Cheers of A Good Harvest

By R. Krithika

A good harvest ensures that there are groceries and vegetables in the supermarkets. This is the time of the year when we give thanks for bumper crops.

It is around this time of the year that we offer thanks for a good harvest. It is also the time when the sun migrates from Sagittarius to Capricorn, signalling the end of winter.
Read on to find out how the Harvest Festival is celebrated in India and what it is called in the rest of the world.

Now that the fun of New Year is over, don't think it's a long boring month ahead. There's another bunch of festivities headed your way. It's Sankaranti. Of course you may know it differently: Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Lohri in Punjab, Magh or Bhogali Bihu in Assam, Sukarat in Bundelkhand, Ghughutia or Kale Kauva in Uttaranchal, Hadaga in Maharashtra and Gujarat …. As you can see the celebrations are not confined to any one part of the country.

At Dimapur : Garo girls dancing during the festival.

But are they the same, you wonder? Well, there are a couple of things they have in common. The first common factor is astronomical. In mid-January the sun migrates from Dhanus (Sagittarius) to Makara (Capricorn). This signals the end of winter as the earth moves closer to the sun. The word Sankaranti means migration. And that brings us to the second factor, which is giving thanks for a good harvest.


Gangireddu : The decorated bull. As humans evolved from being nomadic hunter-gatherers to farmers, they needed to know when to plant crops or bring in the harvest and keep an eye on the weather.

The sun's movement was one of the many indicators they used to study weather patterns.
Sunny moves

Now here's an interesting fact. According to the traditional Indian calendar, the sun moves through all 12 zodiac signs; so technically there are 12 Sankarantis. But the Sankaranti festival refers only to the transition to Capricorn, which is said to mark the sun's northward journey or Uttarayana. According to our regular calendar, this begins with the tropical winter solstice (December 21 or 22). The Indian calendar is based on lunar positions, so the dates for most Hindu festivals keep shifting; but Makara Sankaranti is a solar event. So the date remains constant.

Makara Sankaranti in Thailand is called Songkran, and in Laos it is known as Pi Ma Lao, while in Myanmar it is called Thingyan.

Flowers :In various hues. Today most of us don't worry about farmers, crops or harvests. We buy our groceries and vegetables from supermarkets. Spare a thought for all those who till the ground and still worry about weather patterns so that our food gets to the stores. A cursory glance through newspapers will tell you that farmers still face problems with drought and floods. So join them as they give thanks for a good harvest.

Celebrations in India:

In Maharashtra and Gujarat, sweets made of sesame are exchanged with the words, "Til gul guhya, god god bola" (take these til sweets and speak good words). The idea is to forget illwill and pledge friendship.
Photo : K.R. Deepak

Festive scenes :In the village. In Punjab, huge bonfires are lit on the eve of Sankaranti. People throw sweets, sugarcane and rice into it. Villagers dance and sing traditional folk songs. On Sankaranti or Maghi, people remember the sacrifice of the Chali Mukte (Forty Liberated Ones) who died defending Guru Gobind Singh from the Mughals. Fairs are held and pilgrims take a dip in the sacred waters and visit shrines.

In Assam, the celebration is Magh or Bhogali Bihu. Youngsters build a huge bonfire (meji) on the previous evening often by stealing firewood. On Sankaranti, the bonfire is lit with ceremony. The ashes are strewn on the fields and orchards to increase fertility.
In Central India tribals celebrate their new year on Sankaranti.

In Bundelkhand, Sukarat is celebrated with merry making and lots of sweets.

In Orissa, the Bhuya tribals hold a Magh Yatra, where they sell home made items. Bonfires are lit and community feasts are held.

In Bengal, the Magh Mela is held at Ganga Sagar (the confluence of the Ganga and the Bay of Bengal where the Ganga is believed to have sunk to the nether regions to liberate the ancestors of King Bhagirath).

In Uttaranchal, Ghughutia or Kale Kauva welcomes birds back from the winter migration. Deep-fried sweets shaped like drums, pomegranates, knives, swords are strung into a necklace. Children sing “Kale Kauva”, a folk song, and offer birds bits from the necklace.

In Uttar Pradesh, it is Khichiri. People take a dip in the holy rivers and Allahabad hosts a huge month-long “Magha Mela”.

In Tamil Nadu, Pongal is celebrated over three days. Bhogi, the first day, sees people discarding old stuff. On Pongal, the second day, we let a pot of milk and rice boil in the hope that prosperity will overflow in a similar manner. The last day is reserved for cattle, which are decorated and worshipped in a day of well-deserved rest.
Photo : AFP

On parade :At the Thanksgiving Day parade in the U.S.

Harvest festivals elsewhere
Chu'sok (Harvest Moon Festival), Korea
Tori no Ichi (Festival of the Rooster) Japan
Festival of Thesmosphoria (Greece)
Festival of Ceres (Rome).
Chung Ch'ui (China).
Sukkotu (Israel)
Festival of Min (Egypt)

Thanksgiving (the U.S.)