• Know India’s six seasons and how they are split. And, significance of Ratha Sapthami i.e. also Surya Jayanti and Mangalore Car Festival.  

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It is important to recognise that, unlike the West, Bhārat has six seasons or ritu. They are Vasantha-ritu (Spring), Grīshma-ritu (Summer), Varsha-ritu (Monsoon), Sharad-ritu (Autumn), Hemantha-ritu (Pre-Winter) and Shishira-ritu (Winter).

These seasons are broadly split into two halves, depending on the movement of the Sun. The movement of the Sun northward is called uttarāyaṇa, and covers the warmer seasons while the movement southward is called dakṣiṇāyana and covers the cooler months.

The northward movement is celebrated around annually around January 14 or 15, and aligns with the sun’s transition into Capricorn (Makara) and this is celebrated as a festival called Makara- Ṣaṅkrāṅṭi.

Next, the first no-moon-day or amavāsya, following the above event, marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year. Read   The Indian Connection to Chinese New Year

Following this, the fifth day of the waxing moon (shukla-panchami) is called Basantha or Vasantha panchami. On this day, people honour Saraswati, the Goddess of knowledge by wearing yellow clothes, starting new lessons (vidyarambham), and eating sweets and snacks that are coloured with saffron or turmeric.

This also starts the preparation for Holi, which comes in around 40 days. This day is also called Madana-panchami because it is believed that Madana or Kamadeva was reborn as Pradyumna or the son of Sri Kṛṣṇa and Rukmini.

Then, on the seventh day in the waxing moon (shukla-paksha) of Magha-māsa, the festival of Ratha-sapthami is celebrated.

On this day, the Sun turns North and thereafter days begin to get warm. Hindus invoke the Sun by drawing a chariot or ratha, which is designed like Surya’s chariot. 

Importantly, Surya’s chariot is drawn by seven horses to represent chhandas or the seven Vedic meters of chanting,  comprising Gāyatri, Brihati, Ushnih, Jagati, Trishtubha, Anushtubha and Pankti.

4 Surya Chariot at Sun Temple, Konarak.  

2 Surya, Maratha Palace Museum, Tanjore.

Additionally, it is believed that Ratha Sapthami marks the birth of Surya to sage Kashyapa and his wife Aditi and hence, this day is also celebrated as Surya Jayanti.

How is Ratha Sapthami celebrated

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Lastly, Lord Vishnu, in his form as Surya is also worshipped on this day. Usually, ratha-sapthami begins in households with a snānam (purification bath -more auspicious if done in a river or sea), by holding several Arka leaves (bowstring hemp or Calotropis Gigantea, Aak in Hindi, Ekka in Kannada, Jilledu in Telugu, Erukku in Tamil) on their head, shoulders, knees and feet while bathing and chanting of prayers to invoke the benevolence of Lord Vishnu as Surya.

4 Mangalore Car Festival.

The festival is observed by all Hindus in their houses and in innumerable temples dedicated to Surya and Vishnu across Bhārat. Though the celebrations vary in intensity from region to region, the observances are more prevalent in Maharashtra, Odisha, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

5 Venkataramana murti at Shree Venkatramana Temple, Mangaluru.

For example, Vishnu is worshipped as Venkatramana in Mangaluru, which comes alive during the annual Shree Venkatramana Temple Car Festival in the month of February, conforming to the month of Magha Shukla tadagi to ashtami.

Similarly, many Surya and Vishnu Temples have similar festivals, such as at Tirupathi, Thiruchanur etc.

It is truly amazing how Bhārat’s ancient ṛṣis integrated the nuances of nature into the daily life of the people of Bhārat, to create an integrated life system called dharma, one that holds us together as our civilisation.

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Also read

1. Mangalore Car Festival

2. Kodial Theru the car festival of Mangalore

3. Sri Venkataramana Temple, Mangalore

4. Surya Temple near Jaipur, Rajasthan has links to albums on Sun Temples in Anantnag-Kashmir, Konarak-Odisha, Modhera-Gujarat, Almora-Uttarakhand