About Makar Sankranti
Most Hindu festivals follow the Moon, but Sankranti follows the Sun. In the sidereal zodiac used in Indian astrology, the Sun moves into a new sign each month, and each such day is a sankranti. The entry into Makara is the most celebrated of them, because it opens the six months of Uttarayan, long held to be an especially bright and favourable time. It also comes at harvest, when sesame, sugarcane and new rice come home.
Almost every region has its own name and way. In Uttar Pradesh and Bihar the day is often called Khichdi, and khichdi of new rice and urad dal is cooked, offered and given away; in Bihar, curd with chura and tilkut is a favourite. In Maharashtra people exchange tilgul and say tilgul ghya, god god bola: take this sweet and speak sweetly. Gujarat celebrates Uttarayan with kites from dawn till after dark, with undhiyu and chikki. Punjab keeps Lohri the night before and Maghi on the day, Tamil Nadu keeps Pongal, Assam keeps Magh Bihu, and in Karnataka people share ellu bella, a mix of sesame, jaggery and coconut.
The day usually begins with an early bath, in a river where possible. Great numbers bathe at the Sangam in Prayagraj, where the Magh Mela is under way, at Gangasagar where the Ganga meets the sea, and in rivers and ponds everywhere. People offer water to the Sun, worship, and then give: sesame, jaggery, rice, khichdi, blankets and warm clothes to those who need them. Sesame and jaggery are eaten in many forms, as laddoo, chikki, gajak and revdi, since they are traditionally thought of as warming foods in the cold season.
A practical note: the festival follows the moment the Sun enters Makara. The hours after that moment, known as punya kaal, are kept for the bath and giving. When the entry happens late in the evening or at night, many observe Sankranti the next day. The time of the Sun's entry for your place is shown above.
