Today is the celebration of the Maghe Sankranti festival

Many communities, including the Tharus and Magars, are celebrating the Maghe Sankranti holiday today all around the nation. As the sun moves from the sign of Sagittarius to Capricorn, the day is known as Maghe or Makar Sankranti.

The day is the start of Uttarayan, when the days lengthen and the nights get shorter. On this day, it is seen to be very meritorious to bathe, meditate, give to charity, and engage in other spiritual pursuits. For the holy Maghe Sankranti bath, devotees swarm to holy locations like as Devghat, Trishuli, Kali Gandaki, Bagmati, Indrawati, Triveni, and Ridi. Today, these places also hold special fairs.

Maghe Sankranti is observed as a bathing festival by the Terai people. On this day, taking a ritual bath is seen as required.It is said that giving sesame seeds as charity and taking a holy plunge at holy locations early in the morning have the same benefits as giving gold. The scriptures state that people who don’t eat traditional foods like ghee, chaku (molasses), sesame seed preparations, or khichadi (rice and lentil dish), or who don’t do good deeds or meditate on this day, may have health problems for the rest of their lives, according to religious scholar Prof. Dr. Devmani Bhattarai.

The period following the start of Uttarayan is seen as favorable for good deeds. This day is thought to bring favors and grant wishes, therefore people bathe, donate, fast, and meditate. In the winter, they eat traditional foods like khichadi, ghee chaku, sesame seeds, yam, and spinach because these keep them warm. These meals, according to Ayurvedic specialists, balance the three body humors (tridosha). The expression “Cooked in Poush, eaten in Magh” captures the custom of preparing yam on the final day of Poush (mid-January) and eating it in Magh.

According to Prof. Dr. Bhattarai, using sesame oil to the body is thought to eliminate pollutants. According to Ayurvedic principles, a massage with sesame oil improves bones, joints, and nerves, hence improving general health.

It is considered good for someone to die after the sun enters Uttarayan. After Uttarayan started, Bhishma, a Mahabharata figure who had the boon of voluntary death, decided to give up his life.

Today, Til Madhav Narayansthan in Bhaktapur also has a fair.

The Skanda Purana’s Magh Mahatmya is another reason why the month of Magh is important. Based on a dialogue between Kumar and Agastya, the Swasthani Brata Katha is recited from the full moon day of Poush till the full moon of Magh. According to the Nepal Panchang Nirnayak Vikas Samiti, the Swasthani Brata Katha started this year on Poush 29.

Those who follow the Swasthani vow wash every day and worship Lord Shiva, also known as Magh Snan, at noon throughout the month of Magh.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has declared that National Agricultural Biodiversity Day will be observed on the occasion of Maghe Sankranti. The day emphasizes the consumption of culturally significant root vegetables, such as taro, sweet potatoes, yams, and forest yams.