Happy Sankranthi

Dear Readers,

Happy Sankranthi. My memories of Sankranthi include food, kites and celebrations. Coastal Andhra (where agriculture is a common form of livelihood) livens up for Sankranthi for community gatherings and fun activities for all families in a neighborhood. I’ve witnessed and been a part of intense kite flying contests in childhood (usually holding the charkha – a spool, rather than flying the kite), and running after a kite and the thrill of catching it -  a secret, always watch for the hanging kite string when the kite is a little high above the ground, and watch for vehicles on the road .

I’ve tried everything, making my own kite with kite paper or newspapers, making my own maanja with a crushed light bulb and rice and boiled egg to slightly cutting my index finger while flying with a maanja that costs 3 Rs/- a gheeti (spread your thumb and little finger, holding a loose end of the thread with your thumb and the bottom of index finger, wrap it around your little finger and back to  your thumb again – 50 times), and packed into a little plastic bag. There’s a tree that stands right next to my terrace that has resulted in me loosing tens of kites over the years. The last time I flew a kite was in Ramanthapur over a friend’s house and I haven’t had the chance to see a childhood-like Sankranthi ever. The slang was different, while I grew up with shouting ‘aaaaffaaaaaa’ when a kite was cut, the Ramanthapur slang was ‘khaaaateeeeyyyy’. Strange differences within a radius of 20 KM. I also vaguely remember the names for kites – the one which did not need a tail for blance was – ‘doredaar’ or something close to that.

Of course, this was also a season when people turned into swamis just finishing their deeksha would make a pilgrimage to Sabarimalai, Kerala, and would chant ‘swamiye ayyapo – ayyapo swamiye’ and live a life of simplicity – showering in cold water before sunrise, wear only black, sleep on a black sheet on the floor, eat vegetarian, avoid luxuries and other stuff that made Man more spiritual and one with God (Women however excluded from becoming a swami, in continuance of an ancient custom that considers a natural cycle in a woman’s body as not-so-pious or not-so-hygienic).

I’ve also always pondered about the ‘makara jyothi‘ that I thought was a miracle in my childhood and realized over the years, since there are no miracles ever, it’s a man-made incident, but no devotees are being physically harmed, so it’s OK I guess, it’s a good business for one holy place. (10 million Rs/- or $205,000).

And finally, some very colorful pictures I found on flickr from user: Swetha Wadhwa. Link here

Happy Sankranthi!

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