According to astrology, when the Sun enters Capricorn, it starts moving towards the Northern Hemisphere, due to which the days start getting longer. That's why this astronomical event is also celebrated as a festival, which is called Makar Sankranti. In different parts of India, this festival is celebrated with different traditions and names. In Assam, this festival is celebrated as Magh Bihu. This time the festival of Magh Bihu will be celebrated on January 15, Sunday. Apart from Magh Bihu, the festivals of Bohag Bihu and Kongali Bihu are also celebrated in Assam. The festival of Bohag Bihu is celebrated in April and Kongali Bihu in October.
Magh Bihu 2023: Date
When the sun moves towards the northern hemisphere, the days start getting longer and enough sunlight falls on the earth, due to which the crops ripen. In Magh Bihu, farmers express their gratitude to the Sun God and pray to the Sun God for a good harvest. This is mainly a festival for farmers. The people of Assam consider Magh Bihu as the beginning of the new year. Special dishes are prepared on this occasion and traditional dances are also performed. This time the festival of Magh Bihu will be celebrated on January 15, Sunday.
Magh Bihu 2023: Significance
With the festival of Magh, the people of Assam consider the beginning of the new year. This is the reason that on this day people in traditional dress perform the traditional dance of Assam 'Bihu' with full enthusiasm. Magh Bihu is generally considered a festival for farmers. On this day, farmers harvest the crops from the fields and thank nature and God while wishing for good yields in the future as well.
How is Magh Bihu celebrated?
As part of Magh Bihu, the people of Assam worship Brai Shibrai (the local deity) and offer the first crop of the season to Brai Shibrai with wishes of happiness and prosperity. On this occasion, the boys and girls of the village perform a special dance wearing a traditional dhoti, gamosa and other colorful clothes and then people also wish each other Magh Bihu. Thus this festival is known for laughing, singing and creating happiness.
Magh Bihu's special dish
Many special dishes are made on the occasion of Magh Bihu. All these dishes are very famous locally. Among these, Khar, Aloo Pitika, Jak, Masor Tenga etc. are prominent. Boiled potatoes are mashed in Aloo Pitika, onions, green chilies, green coriander, salt, mustard oil are added to it and it is eaten with rice, lentils, lemon. Jak consists of green leafy vegetables while masor tenga consists of fish dishes.
