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Makar Sankranti
| Makar Sankranti | |
|---|---|
 Holy dip by devotees in river Ganga on the occasion of Makar Sankranti | |
| Also called | Uttarayana Sankranti Til Sakraat Magha Môkôr Sôṅkrānti Mela Ghughuti Pedda Panduga Bhogi Sakraat Pongal Peddha Panduga sakrat khichaṛi |
| Observed by | Hindus, Buddhists |
| Liturgical color | Red |
| Type | Religious and cultural, harvest festival |
| Significance | A harvest festival, a celebration of the winter solstice |
| Celebrations | Kite flying, bonfires, fairs, Surya puja in river, feast, arts, dance, socialization, gau puja |
| Date | First day of makara masa, Bhogi (15 January in leap years; 14 January on all other years) |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to | Pongal, Lohri, Lal Loi, Maghe Sankranti, Magh Bihu, Tusu Festival |
| Part of a series on |
| Hinduism |
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Makar(a) Sankrānti (Sanskrit: मकरसङ्क्रान्ति, romanized: Makarasaṅkrānti),[1] (transl. Capricorn Festival) also referred to as Uttarāyana, Makara, or simply Sankrānti, is a Hindu observance and a festival. Usually falling on the date of 14 January annually (15 January on a leap year),[2][3][4] this occasion marks the transition of the sun from the zodiac of Sagittarius (dhanu) to Capricorn (makara).[2][5][6] Since the sun has made this transition which vaguely coincides with moving from south to north, the festival is dedicated to the solar deity, Surya,[7] and is observed to mark a new beginning.[8] Many native multi-day festivals are organised on this occasion all over India.
The festivities associated with Makar Sankranti are known by various names including Sankranthi or Peddha Panduga in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana,[9][10] Khichari in Bhojpuri region, Magh Bihu in Assam, Maghi Saaji in Himachal Pradesh, Makara Sankranti in Kerala, Karnataka, Maghi Sangrand in Punjab, Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Maghi Sangrand or Uttarain (Uttarayana) in Jammu, Sakrat in Haryana, Sakraat in Rajasthan, Sukarat in central India, Uttarayana in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, Ghughuti in Uttarakhand, Dahi Chura in Bihar, Makar Sankranti in Odisha, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Goa, West Bengal (also called Poush Sankranti or Mokor Sonkranti), Uttar Pradesh (also called Khichidi Sankranti), Uttarakhand (also called Uttarayani) or as simply, Maghe Sankranti (Nepal), Songkran (Thailand), Thingyan (Myanmar), Mohan Songkran (Cambodia), Til Sakraat in Mithila, and Shishur Senkrath (Kashmir). On Makar Sankranti, Surya (Hindu solar deity) is worshipped along with Vishnu and goddess Lakshmi throughout India.[11]
Makar Sankranti is observed with social festivities such as colourful decorations, rural children going house to house, singing and asking for treats in some areas,[12] melas (fairs), dances, kite flying, bonfires and feasts.[10][13] The Magha Mela is mentioned in the Hindu epic Mahabharata.[14] Many observers go to sacred rivers or lakes and bathe in a ceremony of thanks to the Sun.[14] Every twelve years, the Hindus observe Makar Sankranti with Kumbha Mela – one of the world's largest mass pilgrimage, with an estimated 60 to 100 million people attending the event.[14][15][16] At this event, they say a prayer to the Sun and bathe at the Prayagaraj confluence of the River Ganga and River Yamuna,[14] a tradition attributed to Adi Shankaracharya.[17] Makar Sankranti is a time of celebration and thanks giving, and is marked by a variety of rituals and tradition.[18]
- ^ www.wisdomlib.org (20 March 2019). "Makarasankranti, Makarasaṅkrānti, Makara-sankranti, Makarasamkramti: 3 definitions". www.wisdomlib.org. Archived from the original on 5 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ a b Kamal Kumar Tumuluru (2015). Hindu Prayers, Gods and Festivals. Partridge. p. 30. ISBN 978-1-4828-4707-9.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Melton2011p547was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Henderson, Helene (2005). Holidays, festivals, and celebrations of the world dictionary Third edition. Electronic edition: Detroit: Omnigraphics. p. xxix. ISBN 0-7808-0982-3.
- ^ Singh, K. V. (25 November 2015). Hindu Rites and Rituals: Origins and Meanings. Penguin UK. p. 33. ISBN 978-93-85890-04-8. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- ^ James G. Lochtefeld (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A–M. Rosen Publishing Group. p. 411. ISBN 978-0-8239-2287-1. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
- ^ Melton, J. Gordon (2011). Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations. ABC-CLIO. p. 547. ISBN 978-1-59884-205-0. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- ^ Fieldhouse, Paul (17 April 2017). Food, Feasts, and Faith: An Encyclopedia of Food Culture in World Religions [2 volumes]. ABC-CLIO. p. 349. ISBN 978-1-61069-412-4. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- ^ "After a 100 years, Makar Sankranti gets a new date". Hindustan Times. 14 January 2017. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
- ^ a b Nikita Desai (2010). A Different Freedom: Kite Flying in Western India; Culture and Tradition. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 30–33. ISBN 978-1-4438-2310-4.
- ^ "Makar Sankranti 2021: Know Why Makar Sankranti Festival Is Celebrated". NDTV. 11 January 2021. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ Kailash Puri; Eleanor Nesbitt (2013). Pool of Life: The Autobiography of a Panjabi Agony Aunt. Sussex Academic Press. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-1-78284-067-1.
- ^ Kapila Vatsyayan (1987). Traditions of Indian folk dance. Clarion Books. pp. 192–193. ISBN 978-0-85655-253-3.
- ^ a b c d Diana L. Eck (2013). India: A Sacred Geography. Random House. pp. 152–154. ISBN 978-0-385-53192-4. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- ^ Kumbha Mela: The Largest Gathering on Earth Archived 29 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine, Alan Taylor, The Atlantic (14 January 2013)
- ^ Biggest Gathering On Earth' Begins In India; Kumbha Mela May Draw 100 Million Archived 22 July 2023 at the Wayback Machine, Mark Memmott, NPR, Washington DC (14 January 2013)
- ^ Roshan Dalal (2011), The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths, Penguin, ISBN 978-0-14-341517-6, see Kumbh Mela entry
- ^ "Makar Sankranti". Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
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