The Makar Sankranti festival is celebrated in India. Sankranti means ‘movement’. The things we recognize as life is movement. The significance of Makar Sankranti festival is that it marks the day where there is a significant movement in the zodiac and this movement brings about a change called as Makar Sankranti. There are many Sankrantis festival through the year; and the two significant ones being Makar Sankranti, and right opposite, after summer is called as Karka Sankranti. This is to suggest the movement of the planet and to understand that our life is sustained and nourished by this movement. We know very well from Makar Sankranti onwards, winter is being relieved step by step. Significance of Makar Sankranti is unique and carries rituals.
This movement is also a significant aspect in the way we reap. In the ancient times human beings could eat only what earth offered. Then slowly we have learned how to get we wanted from the earth; called as agriculture. When people hunt and gather, they picked up what was there. It is like that when we were infant, we ate or swallowed whatever our mother gave. When we became a child, we asked what we wanted. So slowly and slowly we grew up bit and started demanding and getting what we wanted but still, we can only get what we want to a point. If we stretch beyond that, we will get something else.
On this day we remind ourselves that everything that we are is what we take from this planet. The Makar Sankranti is also called as harvest festival because on this time harvesting is completed. On this day we acknowledge all those people who assisted in making the harvest. The farm animal also plays a huge role in harvesting so that day is also called as Mattu Pongal. The days accordingly are, the first day is for earth, and the second is for us and third is for the animals and livestock.
The significance of Makar Sankrantri is that it is the time to remind us that celebration is possible only when there is a taste of stillness within .