The people welcome the advent of Makara-Sankranthi (Samyak kranthi iti Sankranthi)

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The people welcome the advent of Makara-Sankranthi ("Samyak kranthi iti Sankranthi")This festive day

has been celebrated from ancient times as a day of fulfillment and joy.

Every festival is a social occasion, arising in society, flourishing in

society, and promoting the well being of society. Every festival has been

designed to promote the welfare of society. With social changes, festivals

also have undergone changes.

Today's festival

Makar Sankranthi is an extremely important one for Bharatiyas (Indians).

It is a festival to celebrate the glory of the Sun God.

The Sun moves

every month from one sign of Zodiac to the next.

Sankranthi,

meaning 'sacred change', occurs every month as the Sun moves from one house

of the Zodiac to another. But special sacredness attaches to the movement

of the Sun to Capricorn (Makara-Sankranthi).

The Sun appears

cool

The day gets

shortened

And is made pleasant

by chill wind

On the fields

lit by moonlight

The crows caw

over the grain heaps

While the farmers

sing in joy

Over the golden

harvest

The flowers express

their joy

By putting forth

their petals

While in every

home, filled with grain,

The people welcome

the advent of Sankranthi

 

On Sankranthi,

day the farmers rejoice over the fullness of the granaries in their homes

with the newly harvested crop.

When the Sun enters

the sign of Capricorn, he begins his northward motion. The sun shines in

every human body illuminating the six chakras

(spiritual centres in the body). Of these chakras, two are most important:

the heart (hridaya)

chakra and the crown chakra (sahasrara chakra).

The heart chakra has eight petals. God is the Lord of the eight-petaled

heart chakra. These eight petals are regarded as eight consorts of the

Lord. In this context, the Lord is adored in the form of the Sun. The world

cannot survive without the Sun. The solar system is derived from the Sun.

Hence, the Sun is worshipped as divine.

The ancient sages

adored the eight-petaled divine centre in the heart and thereby reached

the crown chakra and enjoyed supreme bliss.

 

Today's holy festival

is related to the beginning of the apparent northward movement of the sun

(uttarayana).

The sun moves every month from one house of the zodiac to the next. Today,

the sun enters the house of Capricorn (Makara),

so it is known as Makara Sankranthi.

This auspicious day heralds the conferment of many worldly and spiritual

blessings on man. The Sankranthi day

is a witness to the prospective successes of man in many fields.

Sankranthi day marks the arrival in the farmers' houses of the grains that are the

fruit of their labors. Sankranthi is a holy festival for a worldly achievement. It is also a cherished day

of rest in the cool atmosphere. Man needs days of rest after a period of

hard work. Only then he can enjoy peace of mind. "Samyak

kranthi iti Sankranthi." Sankranthi

confers peace and heralds a welcome change. It brings out the inner joy

in people. It effects a change in life-style. It generates sacred thoughts.

 

Sankramana is the time when the inward journey toward a pure and unsullied heart is

made. Just as the sun embarks on his northward journey,

Sankranthi is the day on which the intellect should be turned toward the

Atma for Self-realization.

The Vedas declare that the period when the Sun takes its northward path (uttarayana)

is sacred. The great warrior Bhishma, lying on a bed of arrows, waited

for 56 days for the advent of uUttarayana to end his life. The ancient

legends (Puranas)

have stated that whoever passes away in Uttarayana will attain liberation.

In the movement

of the sun from house to house in the Zodiac, the entry into Capricorn

is most important. Capricorn is a sign of peace and contentment. According

to the Gregorian calendar, Sankranthi begins on January 13 or 14. This confers a kind of mental and physical

peace.

Few people understand

the true significance of festivals like Sankranthi. Man cannot secure enduring bliss through physical pleasures. He has to

discover that the source of this bliss is within himself. Sankranthi enables man to make this discovery, like a man who, carrying his spectacles

on his forehead, searches everywhere for them and discovers to his joy

that they have been with him all along.

The Divine is

not anywhere else. It is enshrined in one's heart. Hence, the man who seeks

the Divine within his heart redeems himself. He then attains liberation.

All external spiritual exercises are of temporary value. They should be

internalized to experience lasting bliss. All mental exercises also leave

the heart unaffected. In the nine paths of devotion, beginning with listening

to sacred things and ending with total surrender of the self (Atma-nivedanam),

the last is the most important. After total surrender (Atma-nivedanam),

there is no need for any other effort.

Sankranthi gives the call for this total surrender.

Sankranthi is a kind of

family festival. Yes. This is so. But the whole world is one family (Vasudhaiva

Kutumbakam). The festival relates to the entire

world. It is not confined to one's kith and kin. Sankranthi

is related to the entire mankind. Whether people realize it or not, Sankranthi

promotes a feeling of happiness in one and all.

Sankranthi promotes mental transformation. It illumines the minds of people. It induces

the unfoldment of inner feelings. It brings about the manifestation of

the invisible Atma within everyone.

Sankranthi is pregnant with such immense significance. It influences not only the

mind but also the powers of nature. Nature is a projection of the mind.

The world is rooted in the mind (Manomoolam

idam jagath). When the mind is turned toward

the heart and the heart is filled with the Divine, the mind will cease

to be a source of trouble. The mind is the master of the senses. When the

senses are controlled, the mind is under control. Only the master of the

mind can attain Madhava (the Divine, another name for Krishna).

 

 

 

In

the Dwapara Yuga (the previous era),

the cowherds and cowherdesses used to experience boundless

joy in Krishna's presence, forgetting themselves in their devotion to the

Lord. On Sankranthi Day, they used to employ cow dung as a sacred means of cleansing purposes.

They demonstrated also the inner significance of the Sankranthi celebration. They placed three balls of cow dung in front of their houses,

fixing three pumpkin flowers on their top, and went round singing and dancing

in adoration of Krishna.

What

is the significance of these three balls of cow dung? In olden days, people

used to sprinkle water mixed with cow dung in front of their houses. The

cow dung helped to destroy the bacteria in the atmosphere. The cow dung

was considered a symbol of health and happiness. The first cow dung ball

represented Krishna, who was worshipped as Gopala (the protector of cows).

Krishna was adored as the bestower of joy and health. The second cow dung

ball was placed as a symbol of the Govardhana Hill, which Krishna lifted

and thereby demonstrated his divinity. The third cow dung ball symbolised

the cow, which, as the giver of milk, is the source of health and joy for

the people. Gopala, Govardhana, and Go (the cow) were worshipped in this manner.

Among

vegetables the pumpkin has a place of honour as the largest in size. The

cowherd maids (gopikas)

looked upon the pumpkin as a symbol of large heartedness. Hence, pumpkins

were offered as fitting gifts on Sankranthi Day.

What is the gain from this offering? The pumpkin does not rot quickly.

It can be preserved for a long period. Any number of edible preparations

can be made from it. It can also be used in combination with many other

vegetables. Because of its distinct qualities, the offer of a pumpkin also

meant making an offer of one's virtues.

The Sankranthi festival

should be regarded as the day on which man turns his vision toward God.

Man's life may be compared to a stalk of sugar cane. Like the cane, which

is hard and has many knots, life is full of difficulties. But these difficulties

have to be overcome to enjoy the bliss of the Divine, just as the sugar

cane has to be crushed and its juice converted into jaggery to enjoy the

permanent sweetness of jaggery. Enduring bliss can be obtained only by

overcoming trials and tribulations. Gold cannot be made into an attractive

jewel without subjecting to the process of melting in a crucible and beating

it into the required shape.