A sankranti is the moment the Sun leaves one sidereal sign and enters the next. Twelve of them mark the twelve solar months; the one into Makara is Makara Sankranti, kept as Pongal in Tamil Nadu.
Computed for Coimbatore · Lahiri ayanamsa
| Sun enters | Moment | Time | Solar month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Makara · Capricorn | 14 January 2026 | 2:59 PM | Thai |
| Kumbha · Aquarius | 13 February 2026 | 4:01 AM | Maasi |
| Meena · Pisces | 15 March 2026 | 12:55 AM | Panguni |
| Mesha · Aries | 14 April 2026 | 9:24 AM | Chithirai |
| Vrishabha · Taurus | 15 May 2026 | 6:14 AM | Vaikasi |
| Mithuna · Gemini | 15 June 2026 | 12:45 PM | Aani |
| Karka · Cancer | 16 July 2026 | 11:31 PM | Aadi |
| Simha · Leo | 17 August 2026 | 7:50 AM | Aavani |
| Kanya · Virgo | 17 September 2026 | 7:45 AM | Purattasi |
| Tula · Libra | 17 October 2026 | 7:43 PM | Aippasi |
| Vrischika · Scorpio | 16 November 2026 | 7:35 PM | Karthigai |
| Dhanu · Sagittarius | 16 December 2026 | 10:17 AM | Margazhi |
| Makara · Capricorn | 14 January 2027 | 9:02 PM | Thai |
Related · Tithi calendar · Shani Peyarchi · Today's panchang
Indian calendars run on two clocks. The lunar month governs tithis, Ekadashi and most festivals; the solar month, begun at each Sankranti, governs the Tamil and Malayalam calendars and the agricultural year.
This is why Tamil New Year falls at Mesha Sankranti in April rather than at Diwali or in January — it is the start of a solar year, not a lunar one.
Two of the twelve mark the Sun's turning. At Makara Sankranti it begins moving north — Uttarayana, the six months the texts call the day of the gods, and the more auspicious half for undertakings.
At Karka Sankranti it turns south — Dakshinayana, associated with inward practice, ancestral rites and restraint rather than expansion.
The hours immediately around a Sankranti are held especially meritorious — the punya kalam, typically some hours before and after the exact moment of transition. Charity, bathing and offerings made then are said to carry particular weight.
The exact window differs for each Sankranti and depends on the time of day it falls. The Panchang gives it for the current one.
Dhanu Sankranti begins Margazhi, the month held most sacred for devotion and least suitable for worldly undertakings. Marriages are traditionally not fixed during it anywhere in the south.
It ends at Makara Sankranti — which is partly why Thai is treated as the month when auspicious matters resume. Find a marriage muhurta →
Makara Sankranti in January, without much argument. It marks Uttarayana — the Sun turning north — and is observed as Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Makaravilakku at Sabarimala, and under different names across almost every Indian state. Mesha Sankranti in April is the next most widely kept, being Tamil New Year and Vishu.
Because it is measured against the sidereal zodiac, which is fixed to the stars, while the solstice is a tropical event. The two have drifted about twenty-four degrees apart over the centuries, which is roughly twenty-four days — so what was once the solstice is now mid-January. The date continues to drift by about one day every seventy years.
Not in southern practice. Margazhi is avoided entirely, Aadi is avoided in most Tamil families, and Purattasi is kept for devotion rather than celebration. Panguni and Vaikasi are among the most favoured. That is before the separate question of whether Venus is combust, which rules out further weeks. Shukra Astangata dates →
Bathing before sunrise, charity — particularly of sesame, jaggery and cloth — and offerings to the Sun are the common observances, all held to carry extra merit during the punya kalam around the transition. Several Sankrantis carry their own additional customs: the sacred thread is changed at Avani Avittam, and new rice is cooked at Pongal.
The moment of transition is the same everywhere, but the local date can differ where it falls near midnight, since your timezone decides which day it lands on. Families abroad usually observe on the Indian date. Where you need it exactly for your own location, the Panchang resolves it.
The solar month is one factor among several — the tithi, the nakshatra, whether Venus is combust, and your own chart all bear on it. Our astrologers calculate muhurtas individually rather than from a calendar, and the fee is credited in full against any ritual you book.