Dear Comrades,
Pongal & Makar Sankranti
The Festival Celebrating
Prosperity
Wish
You all
a
very
happy
Makar Sankranti
and
happy Pongal
Makar Sankranti is one of the most
auspicious occasions for the Hindus, and is celebrated in almost all parts of the country in myriad cultural
forms, with great devotion, fervour & gaiety. It is a harvest festival. Makar Sankranti is
perhaps the only Indian festival whose date always falls on the same day every
year i.e. the 14th of January.
Makar Sankranti is the day when the glorious Sun-God begins its ascendancy and entry into the Northern Hemisphere and thus it signifies an event wherein the Sun-God seems to remind their children that 'Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya', may you go higher & higher, to more & more Light and never to Darkness.
To Hindus, the Sun stands for
knowledge, spiritual light and wisdom. Makar Sankranti signifies that we should
turn away from the darkness of delusion in which we live, and begin to enjoy a
new life with bright light within us to shine brighter and brighter. We should
gradually begin to grow in purity, wisdom, and knowledge, even as the Sun does
from the Day of Makar Sankranti.
The festival of Makar Sankranti is highly regarded by the Hindus from North to down South. The day is known by various names and a variety of traditions are witnessed as one explores the festival in different states.
India is a land whose primary
occupation is agriculture. Changes in season thus play a very important role
for Indian farmers. Their lifestyles and celebrations are thus exclusively
linked to the seasonal landmarks in an year. There are many Indian festivals
which are in tune with a farmers lifestyle and also with the seasonal
variations in an year. Pongal, the harvest festival of the southern Indian
state of Tamil Nadu is one of them.
When is Pongal Celebrated?
This festival marks the beginning of
the end of winter season and corresponds to the time when the sun is moving
towards Uttarayanam (north) from Dakshinayanam (south). The period is referred
to as Uttarayan Punyakalam and is considered auspicious. As per the Tamil
calender, Pongal is celebrated four days from the last day of the month of
Margazhi (December — January) to the third day of the month Thai (January —
February). Thus, according to the Gregorian calender, Pongal is celebrated from
12 to 15 January of which Pongal day or the first day of Thai falls on 14
January.
Common
Traditions and Customs
Some of the rituals which are a must
on Pongal are cleaning the house and wearing new clothes. The young girls and
women wear a lehanga and half sari respectively whereas the men are attired in
lungi and angavastram on this occasion. During the Pongal season, people eat
sugar canes and decorate the houses with kolam which is made using rice paste.
Kolams are generally made of white colour but one may also come across kolams
made up of different colours.
Another popular custom is exchanging gifts on Pongal. In villages, farm labourers get ‘Pongal Padi' or ‘Pongal Parisu’ as Pongal Gifts. This tradition has now moved on to other occupations as well, with employers giving gifts to their employees on the occasion of Pongal. This is an opportunity to present gifts to those among your family and friends as well. Some popular yet appropriate gift ideas on Pongal include Lord sun sculptures (on Surya Pongal), decoratives (on Bhogi Pongal), new kitchen vessels, wooden handicrafts and household goods.
The Festivities
Pongal is a festival that goes on for four days. The first
day of festivities is known as the Bogi Pongal, wherein people worship the sun
god and earth. The dish Pongal is made by boiling rice with milk. In fact the
first paddy that is harvested is used to make Pongal. The second day is Surya
Pongal or Perum Pongal. It is the most important day and people worship Surya,
the Sun God and his consorts, Chaya and Samgnya. Old articles are thrown in the
fire and people have an oil massage and wear new clothes on this day. On the
third day of the festival, known as Mattu Pongal, the farm animals like cattles
are worshipped. Cattles are bathed and dressed beautifully and served Pongal.
The fourth day is Thiruvalluvar day or Kaanum Pongal. People visit family,
friends and relatives, women of the house perform puja for the prosperity of
their brothers. Many people leave cooked rice on banana leaves for birds on
this day.
The
Tamil Festival
On this occasion farmers pay their
respects to the rain, sun and the farm animals, all of which are essentials in
any harvest. Also, since paddy and other crops depend on the availability of
good rain and Tamil Nadu does not have many perennial water sources, rain and
sun gods are invoked during this auspicious occasion. Pongal is also known as
"Tamizhar Thirunal" (meaning "the festival of Tamils").
"Thai Pirandhal Vazhi Pirakkum" which means that "birth of the
Thai month will pave way for new opportunities" is a common saying in
reference to Pongal.
