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The sun is also known by the name Makar. For germination to occur, the sun must be present, which is why it is venerated on Makar Sankranti. People from diverse cultures across India celebrate the Makar festival or the celebration of the Sun God on the day of Makar Sankranti or Paush Sankranti, which is the final day of the (Hindu) month Paush or Poush. While some people bathe in revered rivers and water bodies to honour Surya Dev, others observe it as an elaborate harvest festival. In our religious scriptures and ancient beliefs, certain food items are said to be Lord Sun's most cherished ones. By offering them on this day, one gets the blessings of the Sun, the energy source for all lifeforms.
Here is a list of 5 food items you may offer to the Sun God on Makar Sankranti.
Red pulses
The sun represents fire, and red is his choicest hue. So many suggest offering him red pulses or food made with them. A few options are red lentils or masoor dal, red mung beans, dark red kidney beans, and pale red kidney beans.
Jaggery
Gur or jaggery is said to be Surya Dev's favourite food. Thus, one can observe that many dishes in the Makar Sankranti spread have profuse use of jaggery. One can offer it as is or can prepare an array of jaggery-based Makar Sankranti dishes like jaggery rice or gur chawal, sweet pongal, nolen gurer payer or new jaggery rice pudding, tilgul or sesame laddoo made with jaggery.
Saffron
A bowl full of saffron, Image Source: Unsplash
Resonating with the colour of the Sun God, saffron or kesar is another food he likes a lot. So, one may consider preparing decadent traditional Indian dishes such as kesari kheer, basundi, kesari halwa, kesar moong dal halwa, kesari pulao, kesar kheer, kesar ras malai and so on.
Red fruits
As mentioned earlier, red is Sun's fondest hue. Thus, there is an inclination towards red fruits. So, think of fresh red fruits such as apples, pomegranates, red bananas, red berries and so on. There is also sentiment associated with donating fresh fruits on this day, as they are revered as a source of nourishment in Vedas.
Wheat
Aate ki pinni, Image Source: garimasabharwal@Instagram
Wheat is another choicest food of the Sun God. Thus, in several parts of India, the celebrators of Makar Sankranti prepare many atta or wheat-based sweet and savoury dishes. A few popular items are Punjab's aate ki pinni, gur roti, kheech or wheat kheer, aate ka halwa, and wheat khichda.
