After Lohri, the Punjabi festival that was celebrated on Friday, Makar Sankranti is here with the same message – to start afresh.
The festival is celebrated throughout the nation to mark the end of Malmaas, an inauspicious month in the Panchang (Hindu calendar).
The idea is much similar to the other harvest festivals like Lohri in north India, Bhogali Bihu in Assam and Pongal in the southern India. People offer grains to the mighty god and pray for an auspicious year ahead.
According to Hindu mythology, Makar Sankranti is a transitional phase, when the sun changes its direction to the zodiac sign of Makar (Capricorn).
Also known as Uttarayana, Makar Sankranti marks the northward movement of the planet earth on the celestial sphere, facing the sun.
On the fun part, Makar Sankranti offers an occasion to fly kites and it is the time for the International Kite Festiva, besides other kite festivals across the country.