Uttaryanam

The Solar Year or Varsha is divided into two halves. If we mark the position of the sunrise on the horizon every day, we will notice that from 14th January to 16th July, it seems to be drifting slowly towards the north and from 16th July to 14th January, it drifts towards the south along the same route.

Starting from Makara Sankranti on 14th January, the six months of the sun’s northward movement towards the Tropic of Cancer is called Uttarayanam (uttara – north; ayanam – path or movement). Similarly, starting from 16th July, the six months of the southward movement towards the Tropic of Capricorn is called Dakshinayanam (dakshina – south; ayanam – path or movement). The six months of Uttarayanam are considered auspicious because we are seemingly travelling towards the sun.

The path taken by the earth to go round the sun is elliptical. Since our planet is tilted at 23.5 degree on its axis, different places receive different amounts of sunlight during its journey round the sun. The day it reaches the farthest point from the sun is referred to as a solstice. Due to the tilt, at one end of the elliptical path the Tropic of Cancer is in line with the sun and at the other end, the Tropic of Capricorn. These mark the extreme north and south latitudes (+23.5° and -23.5°) where the sun appears to take a dramatic turn when observed from earth.

The changing relationship of the sun with the earth plays a significant part in the lives of people, especially those who live in the northern hemisphere, because this is the part that receives maximum impact. We are a part and parcel of our galaxy. We cannot escape the changes that are happening on our planet. This planet earth is our abode. If anything happens to the house, it will naturally affect the lives of those who live in it!

Do you know that all through the sun’s peregrination towards the north-east for six months of the year and then south-east for another six months, it will never rise exactly in the east except on 21st March and 23rd September? A strange fact, indeed! Needless to say that the sun never travels. Seemingly, the sun appears to drift towards the north-east and the south-east, but this is an illusion caused by the tilt of the earth on its axis and its movement round the sun.

The rishis who were the founders of the Sanatana Dharma were experts at camouflaging the dry, scientific truths with imaginative stories. They knew that the only way to teach science to the masses was by putting it in story form. These stories were woven into the very structure of our culture so that even a small child could understand and appreciate it. So, they said that one human year is an equivalent of one divine day of the gods. The six months of Uttarayanam is their daytime and the six months of Dakshinayanam is their night. So now that the Dakshinayanam is coming to a close, the gods are just waking up after their sleep and it’s very auspicious to wake them with hymns and pujas and other spiritual practices. If people were told to do all these things because it was good for them, they might not have listened but since a story was woven around it, people followed blindly.

Uttarayanam marks the daytime of the gods or devas. Harvest and spring festivals, marriages and other auspicious occasions are celebrated during Uttarayanam since the gods are awake and presiding over the functions. This period starts with short days but over the next six months, the days become longer and longer. Energy levels in our body rise and things happen more easily.  We are more receptive to spiritual grace and reap the harvest of our previous sadhana or spiritual practices.

Uttarayanam is also called the Kaivalya Pada, that is the time between the winter solstice and spring equinox. This is the period of receptivity, grace and enlightenment. This is the reason why, in the Mahabharata, Bhishma chose to wait (for Uttarayanam), before giving up his life. It is also believed that the Ganga descended from heaven and reached the earth on the auspicious day of Makara Sankranti, which marks the start of Uttarayanam.

The six months of Uttarayanam are divided into three ritus or seasons, though actually it starts in the last bit of winter. These seasons are Phalguna (vasanta or spring), mid-January to mid-March; Greeshma (summer), mid-March to mid-May; Varsha (monsoon), mid-May to mid-July. Each season is marked with a variety of rituals and festivals to allow us to sync our energies with that of the sun. All these benefit us physically and spiritually. This is the period when the sun’s energies come into prominence and Dakshinayana is the time when the moon’s energies are more dominating.

Hence Uttarayanam, when the forces of the sun are supreme, can be compared to the “yang” or masculine aspect when the forces of spirituality come into prominence.  Contrary to this is the Dakshinayanam, when the moon comes into play and this can be compared to the “yin” or feminine aspect which is the body/mind duality.  When the earth turns her aura from masculine to feminine, significant changes take place in both, the mind and the body of the humans inhabiting the planet.

Interestingly, in our culture, even diet and yogic practices were adapted to these seasons. Each season dictates the type of food eaten in different parts of the country. Heavy, greasy food, and foods which create heat are eaten in winter. Watery vegetables to hydrate, and pungent and salty foods which induce sweating are eaten to cool the body in summer.  Periodic fasting also helps to adapt the body to the changes in the sun’s energies. So we have two Navaratris, one during Uttarayanam and one during Dakshinayanam, which give us an opportunity to fast.

Once we understand the connection between Hindu practices and science, we are able to see that our traditions are extremely logical and scientific. The first festival in Spring is Vasant Panchami. It signals the shift between seasons, helping us to shift our dietary pattern. During winter, we are advised to eat jaggery and sesame seeds for warmth. These are kept aside after Vaisakhi, when the weather starts to turn warm.

The change in the sun’s relationship with our planet has a significant impact on the lives of people who reside between eighteen degrees to forty-eight degrees’ north latitude, since this is the most impacted part during the shift. Human beings are made up of the five elements that compose the earth so we are, in earnest, pieces of planet earth. Consequently, whatever happens to the planet will have a tremendous effect on the human system. We have to cultivate the sensitivity to make use of this. Actually, we are unconsciously affected by these forces. We behave and function better on some days and at certain times, without realising that this is the consequence of the planetary dynamics working on us. If our body is brought to a certain level of sensitivity, it will be able to keep in perfect tune with the whole cosmos. The microcosm is only a mirror of the macrocosm and everything that happens in the external sphere manifests itself in subtle ways in our bodies. Both our bodies and minds will work at a superior level if we keep them aligned to the movement of the sun and moon during Uttarayanam and Dakshinayanam. We have been given a discriminating intellect by which we can become aware of the movement of the planets and stars and we can use this knowledge to create a healthy, holistic and consciously intuitive lifestyle. In modern times where our lives are cluttered with too many conveniences, most of us are not even aware of this connection and are totally oblivious of what is happening in the nature outside.

It is said that the months of Dakshinayanam should be used for purification and intense sadhana, which will bring benefits and lead to enlightenment in Uttarayanam.

The esoteric reason is that during Uttarayanam, the energy of the sun travels from our lower chakras to the higher. It moves from the Muladhara Chakra, which is the lowest (corresponding to Capricorn), to Swadhisthana Chakra (corresponding to Pisces), to Manipuraka Chakra (corresponding to Aries), and then through Anahata Chakra (corresponding to Taurus), and Vishuddhi Chakra (corresponding to Gemini), and finally reaches the Ajna Chakra, commonly known as the Third Eye, which corresponds to Cancer/Leo. Each chakra is connected with a planet though we don’t know it.

The three lower chakras – Muladhara, Swadishthana and Manipuraka keep the body rooted to the earth element and are necessary for our basic survival. Fear and anger are the basic traits of people who are fixed in these three chakras. If our energies are concentrated here, we will be more interested in things like food, sex, pleasure and so on. The three chakras on the top – Vishuddhi, Ajna and Sahasrara are always trying to pull us away from the obsession with the physical. During the period of Dakshinayanam, we will find that it is easier to cleanse the three lower chakras and during Uttarayanam, we will find that the three upper chakras will be able to guide us to higher realms of consciousness.

The Anahata Chakra or the heart chakra is the one that acts as a balance between these two forces, the centrifugal and the centripetal. Love is the only thing that can lure us away from our basic instinct for survival. For instance, a mother, whether it be animal, bird or human will be prepared to sacrifice its life for the sake of its children.

Since the sun is starting on its northward journey from Makara Sankranti, we begin the morning by worshipping the sun. A fire is built facing the east and a mixture of milk, rice and sugar is cooked on this fire. The milk should boil over just as the sun rises on the horizon. It should be offered to the sun. This payasam (kind of pudding) is then distributed to everyone. This festival is known as Pongol in South India. Thus, the rishis saw to it that dry, scientific facts were combined with interesting rituals so that they could be remembered and followed even by those who did not have a scientific mind.

However, the modern mind readily accepts scientific facts so the time is ripe to bring these scientific facts to common people so that they can begin to understand and appreciate the scientific reasons behind our rituals and traditions. If we want to make use of the energy of the planets to bring health to the body and rid ourselves of diseases, a proper understanding and appreciation of what is happening in nature is essential. We should keep our internal mechanism in tune with the movements of the sun, moon, earth and other planets; we should align our inner self with the movement of the sun during Uttarayanam and Dakshinayanam.

Hari Aum Tat Sat!