Last updated on July 4th, 2023 at 04:18 pm
Makar Sankranti is one of the main festivals in India. Makar Sankranti is celebrated throughout India and Nepal in some form or another. This festival is celebrated in the month of Pausha when the Sun enters Capricorn. This festival falls on the fourteenth or fifteenth day of the month of January in the present century, on this day the Sun leaves Sagittarius and enters Capricorn.
It is celebrated as a festival called Pongal in Tamil Nadu while it is simply called Sankranti in Karnataka, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh. In some places, the Makar Sankranti festival is also called Uttarayan. After January 14, the Sun will move toward the north. Uttarayan is also called this for this reason. This happens because the inclination of the earth changes every 6 months to the north and for 6 months to the south. It is a natural process. This is the day it happens.
Makar Sankranti Is Known By Different Names In Each State.
– Makar Sankranti (Sankranti): Chhattisgarh, Goa, Odisha, Haryana, Bihar, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Gujarat and Jammu
– Tai Pongal, Uzhavar Tirunal : Tamil Nadu
– Uttarayan: Gujarat, Uttarakhand
– Uttarain Maghi Sangrand : Jammu
– Sishur Sankrat: Kashmir Valley
– Maghi: Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab
– Bhogali Bihu: Assam
– Khichdi: Uttar Pradesh and Western Bihar
– Paush Sankranti: West Bengal
– Capricorn Transit: Karnataka
Various names outside India:-
– Bangladesh : Shakrain/ Paush Sankranti
– Nepal: Maghe Sankranti or ‘Maghi Sankranti’ ‘Khichdi Sankranti’
– Thailand: Songkrant Songkaran
– Laos: Pi Ma Lao
– Myanmar: Thinyan
– Cambodia: Moha Sangkran
– Sri Lanka: Pongal, Uzhavar Tirunal
Importance of Makar Sankranti:-
Makar Sankranti is considered very auspicious for bathing in the Ganges and donating on the banks of the river. Great bath is the noun given to bathing in Tirtharaj Prayag and Gangasagar on this festival. From a religious point of view, Sun’s entry into Cancer and Capricorn is very fruitful, although it affects all zodiac signs.
This entry or transition process occurs every six months. India is situated in the Northern Hemisphere. Makar Sankranti is determined by the speed of the Sun, but generally all the dates of the Indian Panchang system are determined by considering the speed of the moon.
According to our holy Vedas, Bhagwat Geeta ji, and the constitution of Supreme God, if we do bhakti of Supreme God by taking Naam Diksha from a Supreme Saint, He will make this earth heaven and fulfill your wish.
Historical Significance of Makar Sankranti:-
On this day, it is believed that Lord Bhaskar himself goes to his house to meet his son Shani. Since Makar Sankranti is the day when Shani Dev is the lord of Capricorn, it is known by that name. On Makar Sankranti, Gangaji followed Bhagirath to meet Kapil Muni in the ocean.
