Posts Tagged ‘Pongal’

The Ramakrishna Ashrama Celebrated Pongal Festival with its children. Pongal is a highly sacred festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu to mark the harvesting season..It is celebrated as ‘Makara Sankaranthi’ in different regions across India and this usually falls in the mid of January…Pongal is celebrated by offering prayers to the Sun God.. The houses are cleaned and well decorated before Pongal’

Meaning of Pongal

Pongal literally means “Boiling over” and it signifies the arrival of prosperity and is associated with the harvest by thanking the sun god, rain and the farm animals that have helped in the harvest. In villages, people owning cows find this festival important.

‘Pongal’ or ‘Thai Pongal’ is also called ‘Makara Sankaranthi’, since it is celebrated on the first day of Thai when the Sun enters the Makara Rasi (Capricornus). This signals the end of winter and the onset of spring throughout the northern hemisphere

Usually, the festival takes place January 12 -15 (on the Gregorian calendar). The festival is celebrated four days from the last day of the Tamil month Maargazhi (December-January) to the third day of Thai (January-February).

Pongal is normally celebrated over a period of four days.. Pongal festival spans over four days period. Each of these days hold a significance of its own.

source: http://india-forums.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1321788