Makar Sankranti is an important festival of the Hindus, celebrated with great joy and devotion all over India. This auspicious day is known in different names at different places in India. While the North Indians and some regions in the East celebrate it as Makar Sankranti and Lohri the people of Assam celebrate it as ‘Bihu’ and the people in the South India, especially in Andhra Pradesh celebrate as Pongal.
This festival is celebrated in the view of welcoming the transition of Sun from constellation Sagittarius (Dhanu) to constellation Capricorn (Makar). Geographically, this transition or apparent movement of Sun from Tropic of Capricorn towards Tropic of Cancer also takes place during this time.
The festival of Pongal is celebrated for three days and are known as Surya Pongal (the worship of Sun God), Mattu Pongal ( the worship of Cattle) and Bhumi Pongal (the worship of the Mother Earth).
In this festival the people of Odisha offer the newly harvested rice to the Sun God. The offering is a mixture of the rice (uncooked), jiggery, ginger, ghee, banana and coconut. In Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, women cook the newly harvested rice in new earthen utensils and offer it to the Sun God. In North India, the people offer the newly harvested grains and nuts to the fire and take bath at holy river, especially, a dip in the River Ganges at Haridwar and Kurukshetra.
This year Makar Sankranti was accompanied by the moment of Mahakumbh which happens once in twelve years and was further followed by Annular Solar eclipse, the first eclipse of long duration of this century which prevailed for a period of three hours and thirty five minutes. Almost all places in India experienced the beautiful scene of annular and partial solar eclipse. Apart from students and scientists, many people gathered at prominent places to observe the first longest solar eclipse of the century.
On the occasion of Mahakumbh, many devotees took the first holy dip at Haridwar apart form saints. There is an interesting story related to Kumbh which is followed by Eclipse in Hindu mythology which resembles to the event of this year’s kumbh being followed by eclipse.