The Essence of the Sun and Saturn Come Together in Harmony
Celebrating the Holy Festival of Makar Sankranti
Please note that this and all my other forecasts are based on the sidereal zodiac used in both Vedic and Western sidereal astrology, not the tropical system used by most Western and some Vedic astrologers. All the astrological charts below are calculated according to the sidereal zodiac and Lahiri Ayanamsa.
The Hindu festival of Makar Sankranti will occur on January 14 in the Western Hemisphere, and on January 15 in the East. In many locales, the festival extends for several days. (You can check the Drik Panchang to see the exact timing for your specific location). Also known as Maghi, Pongal, Lohri, and Boghi, Makar Sankranti is a very important astronomical, astrological, cultural, and spiritual festival in Vedic culture. It takes place as the Sun enters the Capricorn constellation. This is a sacred time of the year when the solar force begins to herald a new, positive direction in the northern hemisphere.
Understanding the Sun's Monthly Movements into New Signs
Every month the Sun moves into a new constellation or sidereal sign. This is known as an “ingress." In Sanskrit, it is called “sankranti” सङ्क्रान्ति. Our vital essence, focus, and confidence may feel a bit wobbly around sankrantis, so take care between late Friday and late Saturday this week, when the Sun moves across the sensitive edge between Sagittarius and Capricorn.
The Sun's entry into the cardinal signs of Capricorn, Aries, Cancer, and Libra, establishes the four quarters of the solar year. These are known as the cardinal solar ingresses.
The Horoscope for the Sun’s Capricorn Ingress: One of Several New Year Charts
The primary cardinal ingress of the civil new year is established when the Sun enters sidereal Capricorn in mid-January. The reasoning for its importance is twofold. First, the Sun represents the soul of the world. Second, Capricorn is the action-orientated and initiating sign of the Earth element that organizes matter in harmony with the laws of the physical realm.
The Capricorn ingress horoscope is often used in mundane astrology (the astrology of world events) to evaluate what is unfolding in various countries in the New Year ahead, and especially in regard to economic matters. Accordingly, Makar Sankranti marks the beginning of the new financial year.
Here below are the Capricorn solar ingress charts created for the United States (Washington, DC) and for the whole world (Greenwich, England).
A Time When the Essence of the Sun and Saturn Come Together in Harmony
Makar Sankranti is observed as a harvest festival and new year holiday in Hindu culture. It is a fasting and feasting day, a time for family reunions, a day to pray and worship, visit the temple, or to dip in a sacred river for karmic purification. On this day, according to Swami Sivananda, “…old, worn-out and dirty things are discarded and burnt. Homes are cleaned and white-washed. Even the roads are swept clean and lovely designs are drawn with rice-flour.”
Makar Sankranti is the beginning of a new cycle of warmer and longer days, and is considered the first day of early spring in some areas. Many traditions believe it is important to be outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine on Makar Sankranti, to light bonfires, perform fire ceremonies (pujas), make ancestral offerings, fly kites, and attend outdoor fairs.
The Sun is Surya, the Light. Saturn, the ruler of Capricorn, is Shani, a shadow born of the Sun. Though they can have pretty severe differences according to Vedic mythology and astrology, they come together in harmony on Makar Sankranti, and that itself is something to celebrate! The Sun’s entry into Capricorn symbolizes the illumination of our shadow side as we merge into more Light. This entails the act of forgiveness and letting go of the pettiness and old stories of the past while reaching higher to aspire to a more spiritual awareness of oneself and life.
For Pongal, homes and streets are decorated with kolam floor artwork. Jason Chung - https://www.flickr.com/photos/jsonchung/33314940508/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=83509979
The following passage from Hindu Fasts and Festivals by Swami Sivananda captures the spiritual essence of the merging of the Sun with Saturn (the Sun in Saturn’s sign of Capricorn):
The Sun, symbolizing wisdom, divine knowledge, and spiritual light, which receded from you when you reveled in the darkness of ignorance, delusion, and sensuality, now joyously…moves towards you to shed its light and warmth in greater abundance, and to infuse into you more life and energy. The Sun itself symbolizes all that the Pongal festival stands for.
The message of the Sun is the message of light, the message of unity, of impartiality, of true selflessness, of the perfection of the elements of Karma Yoga. The Sun shines on all equally. It is the true benefactor of all beings…
He who dwells in the Sun, whom the Sun does not know, whose body the Sun is, and by whose power the Sun shines—He is the Supreme Self, the Indweller, the immortal Essence. Tat Twam Asi—‘That thou art.’ Realize this and be free here and now on this holy Pongal or Makar Sankranti day. This is my humble Pongal prayer to you all.
Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya: May you go higher and higher, to more and more Light, and never to darkness!