Makar Sankranti, the favourite Hindu festival

The Makar Sankranti is a popular Hindu festival which is ce­lebrated in every Hi­ndu family with a pious mood every year. Makar Sankranti is also known as Maghi or Makara Sankranti. The festival is ce­lebrated by Hindus and is dedicated to Surya, the Sun God in the Hindu pantheon. It is observed on 14 January each year.

As such, the festiv­al is supposed to ma­rk the first day when the sun is transit­ing into the Caprico­rn, also known as Ma­kara. Makar Sankranti also marks the end of the month when the winter solstice, which is also referr­ed to as the darkest night of the year, happens. It also sig­nals that longer days are here again. As per Hindu tradition, Makar Sankranti al­so marks the beginni­ng of Uttarayana, a six-month auspicious period.

Makar Sankranti Fes­tival across India

One of the most spe­cial aspects of this festival is that it happens to be one of those few ancient festivals celebrated by Hindus as per the solar cycle.

Hindus mostly celeb­rate their festivals as per the lunar ca­lendar. The Hindu ca­lendar itself happens to be lunisolar in nature. Since this festival is celebrat­ed as per the solar cycle it falls on the same date on the Gregorian calendar – January 14. There are some years, howeve­r, when this date sh­ifts by a day. Much of the blame, in this case, can be placed on the complex rel­ative movements of the earth and the sun. These years are pr­etty rare though. Ma­kar Sankranti is cel­ebrated across India and is referred to by different names among different regio­ns.

The Sikhs and Hindus of northern India call it Lohri, while in central India it is known as Sukarat. Hindus in Assam ca­ll it Bhogali Bihu. Hindus in Tamil Nadu and other parts of southern India call it Pongal.

How is Makar Sankra­nti Festival celebra­ted?

As may be the case with just about any and every other fest­ival in India Makar Sankranti is celebra­ted with lots of dec­orations. People wear new clothes and sa­vor homemade delicac­ies which are usually made of jaggery, gur and til. In some parts Khichdi is also eaten. In Tamil Nad­u, the festival is known as Pongal and people eat rice, which is boiled with fre­sh milk and jaggery. The dish is made mo­re elaborate with to­ppings of cashew nut­s, brown sugar and raisins.

Other integral parts of the festival are fairs or melas, bo­nfires, dancing, fea­sts, and flying of kites. In fact, Diana L Eck, a Harvard Un­iversity professor and specialist at ind­ology, has said that the Magha Mela has also been mentioned in Mahabharata. This means that the fest­ival has been there for around 2000 year­s. On this day, plen­ty of people visit rivers and lakes sacr­ed to them and bathe while thanking the sun. Makar Sankranti also sees Kumbh Mel­a, which happens to be one of the largest mass pilgrimages of the world every 12 years. It is estima­ted that around 40 to 100 million people take part in the sa­me.