Makar Sankranti

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Makar Sankranti is a mid-winter festival of India. The day celebrates the northward journey of the Sun.

Sankranti means the day the Sun enters a new zodiac sign according to Hindu astrology. There is a Sankranti for every month of the year. Makar means Capricorn. Makar Sankranti is the day the Sun enters Capricorn. The reason why Makar Sankranti is celebrated more than any other is that it marks the day the Sun starts moving north and the auspicious half of the year characterised by increasing daylight begins.

The celebration is similar to winter solstice celebrations in other ancient cultures. Instead of the celebrating on the day of the Winter Solstice - Makar Sankranti is celebrated on January 14, the day the Sun enters the next zodiac sign according to Hindu astrology.

Makar Sankranti is celebrated in regional festivals all over India. Some of the regional celebrations that take place on Jan 14th are:

Makara Sankranthi (Typically on Jan 14), Bhogi (Jan 13), Kanuma(Jan 15), Mukkanuma (Jan 16) (Andhra)
Lohri (Punjab)
Bhogali Bihu (Assam, Bengal)
Pongal (Tamil Nadu)
Makar Sankranti (Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Gujarat, UP and other northern states etc)

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 Nadiad. 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).

The festival is celebrated by the flying of kites in most of northern India.

Makar Sankranti falls on January 14 on non-leap years and on January 15 on leap years. It is the only Hindu festival which is based on the Solar calendar rather than the Lunar calendar. The day is a holiday in the state of Gujarat.

Makara Sankranti is celebrated in Kerala at Sabarimale where the Makara Jyothi is visible followed by the Makara Vilakku celebrations.

Kites are flown for most of the day in the region. The objective of this sport is to cut as many rival kites as possible to attain air superiority. Additionally, a cut kite may be also picked up by another kite giving the collector a free kite. The diamond shaped kites come in various designs. The thread, known as manja is sharpened with finely crushed glass pieces. The season also is perfect for spending a day in a sun. The season is windy, making it ideal for kite flying. At night special lantern kites with candles embedded are flown which give the skies an eerie feeling.

In Maharashtra, when two Maharashtrians greet each other or visit each other during Makar Sankranti, they exchange a few grains of fried til and multi-coloured sugar mixed with molasses and say "til gul ghya, god god bola" (let us be sweet to each other and let friendship prevail between us).Til is one of the important ingredients in this festival. The married ladies in Maharashtra arrange "haldi kum kum", an auspicious religious get together by way of which they call upon their friends and relatives and distribute sweets and gifts.

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Festivals in the Hindu calendar
Pongal \| Holi \| Ugadi \| Rama Navami \| Krishna Janmaashtami \| Onam \| Ganesh Chaturthi \| Vaisakhi \| Navratri \| Durga Puja \| Vijayadashami \| Dasara \| Diwali \| Durga puja \|Thaipusam \| Maha Shivaratri \| Ekadasi \| Vaikunta Ekadasi \| Mahalakshmi vrata \| Raksha Bandhan \| Bhai-Dooj/Bhau-Beej [ v]·[ d]·[ e]