Thursday 14th January, Makar Sankranti 2010 will be celebrated by Hindus around the world. This festival is celebrated each year as a Festival of Harvest. The festival is also celebrated in Gujarat as the kite flying celebration. and Pongal in South India states. It is also celebrated as begining of Hindu New Year.
Hindus will fast and cook the famous Kichiri. For the insight, Makar means Capricorn and Sankranti means transition. In a nutshell it means the Transition of the Sun to Capricorn.
What many people do not know is that each month there is a Sankranti! That is a transition to another zodiac sign. However the two famous ones are the Makar Sankranti and the Mesh Sankranti. Makar Sankranti is a bit like the Thanksgiving of the western world. It is harvest time and harvest celebration. Different cultures in India celebrate this festival but each one has his own traditional touch to it. On Makar Sankranti, the Gayatri mantra is chanted and prayers to the Sun is performed to ask for blessing.
Legends also says that on Makar Sankranti, the Sun God meets his son Saturn. These two are generally not in good terms based on Hindu mythology. Well that was a little brief about Makar Sankranti.
Happy harvest festival and Happy New Year 2010 to everyone.
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