Makar sankranti celebration

Discussion in 'Festivals, Functions & Rituals' started by vijayanagrani, Jan 8, 2010.

  1. vijayanagrani

    vijayanagrani New IL'ite

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    Dear Indusladies,

    I want to know the importance and how MAKAR SANKRANTI FESTIVAL IS CELEBRATED.
    Is any special poja to do on this day ?
     
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  2. gayathrisu

    gayathrisu New IL'ite

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    Hi Vijayanagrani,

    Makar Sankranti or Pongal or Uttarayan in various parts of India are names given to harvest festival. The Sun moves from Dakshinayan to Uttarayan, meaning a change in season, change of sun to Makar sunsign, and a change in daylight timings. The chill winter becomes warmer and days become longer and nights shorter.

    In Karnataka, we make "Yellu" which is a mixture of fried til, fried peanuts, jaggery, chopped dry coconut(copra), jeerige mitai(colorful ones that we add with saunf), putani(roasted gram). Children/ladies meet their family friends and relatives to exchange yellu with sugarcane, banana, and some gifts. It is a festival for more socializing, and children learn mannerism along with their tradition.

    In Tamilnadu, Pongal is celebrated as beginning of Thai month, with great enthusiasm with rangolis and maa kolams( done with rice flour) and you can see every road beautified with them. It is also an important festival before which people repaint their houses, be it small hut or a bungalow...every one takes pride taking part in cleaning their homes for the fest. Then the family members boil milk with rice in an earthen pot/brass pot and the pouring of milk out of the pot is considered auspicious, and all shout "Pongal - o - pongal" on top of their voice at the sunrise. There is an old saying "Thai pirandhal vazhi pirakkum" meaning there will be a way out for any problem or every problem at the birth of this month, and most marriages and house-warming ceremonies take place after a break of Dhanurmasa in this month.

    I pray the Lord, let this year begin in great fervor and let there be warmth and amity among us all times!
     
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  3. ps2012

    ps2012 Senior IL'ite

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  4. shantisubra

    shantisubra Gold IL'ite

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    Hi

    In south, we buy sugarcane stick,2 bunches of fresh raw haldi plant, mango leaves, flowers etc. on the previous day or a day before. Clean the entrance and threshold of the house and draw rangolis.

    In front of God / Altar, after drawing rangoli there too, place a banana leaf or a non-steel plant [preferably brass or silver or banana leaf] and place one bunch of Haldi plant with haldi and apply kumkum, place the sugar cane, light new lamp. Also can draw a pot and a Sun with rays depicting Sun God.

    For prasad, take out the haldi from one bunch removing the leaves tie it in a long thread and tie the thread around the neck of the utensil where you plan to cook Pongal and apply kumkum on the utensil. Now cook the Pongal on this utensil and shout Pongalo Pongal when the rice water raises up near the edge of the utensil. Also make sweet pongal in another utensil, tying the Haldi and offer to God. If you have open space, you may draw rangoli with Sun God and Pot design and there you may place your offerings and worship.

    Also Vadai is made on this day.

    If anyone has better or anything missing in the above, or any other way of celebrating, please share here which will be useful to all.

    Happy Makar Sankaranthi / Pongal to all.

    Rgds
    Shanti

     
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  5. rkgurbani

    rkgurbani IL Hall of Fame

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    Best wishes to you for this beautiful festival....Tilgul Ghyaa and Goddh Bola!!! (Take sweet and be sweet!)

    This is the best part of Makar Sankranti in Maharashtra where Tilgul (sweet made of sugar and sesame seeds) is distributed to one and all saying the above line.

    Nice to see someone from Kolhapur! I love that place.
     
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  6. Pradeepashree

    Pradeepashree New IL'ite

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    Hi Gayathrishu,

    This is really good information since i know all these before the words "There is an old saying "Thai pirandhal vazhi pirakkum" meaning there will be a way out for any problem or every problem at the birth of this month, and most marriages and house-warming ceremonies take place after a break of Dhanurmasa in this month". really makes me feel happy and creats lots of positive thoughts in my mind.

    Hope everything will be positive in coming days.

    Thank you and Whish you Happy pongal.

    Thanks,
    Pradeepashree
     
    Last edited: Jan 14, 2013
  7. ssm014

    ssm014 Platinum IL'ite

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    thanks for this thread and really good info by all

    Adding my 2 bits:

    This special day is also celebrated as "Lohri" (लोहड़ी) in Punjab. it is traditionally associated with the harvest of the rabi crops. People take peanuts, rewri (a sweet), flour, butter and various food items to places of religious worship to thank God for a good harvest.

    There is also a fire lit the previous night with lot of merriment, song and dance around it

    Like in other parts of India, in Punjab too, eating of til (sesame seeds) is considered auspicious..a dried sweet is made called as "rewri" (pronounced as rewdi)

    In Assam, this day is celebrated as Magh Bihu
     
  8. Shijiskumar

    Shijiskumar Bronze IL'ite

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    very much informative ....
     
  9. ahilaiyer

    ahilaiyer Junior IL'ite

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    DEAR ILites,

    Sankarat celebrated in

    Uttar Pradesh: In Uttar Pradesh, Sankrant is called‘Khichiri’. Taking a dip in the holy rivers on this day is regarded as mostauspicious. A big one-month long ‘Magha-Mela’ fair begins at Prayag (Allahabad)on this occasion.

    Bengal: In Bengal every year a very big Mela is heldat Ganga Sagar where the river Ganga is believed to have dived into the netherregion and vivified the ashes of the sixty thousand ancestors of KingBhagirath. This mela is attended by a large number of pilgrims from all overthe country.

    Tamil Nadu: In Tamil Nadu Sankrant isknown by the name of ‘Pongal’, which takes its name from the surging of riceboiled in a pot of milk, and this festival has more significance than evenDiwali. It is very popular particularly amongst farmers. Rice and pulses cookedtogether in ghee and milk is offered to the family deity after the ritualworship. In essence in the South this Sankrant is a ‘Puja’ (worship) for theSun God.




    Andhra Pradesh: it is celebrated as athree-day harvest festival Pongal. It is a big event for the people of AndhraPradesh. The Telugus like to call it 'Pedda Panduga' meaning big festival.


    Maharashtra: on the Sankranti daypeople exchange multi-colored tilguds made from til (sesame seeds) and sugarand til-laddus made from til and jaggery. Til-polis are offered for lunch.While exchanging tilguls as tokens of goodwill people greet each other saying –‘til-gul ghya, god god bola’ meaning ‘accept these tilguls and speak sweetwords’. The under-lying thought in the exchange of tilguls is to forget thepast ill-feelings and hostilities and resolve to speak sweetly and remainfriends. Woman shares haldikumkum as wel


    Gujarat: there is a custom of giving gifts torelatives. The elders in the family give gifts to the younger members of thefamily. The Gujarati Pundits on this auspicious day grant scholarships tostudents for higher studies in astrology and philosophy. This festival thushelps the maintenance of social relationships within the family, caste andcommunity.


    Kite flying hasbeen associated with this festival in a big way. It has become aninternationally well-known event.

    Punjab: Sankrant and which is celebrated as"LOHARI". Sweets, sugarcane and rice are thrown in the bonfires,around which friends and relatives gather together. The following day, which isSankrant, is celebrated as MAGHI. The Punjabi's dance their famous Bhangradance till they get exhausted. Then they sit down and eat the sumptuous foodthat is specially prepared for the occasion.


    Kerala: The 40 days anushthana by the devotees ofAyyappa ends on this day in Sabarimala with a big festival.


    Bundelkhand: this festival of Sankrantis known by the name ‘Sakarat’ and is celebrated with great pomp &merriment accompanied by lot of sweets.


    Tribals of Orissa: Many tribals in ourcountry start their New Year from the day of Sankrant by lighting bonfires,dancing and eating their particular dishes sitting together. The Bhuya tribalsof Orissa have their Maghyatra in which small home-made articles are put forsale.


    Assam: InAssam, the festival is celebrated as Bhogali Bihu.


    Coastal Region:In the coastalregions, it is a harvest festival dedicated to Indra.


    How to Celebrate:
    1. Get up early in the morning, before sunrise, have bath and be ready with water & flowers for the sunrise. Worship the rising Sun, by offering water, flowers with both the hands & then pray with folded hands by chanting the Gayatri Mantra and pray for knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment to rise in the similar way to greater & greater heights. Pray for blessings to live a dynamic, inspired & righteous life.
    2. Do tarpan for your ancestors. Offer water to the ancestors while praying for their blessings. Resolve to redeem the pledges & pride of your forefathers. Live life in such a way that wherever your forefathers may be their head is held high by the life & deeds of their children.
    3. Have a special session of Meditation, wherein you bring about the awareness of the self-effulgent subjective divinity. Affirm the greatest importance of your spiritual goal very clearly, and pray to God to bless you with the capacity to constantly revel in your true self. May the graph of your rise like the Uttarayana Sun. May there be greater 'Love & Light' in your life & the world.
    4. Prepare laddus or other sweets of Til & Gur and offer them to your friends & relatives. See to it that your ‘Well-being Prayer for all’ gets manifested in action & deeds.
    5. Have the lunch of Khichiri. This stands for inculcating simplicity in your life & habits.
    6. Give some Daan on this day to someone who truly deserves.
    7. Visit your son at his place and give presents to the son and the daughter-in-law. If it is not possible to visit, then organize to send presents to them to express your love & affection to them. Work to properly cultivate the generation, which has to carry forward all the best you cherish & value.


     
  10. chitramayakumar

    chitramayakumar Silver IL'ite

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    very informative
     
    Last edited: Jan 20, 2013

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