Makar Sankranti 2025 significance: Why is this day celebrated?

Makar Sankranti 2025: This special day marks the end of the harsh winters and start of spring with the harvest season.

Makar Sankranti 2025: The special time of the year is here. Every year, Makar Sankranti is celebrated with a lot of festivities throughout the country. The skies deck up in colourful kites and delicious dishes are prepared at home. In some cultures, people exchange new clothes on this day to mark the festivities.

Makar Sankranti 2025 details:

This year, Makar Sankranti is being celebrated on January 14. In the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Rajasthan, Makar Sankranti is observed. In West Bengal and North-east region, Makar Sankranti is observed as Poush Sankranti. Patishapta and other sweetmeats are prepared on this day. Tamil Nadu observes Pongal on this day, while Kerala observes this day as Makara Vilakku. In Assam, Makar Sankranti is observed as Magh Bihu. In Punjab, Maghi is celebrated on this day.

Why is Makar Sankranti observed?

This is the time of the year when the harsh cold weather of the winter season starts diminishing, and people get ready to welcome the spring season. This is also the start of the harvest season. People celebrate Makar Sankranti with their own traditions and rituals to mark the start of the comfortable season, and the end of the harsh cold winters.

The end of the harsh winter season also means that the day starts getting longer and nights start getting shorter. This brings a sign of hope and positivity in people. In many cultures, the Sun God is worshipped by the devotees who offer their puja to him for bringing food and water on earth.

Makar Sankranti is synonymous with the ritual of flying kites. (Unsplash)

Flying kite is a significant ritual on Makar Sankranti. However, this practice goes long back in time when people started understanding the significance of sun exposure for curing skin diseases. Sunlight is a source of Vitamin D which is good for health. People started flying kites on this day to get more sun exposure to keep themselves healthy. Now this ritual has become synonymous with Makar Sankranti.