Bhogi, Sankranti Significance, Rituals to Follow

A new year rings in joy and happiness with fresh hopes and aspirations. Just a fortnight away, the mood gets accentuated with festivals, instilling a sense of gratitude towards the Nature and the Supreme Power.

After the New Year, Makar Sankranti is celebrated with gaiety to mark the entry of the Sun into the Makara (Capricon) zodiac sign and the day is also considered to be lucky as it also signals the shift of the sun to the northern hemisphere (Uttaraayanam), considered auspicious in the lunar calendar. This year, Sankranti will be celebrated on January 15, 2024.

Sankranti is a major festival in both the Telugu states, with Andhra Pradesh celebrating its significance more prominently.  With vast expanse of fertile land in the coastal districts, agriculture is the predominant activity in these areas. Coupled with good irrigation and best farming practices, paddy is grown in thousands of acres and bumper yield is never a failure.  With good harvest in hand, the farming community bursts into celebrations, called Sankranti.

The three-day harvest festival begins with Bhogi and ends with Kanuma. The main festival is celebrated on the second day, called Sankranti.

On Bhogi, the first day of the festival, falling on January 14, 2024, people burn all the negativity by symbolically lighting the bonfire and dumping all the old and discarded things in it. Pancakes made from cow dung are put together in the form of garlands and dumped in the fire as the ash from it serves to be a good source of insecticide and at the same time, provides optimal heat to keep the body warm, with the winter chill and fog still remaining in the air.

Legend says that the festival of Bhogi is dedicated to Lord Indra, the God of rains and clouds. People, farmers in particular, worship the Lord to bless the land with good rains, wealth and prosperity. In addition, peasants also worship their ploughs and other farming paraphernalia on the day.

Special dishes made during the festival are majorly rice and rice-flour based as paddy is the major crop in the region.

This apart, gobbemmas made of cow dung are also placed in the rangolis drawn and decorated to taste in front of the houses. Rangolis are drawn at the entrance of every house for one full month, which begins in the mid of December and ends with Kanuma, called Dhanurmaasam by Vaishnavites. The rendition of Tiruppavai is culminated by Goda Kalyanam performed on the last day of Sankranti.

Goda Kalyanam is the celestial wedding of Sri Andal Ammavaru, also known as Godha Devi.

On the second day, Sankranti aka Pongal, rice cooked in thick milk called Pongal is the major delicacy.

Rice-flour cooked in jiggery is spread pancakes and then fried in oil to make ariselu while wet rice-flour mixed with butter and chilli paste is used to make chekkalu, a savory, and the taste is enhanced by peppering it with sesame seeds and channa dal.

The last day of the festival Kanuma is majorly observed by the working class during which non-vegetarian meals is mandatory. The animals which help farmers in agriculture are also worshipped, in gratitude for their services.

Rooster fights, kite flying, rangolis, haridasulu, gobbemmas, gangireddulu add to festivities of Sankranti.