Sankranti
Sankranthi also known as Mahar Sankranti is a day of celebration in India signifying the onset of the uttrayana punyakalam when the sun starts its journey to the northern hemisphere, also called makara rasi in the Hindu scriptures. The day of sankranthi starts with people going for a holy dip in the waters of rivers and lakes and are deemed cleansed.
Then they begin the day by worshipping the sun god and this time is considered as auspicious as even the veteran bhishma of Mahabharata wanted to die during this period. It was during this time when bhishma fell to lord arjun’s arrows in the battle. Bhishma had the special power to chose his time of death and he chose this time, sankranthi, to give up his life and depart from the physical world and hence people who die during this period are said to have no rebirths in other centuries.
Sankranthi is celebrated with extra fervour and happiness In Karnataka where men, women and children dress up in new clothes and exchange food and sweets in get together. The main significance of these meetings and exchanges is that only sweet relationships should prevail among the people. In Tamil nadu, sankranthi is a very famous event where the cows are given a good wash and the horns are brightly colored, painted, and beautifully adorned with tinkling decorations. The cows are then taken for a procession with drums and pipes and at night, they are made to jump over the fire and the festival is celebrated.