Makara Sankranti
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How to celebrate this auspicious celestial event
Anandmurti Gurumaa, January 14, 2022: The Times of India
Immerse The Mind In Holy Waters Of Viveka
In a typical world, while going about the daily chores, one seldom feels the urge to delve deeper, to comprehend the true purpose of human life. However, a revolutionary change dawns when one's intellect gets refined and becomes razor-sharp by the virtue of Guru's grace and constant contemplation of what is true and what is not!
Viveka, the right understanding and discriminatory knowledge, is imperative to bring about the transformation in one’s life, otherwise the cyclic process of eating, sleeping, and procreating continues. Days change into weeks, weeks into months, and the months into the years, eventually coming to an abrupt end one fine day. And the very purpose for which the gift of human life was given remains unfulfilled; a golden chance goes in vain!
It is as if you go to the market to buy something specific such as milk. You go around the shops, check out all the items, get fascinated with the things on display, eat, drink, and come back home empty-handed. So, you forgot all about the thing you ventured out to buy and instead wasted your time around to no avail.
Do you ever wonder, what is the intent of life? There can be just one purpose, the realisation of Self, and that is only possible while we have this human body.
Every festival or tradition is an allegorical expression of the ultimate, carrying a more profound meaning within, and Makar Sankranti is no different. On the auspicious occasion of Makar Sankranti, the Sun transits into the Makar, the Capricorn sign. And Makar is characterised by sheer persistence and hard work.
There are two ways you can celebrate this auspicious celestial event. The first one is following the ritualistic mode. Bathing in holy rivers like the Ganga and Yamuna, offering of sesame seeds, feeding the poor, and so on.
The second and the more challenging one is the spiritual way, which is about unearthing the hidden meaning, leading you to the ultimate truth. In this inward Makar Sankranti, you immerse your mind in the holy waters of viveka, so that vices like attachment, aversion, and fear can be washed away. This is the way to dissolve the duality of mind bringing about the state of equipoise.
It is the day to resolve to live by the teachings of your Master and have unwavering faith in the words of rishis, sages, and revered scriptures. All these are mandatory prerequisites that make you worthy of receiving the gift of supreme wisdom. So spiritually speaking, Makar Sankranti is the light of jnana entering the ignorant mind-intellect and radiating it with the highest wisdom. Think, what sort of karma must one perform? Only those that lead us to the highest truth. Rest are to be carried out as a mere support system for the sustenance of this body. Worldly responsibilities have a limit, and their reach is not beyond that!
Makar Sankranti is the day to sit back and contemplate which path your mind-intellect wishes to pursue. The way that leads you to the transitory objective world or the one that steers you to the truth and liberation? The choice is yours! -
Heralds longer, brighter days
The Times of India, Jan 15 2016
Yogi Ashwini
Longer, Brighter Days With Makara Sankranti The Sanskrit term `sankranti' translates as `transference' and is used to indicate the `movement' of he sun from one constellation to the next through the year ... Indic ancients had studied the science of energy , the hakti of the various heavenly bodies and the changes in energy pattern of creation as they underwent transition. Surya or Sun is a shakti, which is of special importance to us on earth.
It is the energy which sustains life on he planet.
The rishis of yore followed the sun.The Bhagwad Gita says, you become what you follow. And so the rishis glowed like the sun and had acquired powers comparable to the sun. To quote an example, according to mythology , Rishi Vishvamitra, who followed the un and to whom is attributed the Mahamantra Gayatri, is known to have created a parallel universe by chanting his mantra only . Surya is the devta of jnana, of infinite knowledge and secrets of Creation. He is the Guru of Hanuman and the progenitor of the Suryavansha, in which were born heroes like King Bhagirath, King Raghu and Lord Rama.Surya existed before religion, and provides heat and light to every entity on earth irrespective of their religion, race or birth. The Sun knows no religion.
Interestingly , a western university recorded the sound of the Sun and found that the sound it emits closely resembles the sound of Aum, the primordial chant. It is sound which manifests as colours which further manifest into the five elements that constitute everything in physical creation. Rishis of Bharatvarsha, tapped into the sound of Creation and thousands of years ago, gave us the mantra Aum.
Makara Sankranti was of special significance in the ancient world, for it corresponded with the onset of the apparent northward movement of the sun uttarayan, in Sanskrit. That it is no superstition is evident from the subsequent naming of the southernmost latitude in sun's trajectory as the Tropic of Capricorn by modern scientists after the constellation Capricornus (Makar, in Sanskrit) in which the Sun entered at the point, marking the beginning of the auspicious period when the days would become longer and brighter.
Bhishma Pitamah in the Mahabharata, is believed to have waited for this day to leave his body to facilitate his moksha.
The sun was special not just to Bharatvarsha, but all cultures across the world.Ancient Egyptians worshipped the sun as Atum and Horus, Mesopotamians as Shamash, Germans as Sol, Greeks as Helios and Apollo.
For a beginner, a simple practice is prescribed to tap into the energy of the sun in transit on the day of Makara Sankranti. At the time of sunrise, sit or stand facing the direction of the sun.Pay reverence to the energy of the guru and keeping the awareness of the sun at the point between the eyebrows begin with the chant of Aum. Continue with the chant as you take your awareness to the centre of the chest cavity and finally to the point of the navel. By now the sun would be visible in the morning sky ,a soft pink hue. Offer water to the Sun at this point and close your eyes.Distribute the prana or life-force of the sun so acquired in your entire body .After sometime, open your eyes looking at your palms or a green patch. Feel the difference. A word of caution: Do not look at bright sun directly . Practice under supervision.
Sports
Cockfights/ Andhra
Legality
Srikanth Aluri, January 15, 2023: The Times of India
VIJAYAWADA: The orders of the Supreme Court and the high court on cockfights are being violated during every Sankranti season and this year is no exception.
Hiding behind the rider given by the Supreme Court that cockfights without resorting to violence towards birds can be conducted as part of tradition, the organisers are holding the cockfights along with gambling. Police and revenue officials are limiting themselves to booking a few bind over cases in the starting of the season but turn a blind eye on the actual events.
The HC in 2016 had banned cockfights and directed the police and revenue departments to ensure no such events take place not only during Sankranti but also through out the year. The Supreme Court also upheld the judgement of the high court in 2018. However, a small rider in entire litigation leaves scope for the organisers to evade the law and court orders. It has also come as an easy excuse to the law enforcing authorities to justify their inactions. Every year before Sankranti, someone moves the HC seeking directions to prevent cockfights. In fact, a contempt petition filed for non-implementation of 2016 order is still pending before the HC. Every year, the court reiterates that its orders to ban cockfights are in force and officials must implement them.. This year also the high court passed the same order.
It has become a norm every year for the officials to submit that they are taking measures to prevent cockfights. This year also, the government pleader for revenue department, P Subhash, told the high court that they have appointed special officers at mandal level to ensure no cockfights take place. He also told the high court that arenas are being destroyed and bind over cases are being registered on habitual offenders. However, the reality is far from what is being told to the high court. The officials are limiting themselves to booking cases three days prior to Sankranti and turning bling eye on cockfights during the three festival days. Though arrangements for cockfight arenas are being made on grand scale like carnivals, the revenue and police officials would not bother to go there and conduct any raids. They hide behind the traditional Sankranti celebrations which are allowed by the apex court.
