Makar Sankranti is a Hindu festival that celebrates the time when the sun appears to rise in the Capricorn (Makar) constellation. This signifies the onset of warmer days. The festival is celebrated throughout India and is known by many names such as Uttarayana, Bihu and Pongal.
The peculiarity of Makar Sankranti is that unlike most Hindu festivals, its date is according to the Gregorian calendar instead of the Lunar calendar. This is because of the imaginary orbit of the sun around the earth which is called the ecliptic plane. The ecliptic plane passes through the constellations of the zodiac. That’s why we see the Sun move through these constellations over the year (this is the logic behind sun signs).
Constellations on the ecliptic plane/Astronomytrek.com
It’s interesting to note that approximately a hundred years ago, the date of Sankranti was on 13th January. As per astronomical predictions, 2081 will be the last year that Makar Sankranti falls on the 14th of January. Afterwards, it will fall on the 15th.
Makar Sankranti is also celebrated in DLRC. Students follow traditions such as wearing black clothes and distributing til-gul (sweets made from sesame seeds and jaggery). These traditions are believed to make your body warmer. This year, on 13th January, we had a common morning circle where the students of Grade 9 spoke about how Makar Sankranti is celebrated in other states.
Nikita, a student from Grade 9, said, “It was good to inform everyone about how people celebrate the festival in different states. Not many people know how Sankranti is celebrated elsewhere.”
This event was followed by an art and craft activity. Students gathered in the amphitheatre or worked in their classrooms to decorate little cutouts of kites. These small kites were later stuck to three big kites (Primary, Middle and High School), creating a beautiful collage.
The primary school kite collage
The tradition of flying kites on Makar Sankranti comes from Gujarat and is a way of worshipping the sun. A popular game is to try and cut the strings of other kites. For this task, kite strings are made with nylon or coated with glass powder. These kite strings can cause injuries to bike riders if they accidentally wind around their body parts, particularly the neck. To protect themselves from such injuries, people in Gujarat have invented a simple wire loop. It is attached to the handles of bikes and acts as a barrier to strings.
Wire loop attached to a bike
Personally, my favorite part of Makar Sankranti is eating Kaateri Halwa — tiny, spiky balls of sugar. Traditionally, it’s made by pouring a drop of boiling sugar syrup on a roasted sesame seed. These are fun to eat when reading or doing homework!
By Aasavari Khadilkar (G9)
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