Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Sankranti
open-in-new
<h2 id="important-sankrantis">Important Sankrantis</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Makar_Sankranti/xFIwVQ3P">Makar Sankranti</a>: Marks the transition of the Sun into Makara Râshi (Capricorn) on its celestial path, and the six-month <a href="/facts/Uttarayana/tdupSjWj">Uttarayana</a> period.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> Makar Sankranti is also called Uttarayana - the day on which the sun begins his northward journey. The traditional Indian calendar is based on lunar positions, Sankranti is a solar event. The date of Makar Sankranti remains constant over a long term, 14 January or occasionally, 15 January as the Sun begins to rise in Makara Râshi.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Mesha_Sankranti/Gn0hpqtX">Mesha Sankranti</a>: Marks the beginning of the New Year in the traditional <a href="/facts/Hindu_calendar/3oYoSHLj">Hindu Solar Calendar</a>. On this day, the sun enters the sidereal <a href="/facts/Aries_(astrology)/yDy9ETQg">Aries</a>, or Mesha Râshi. It generally falls on 14/15 April. Regional New Year festivals also take place on this day: <a href="/facts/Vishu/2KjeaRWC">Vishu</a> in <a href="/facts/Kerala/DMP5u40q">Kerala</a>, <a href="/facts/Puthandu/a5SfU38C">Puthandu</a> in <a href="/facts/Tamil_Nadu/ouqcjUKE">Tamil Nadu</a>, <a href="/facts/Bisu_Parba/IqEd5jq0">Bisu Parba</a> in <a href="/facts/Tulu_Nadu/7olshHFj">Tulu Nadu</a> region, <a href="/facts/Vaisakhi/Mo2kU50o">Vaisakhi</a> in the <a href="/facts/Punjab_region/gyyuKVSp">Punjab region</a>, <a href="/facts/Pana_Sankranti/trQ9SL0v">Pana Sankranti</a> in <a href="/facts/Odisha/ofAWpAgu">Odisha</a>, <a href="/facts/Maithili_New_Year/laMPWes9">Jude Sheetal</a> in <a href="/facts/Mithila_(region)/9R3FgIY6">Mithila</a> region of Bihar and Satuaan in <a href="/facts/Bhojpuri_region/uXIyDD3o">Bhojpuri region</a> and on the day after <a href="/facts/Mesha_Sankranti/Gn0hpqtX">Mesha Sankranti</a>, is <a href="/facts/Pohela_Boishakh/o6oF8jnh">Pohela Boishakh</a> in <a href="/facts/Bengal/xp3t2Dyd">Bengal</a> and <a href="/facts/Bohag_Bihu/kWeN9EH0">Bohag Bihu</a> in <a href="/facts/Assam/64Hs7TwB">Assam</a> and Sri Lanka</li> <li><a href="/facts/Raja_(festival)/M7JYkEBx">Mithuna Sankranti</a>: celebrated as annual menstruating phase of Mother <a href="/facts/Earth/HLLmDfj0">Earth</a> as <a href="/facts/Raja_Parba/M7JYkEBx">Raja Parba</a> or <a href="/facts/Ambubachi_Mela/qFgpFv14">Ambubachi Mela</a> in Eastern and North Eastern provinces of India.</li> <li>Dhanu Sankranti: celebrated on the first day of the solar month.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> In Southern Bhutan and Nepal it is celebrated by eating wild potatoes (Darul). The 2017 date is December 17.</li> <li>Karka Sankranti: July 16, marks the transition of the Sun into Karka <a href="/facts/R%C4%81shi_(Jyoti%E1%B9%A3a)/zKz7fjCe">Râshi</a> (<a href="/facts/Cancer_(astrology)/G3aBPbbn">Cancer</a>). This also marks the end of the six-month <a href="/facts/Uttarayana/tdupSjWj">Uttarayana</a> period on the <a href="/facts/Hindu_calendar/3oYoSHLj">Hindu calendar</a>, and the beginning of <a href="/facts/Dakshinayana/62IDVPPM">Dakshinayana</a>, which itself end at Makar Sankranti.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a></li> <li>Simha Sankranti: It is celebrated on the first day of the solar month on the <a href="/facts/Hindu_calendar/3oYoSHLj">Hindu calendar</a> i.e. <a href="/facts/Bhadra_(Hindu_calendar)/vdULeCN8">Bhadrapada</a>. The festival holds special significance in <a href="/facts/Ramban_district/tnFSvuDe">Ramban district</a> of <a href="/facts/Jammu_Division/9It7qxpf">Jammu division</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> People visit <a href="/facts/Chenab_River/p5BPdfPb">Chandrabhaga</a> river and offer floral offerings. It is popularly known by the name <i>Singh Sankrant.</i> Local tradition traces the origin of the festival to <a href="/facts/Pandava/0YvHSqHT">Pandavas</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a></li> <li>Nol Sankranti: It is celebrated on the first day of the solar month on the <a href="/facts/Hindu_calendar/3oYoSHLj">Hindu calendar</a> i.e. <a href="/facts/Kartik_(month)/A3QdTUEq">Kartik (month)</a>. It is also called Dak Sankranti. Sadh Bhokhon or Godbharai is a special tradition for pregnant Hindu women. Hindu people believe that rice plants are too pregnant from the middle of September to the middle of October, so the farmers arrange a ritual for good production of paddy like the production of the Nol plant. Borassus flabellifer seeds are used as prasad. The festival holds special significance in West Bengal and Assam state.</li></ul> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Astronomical_basis_of_the_Hindu_calendar/aPEJGm10">Astronomical basis of the Hindu calendar</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Sankashti_Chaturthi/HQLKpvIH">Sankashti Chaturthi</a></li></ul> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>"Sankranti 2021: Complete list of dates, tithi, and importance". India Today. Retrieved 2024-02-19. According to the Hindu calendar, there are a total of twelve Sankranti in a year. Furthur is divided into four categories which are known as Ayan, Vishuva, Vishnupadi, and Shadshitimukhi Sankranti. <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/information/story/sankranti-tithi-2021-dates-1760245-2021-01-18" target="_blank">https://www.indiatoday.in/information/story/sankranti-tithi-2021-dates-1760245-2021-01-18</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>"Sankranti 2021: Complete list of dates, tithi, and importance". India Today. Retrieved 2024-02-19. According to the Hindu calendar, there are a total of twelve Sankranti in a year. Furthur is divided into four categories which are known as Ayan, Vishuva, Vishnupadi, and Shadshitimukhi Sankranti. <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/information/story/sankranti-tithi-2021-dates-1760245-2021-01-18" target="_blank">https://www.indiatoday.in/information/story/sankranti-tithi-2021-dates-1760245-2021-01-18</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>James G. Lochtefeld (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M. The Rosen Publishing Group. pp. 351–. ISBN 978-0-8239-3179-8. <a href="978-0-8239-3179-8" target="_blank">978-0-8239-3179-8</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>"Festivals of Orissa - Dhanu Sankranti". orissa.oriyaonline.com. Archived from the original on October 15, 2012. Retrieved 24 December 2012. Dhanu Sankranti is celebrated on the first day of lunar Pousha month. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20121015065422/http://www.orissa.oriyaonline.com/dhanu_sankranti.html" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20121015065422/http://www.orissa.oriyaonline.com/dhanu_sankranti.html</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>James G. Lochtefeld (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M. The Rosen Publishing Group. pp. 351–. ISBN 978-0-8239-3179-8. <a href="978-0-8239-3179-8" target="_blank">978-0-8239-3179-8</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>Qazi, S. A. (2005). Systematic Geography of Jammu and Kashmir. APH Publishing. ISBN 978-81-7648-786-3. <a href="978-81-7648-786-3" target="_blank">978-81-7648-786-3</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>Ganhar, J. N. (1975). Jammu, Shrines and Pilgrimages. Ganhar Publications. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=-0ogAAAAMAAJ" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/books?id=-0ogAAAAMAAJ</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>