Teaching kids the significance of Sankranti

[Gopal Rao]

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[TD]So, now that Makar Sankranti is just round the corner, how are you imparting your knowledge to your kids? [/TD]
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[renuka]

Firstly I tell my son that we can notice on Makara Sankranti onwards days become a little longer and there is increase in temperature.
Out here Makara Sankranti onwards I notice that the angle of the sun shining into my work place/home changes and this sometimes causes glare when the sun beams fall on a glass panel.

Those are the physical visible changes we see.

I have also explained to my son before that this marks the shift of the sun into the northward journey(Uttarayana).

Traditionally it is thought to be the Shukla Marga for one who discards his body during Uttarayana period is supposed to reach the higher states leading to liberation.

But telling this to a child he might ask us "what if an evil person dies on Uttarayana period..does he attain liberation?"

So I am prepared for a suitable reply to my child cos I myself do not think that dying in certain specific time and date confers higher states.

I will explain to my son that Uttarayana is not much a period of time but more of a state of mind as explained in Geeta Vahini by Sathya Sai Baba.

 

[sravna]

But telling this to a child he might ask us "what if an evil person dies on Uttarayana period..does he attain liberation?"

Dear Renuka,

The above should be considered to be applying only broadly. It is just as you cannot make detailed prediction for someone just by knowing his sun or moon sign. Time along with space indeed plays a major role in human's life right from his birth. But in a way you are right when you say it is a state of mind because just as body exists in space mind exists in the diimension of time. So a good mind departing during a good period might be not just coincidental.

 

[renuka]

Dear Renuka,

But in a way you are right when you say it is a state of mind because just as body exists in space mind exists in the diimension of time. So a good mind departing during a good period might be not just coincidental.

Geeta Vahini explanation makes lots of sense for us adults and teenagers:

Sathya Sai Baba - Geetha Vahini - XVIII - Page 101

"Since the Uttarayana Marga is lit by the holy splendour of Jnana, it is praised as the Sukla marga or the white path.

The Dakshinayana marga is dark, filled with Thamas and Ajnana; so it is called the dark path or the Krishna marga.

Those who discard the body and journey on during the Uttarayana move along the white path and reach the stage of liberation or Moksha, which is devoid of delusion, which is the seat and source of Brahmananda, from which there is no return to this world of name and form, this arena of embodied beings.

Those who leave the body during the Dakshinayana and move along the dark path, have to bear again this physical encasement called Deha, subject to birth and death."


"Uttarayana is not so much a period of time; it is a state of mind. Those who discard the body with the glory of self-knowledge move along the Uttarayana marga and those who die in ignorance of their Atmic reality move along the Pithryana, or Dakshinaya or the dark path."


"Of the Gunas, Sathwaguna is pure and effulgent; the Thamoguna is dark and so they are distinguished by the opposite colours of white and black.

Again there are two Nadis, Ida and Pingala by name, subtle nerves; Ida to the left and Pingala to the right of the Sushumna.

The Ida-naadimarga is the lunar path and the Pingala-naadimarga is the solar path.

The Yogis proceed along the solar and the others along the lunar path. This is another of the unobserved mysteries."


"The end of everything that is born is death; Samyoga leads to Viyoga; construction must result in the destruction of that which is constructed.

It is the law of nature that birth ends in death and death leads to birth. The stage which knows no coming and going is the stage when the universal Brahman is visualised, for since Brahman is all-pervasive, where is the other place from which the 'coming' can be effected and to which the 'going' can be performed?"

 

[Raghy]

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[TD]So, now that Makar Sankranti is just round the corner, how are you imparting your knowledge to your kids?[/TD]
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Greetings.

In Tamil Nadu this event is celebrated as Pongal festival. That is one festival that is celebrated without much of religious significances. It's a harvest festival.

Matter of fact, yesterday my wife prepared Pongal for my lunch/dinner. As usual I carried more for other staff... now who ever worked with me has the recipe for making pongal. I was explaining about Pongal festival to my colleagues. I was not even bothering about Uttharayana significances.... just kept it simple.

Cheers!

 

[GANESA SARMA RAMA PRASAD]

makara chankaraanhthi

thamizh maathangaL 12 - chiththirai, vaikaachi, aani, aadi, aavaNi, puraddaachi, aippachi, kaarththikai, maarkazhi, thai, maachi, panguni.

ithil aadi muthal maarkazhi varai thashiNa kaalamaakum

thai muthal aani varai uththaraayaNa kaalamaakum.

ithil aadi muthal maarkazhi varai thashiNa kaalaththil chooriya pakavaan theRku thichaiyil valam varuvaar.

thai muthal aani varai uththaraayaNa kaalaththil chooriya pakavaan vadakku thichaiyil valam varuvaar.

raachikaL 12 - mEsham, rishapam, mithunam, kadakam, chimmam, kanni, thulaam, viruchchikam, thanuchu, makaram, kumpam, miinam

thai maathaththil makara raachiyil chooriya pakavaan piravEchikkinRa NALthaan "makara changaraanhthi" aakum. chooriya pakavaan anaiththu uyirkaLukkum manithanukku madduminRi chedi kodikaLukkum uyir vaazhvathaRku chakthi aLikkiRaar. avarukku nanRi cheluththuvathaRkaaka anRaiya thinam chakkaraippongal, karumpu, manjaL koththu, inji koththu aakiyavaRRai vaiththu poojai cheythu vaNangukiROm.

 

[GANESA SARMA RAMA PRASAD]

makara chankaraanhthi

thamizh months 12 - chiththirai, vaikaachi, aani, aadi, aavaNi, puraddaachi, aippachi, kaarththikai, maarkazhi, thai, maachi, panguni.

In the 12 tamil months from aadi months to maarkazhi months are called as "thashiNa kaalam"

In the above said 12 tamil months from thai month aani month are called as "uththaraayaNa kaalam".

From aadi month to maarkazhi month the Sun Bahawan round in the Southern side.

From thai month to aani month the Sun Bahawan round in the Northern side.

raachikaL 12 - mEsham, rishapam, mithunam, kadakam, chimmam, kanni, thulaam, viruchchikam, thanuchu, makaram, kumpam, miinam

The first day of thai month, the sun bagawan entered in the makara rasi,is called "makara changaraanhthi" We are thanking the Sun bagawan who gives food not only to man but also other beings like animals, trees, grass, etc. for which we are making poojas to the sun bagawan with sugar pongal, sugarcane, etc. and we get aasirvathams from the sun bagawan.

 

[prasad1]

We celebrate Pongal in the Temple as a harvest festival.

 

[sangom]

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[TD]So, now that Makar Sankranti is just round the corner, how are you imparting your knowledge to your kids?[/TD]
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Shri Gopal Rao,

By now you will be able to anticipate the kind of answer likely to come from me. I don't have my grandchildren here with me. But if one of them were here and were to ask me about why sankranti pooja is done (actually, people here are not that enthusiastic as they were in the past, in bringing sugarcane and all), but many do some pooja and have vellappaayaasam as naivedyam and then for eating.

Firstly our house is in the E-W direction and the sunlight from about 4 P.M. falls on the staircase to first floor, through open verandahs/landing. I will explain how the sun's tilt northwards and southwards can be observed even within a few days by watching where the sunlight falls wrt the staircase (which acts like a thread in the telescope). Then I will try to explain the astronomy and finally sign off saying that our ancient people who lived in more northerly countries/areas knew by experience that days will become hotter from now on and their bad winter climate is about to end; as a mark of thanksgiving to the sun-god they celebrate this way, because they possibly thought that the sun had the freedom to continue southwards further, if he was displeased, which is not true however.

 

[GANESA SARMA RAMA PRASAD]

மகர சங்கராந்தி:

தமிழ் மாதங்கள் 12. அவை சித்திரை, வைகாசி, ஆனி, ஆடி, ஆவணி, புரட்டாசி, ஜப்பசி, மார்கழி, தை, மாசி, பங்குனி.

இதில் ஆடி முதல் மார்கழி வரை தஷிணாய காலமாகும். தை முதல் ஆனி வரை உத்திராயன காலமாகும்.

ராசிகள் 12. அவை மேஷம், ரிஷபம், மிதுனம், கடகம், சிம்மம், கன்னி, துலாம், விருச்சிகம், தனுசு, மகரம், கும்பம், மீனம்.

தஷிணாய காலத்தில் சூரிய பகவான் தெற்கு பக்கமாக வலம் வருகிறார். உத்திராயண காலத்தில் வடக்கு பக்கமாக வலம் வருகிறார்.

சூரிய பகவான் தை மாதத்தில் மகர ராசியில் பிரவேசிக்கும் நாள் தான் "மகர சங்கராந்தி நாள்" ஆகும். சூரிய பகவான் மனிதர்களுக்கு மட்டுமின்றி, அனைத்து உயிர்களுக்கும், செடி, கொடி, பிராணிகளுக்கும் வாழுகின்ற சக்தியைக் கொடுக்கின்றார். அவர் இல்லையேல் இவ்வுலகம் இல்லை எனலாம். எனவே, அந்நாளில் சூரிய பகவானுக்கு சக்கரைப்பொங்கல், கரும்பு, மஞ்சள் கொத்து, இஞ்சி கொத்து, அன்னம் (சாதம்), நிவேதனம் (படைத்து) செய்து நமது நன்றியை தெரிவித்துக் கொள்கிறோம். விரிவாக சொல்ல கால அவகாசம் இல்லை. மன்னிக்கவும்.