On Makar Sankranti

      Happy Makar Sankranti

All of us know that on Sankranti, we all fly kites, clean our houses and some of us also perform poojas. But do you know why Sankranti is celebrated? If not, then let me tell you:   First of all Sankranti means transmigration (moving) of the Sun from one Rāshi (constellation of the zodiac in Indian astronomy) to the next. Hence, there are 12 Sankrantis in a year. A Sankranti is marked as the end of each month and the day following as the beginning of a new month. But we celebrate only the important ones like, Makar Sankranti: Marks the transition of the Sun into Makara rashi (Capricorn) on its celestial path, and the six   month Uttarayana period. Don’t get tensed if you don’t know the meaning of Utarayana, even I didn’t know at first, it means north moving period. I bet you’re getting bored by reading all of this informative stuff (but if you’re not, you are one of a kind person)!

Below is an image of the 12 rashi (constellations) with the earth, sun and moon.

Let me tell you how we celebrated it in our school: Our day started with God’s blessings (prayer), then the students of Vayu house performed an excellent assembly in which they enlightened us more about Sankranti (because of which I am able to write about this), and a few melodious songs. Throughout that day our ears and minds were filled with the echoes of their sweet voices! Later we made a rangoli (it was really beautiful) and we put a pot with pongal (rice grains), we also put toys (bommalu) around the pot. We had several activities too, like each class was allotted a period for kite flying. It was loads of fun watching the colorful and vibrant kites soaring in the air. Overall our day was filled with fun, happiness, and excitement (for the holidays)!!!

Written by:

Isha

Grade: 8, Reporter