspite of any difference between each other Lord Sun makes it a point to meet each other on this day. Also the great grandsire of Mahabharata fame, Bhishma, declared his intent to leave his mortal coil on this day.

MAKAR SANKRANTI CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS

In some parts of the country, there is a custom of exchanging sweets made of jaggery, as the first sugarcane crop for the year is harvested during the period. Til Gud (Sesame-Jaggery sweet) is prepared and exchanged on the day.

Flying kite is another very popular Makar Sankranti traditions. Colorful kites, made of different shapes and sizes, are also flown in many parts. We can also witness people donating Khichdi (rice cooked with lentils) to the poor and needy. Taking a holy dip on the day and reciting Gayatri Mantra is considered auspicious and hence is a popular custom followed by many Indians where people flock the religious places in the state to take a ceremonious bath in holy River Ganga. It is believed that taking dip in holy rivers provides moksha (salvation) from all the sins done previously.

POOJA VIDHI

1. Get up early in the morning before sunrise, have bath and be ready with water & flowers for the sunrise. Worship the rising Sun by offering water, flowers with both the hands & then pray with folded hands by chanting the Gayatri Mantra and pray for knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment to rise in the similar way to greater & greater heights. Pray for blessings to live a dynamic, inspired & righteous life.

2. Do tarpan for your ancestors. Offer water to the ancestors while praying for their blessings. Resolve to redeem the pledges & pride of your forefathers. Live life in such a way that wherever your forefathers may be their head is held high by the life & deeds of their children.

3. Have a special session of Meditation, wherein you bring about the awareness of the subjective divinity. Affirm the greatest importance of your spiritual goal very clearly, and pray to God to bless you with the capacity to constantly revel in your true self. May the graph of your rise like the Uttarayana Sun. May there be greater 'Love & Light' in your life & the world.

4. Prepare laddus or other sweets of Til & Gur and offer them to your friends & relatives. See to it that your ‘Well-being Prayer for all’ gets manifested in action & deeds. Have the lunch of Khichri. This stands for inculcating simplicity in your life & habits. Giving some Daan on this day is considered to be auspicious.

5. Visit your son at his place and give presents to the son and the daughter-in-law. If it is not possible to visit, then organize to send presents to them to express your love & affection to them. Work to properly cultivate the generation, which has to carry forward all the best you cherish & value.

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