Makar Sankranti will be celebrated on Wednesday 14 January in 2026. On this day the Sun enters Capricorn. On this day, Khichdi, sesame-jaggery, bathing-donation and sun worship have special significance.
Makar Sankranti 2026: Makar Sankranti is an important festival of Hindu religion, which is also known by different names at different places. In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana it is known by names like Sankranti or Pedda Panduga, Khichdi festival in Uttar Pradesh, Magh Bihu in Assam, Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Uttarayan in states like Rajasthan and Gujarat etc. Makar Sankranti is a major festival especially associated with Sun worship. Makar Sankranti is celebrated every year in the month of January. Sun god When it enters Capricorn, the festival of Makar Sankranti is celebrated. Therefore this festival symbolizes the entry of Sun God into Capricorn.
Uttarayan also begins as soon as the Sun enters Capricorn, which means the Sun’s movement from Dakshinayan towards the north, which is considered auspicious and auspicious. Let us know when Makar Sankranti will be celebrated in the year 2026 and what is the significance of this festival.
The festival of Makar Sankranti is usually celebrated on 14 or 15 January, the next day of Lohri. In the year 2026, Makar Sankranti will be celebrated on Wednesday, 14 January. The auspicious time of this day will be from 2:49 pm to 5:45 pm. The Mahapunya Kaal is from 2:49 to 3:42 in the afternoon. This time is considered auspicious for bathing and donating.
According to the Hindu calendar, when the Sun enters Capricorn from Sagittarius, this change is called Makar Sankranti. This is the only Sankranti festival of the Sun which is based on the solar calendar, hence every year it falls on approximately 14 or 15 January. From this day, the Uttarayan movement of the Sun begins, due to which the days gradually become longer and the nights become shorter. According to mythological belief, on the day of Makar Sankranti, Sun God comes in the zodiac sign of his son Shani Dev i.e. Capricorn, which is also a symbol of father-son union, harmony and love in relationships.
In North India, especially in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, Makar Sankranti is known as Khichdi festival. On this day, people do things like bathing and donating, worshiping the Sun God by offering Arghya, consuming sesame seeds and jaggery and offering khichdi made of rice and pulses. Consumption of sesame and jaggery is considered especially fruitful on this day, because it keeps the body warm in winter and is considered a symbol of purity.
Bathing in holy rivers on Makar Sankranti is of utmost importance. On this day people take bath in holy rivers like Ganga, Yamuna and offer Arghya to the Sun God. There is a religious belief that taking a bath on Makar Sankranti gives virtuous results and the donation given on this day gives hundred times the results.
