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 Makar Sankranti is one of the well known festivals in India. It is widely celebrated in almost all parts of the country. Plenty of people and devotees take part in the festival of Makar Sankranti and enjoy themselves to a great extent.
The Makar Sankranti Festival is celebrated in the month of 'Magh' according to the Indian calendar. The festival also has a social significance as it is a harvest festival. It celebrates the advent of spring after the winter season on the 'ascent' of the sun to the north. It is mostly celebrated among the people of the Hindu community.
In the morning of the day of Makar Sankranti, people take holy dip in the waters and later pay their homage to the sun. People of the Indo-Gangetic plain take bath in the River Ganges and offer water to the Sun God. The dip is considered to purify one self and bestow punya or peace. Special puja or worship is also done as a method of thanksgiving for good harvest.
The two most important ingredients needed in the worship in the Makar Sankranti Festival are til and rice. People residing in the states of Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal cook various traditional delicacies with rice. The main festival of Makar Sankranti is mostly celebrated in the Gangasagar Mela. Thousands of people from various parts of the country come here to take holy bath in the confluence of the River Ganges and the sea.
Makar Sankranti is also celebrated in other parts of the country like Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat. People indulge in wide spread celebrations to mark the occasion.
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