Since my childhood, I have been experiencing the warmth of my favourite festival Makar Sankranti. This day marks the beginning of the season of flowers and joy.
Makar Sankranti is what we call it in Odisha, though the festival is celebrated with specific tone and tenor under various names in our vastly plural country. It is interesting to find that the same agrarian festival is organised in different ways across India. This is a major post harvest festival and is known to be the only kind which falls on the same date of every English calendar year that is January 14.
Well, since most of us are educated in a certain way and science is an integral part of our thought process, let me share with you that Makar Sankranti is the time when the sun moves away from the Tropic of Capricorn before moving towards the northern hemisphere. This is a time when long dark nights of the winter start giving way to long bright sunny days. This is when the sun gives us more light and more energy. The same as per old school teachings signify wisdom. Perhaps for that reason Makar Sankranti is also called the festival of prosperity, success and progress.
Maharashtrian women wear black sarees throughout the month and offer Haldi KumKum (a special Indian custom of celebrating social togetherness amongst Marathi women). Gujarat is very famous for its kite festival during Makar Sankranti. It is believed by many Gujratis that similar to the kite, the community should progress towards greater heights. Tamil Nadu celebrates Makar Sankranti as Pongal. They make sweets made out of rice and gur and bake it. Pongal O Pongal is a greeting which is heard in Tamil households on this day. In Rajasthan, Makar Sankranti is celebrated as Makar Sankrat. Himachalis celebrate Makar Sankranti as Magha Saaja and it is called Suggi in Karnataka. I still remember the story which my grand mother had once told me about Makar Sankranti in Odisha and that one famous line of that story never gets out of my mind “Mua kariachi Mua khaibaku, agyan heu debaraja…..” Mua is a particular kind of sweet, which is prepared in Odisha on Makar Sankranti.
Fair or Mela is a common site all over the country during Makar Sankranti. The world famous Kumbh Mela which is held every 12 years also commences on the very same Makar Sankranti.
Happy Makar Sankranti! Have loads of fun. May the Sun God always keep His blessings on you and your loved ones! May you be blessed with happiness, prosperity, success and progress!
(The writer is chairman of Shrimati Nandini Satpathy Memorial Trust)