📅 14 January 2026Returns next year
Pongal पोङ्गल्
Surya · No fasting required
Four-day Tamil harvest festival on Thai month sankranti, dedicated to the Sun. Day 1 Bhogi Pongal (burning old belongings), Day 2 Thai Pongal (boiling fresh rice with jaggery and milk in a new clay pot until it overflows — the auspicious "Pongalo Pongal" cry), Day 3 Mattu Pongal (worship of cattle), Day 4 Kaanum Pongal (family visits and outings).
Rituals (vidhi)
- 1.Cleaning of homes and discarding old items on Bhogi eve
- 2.Kolam (rice-flour rangoli) at the threshold
- 3.Cooking sakkarai pongal in a new earthen pot facing east
- 4.Garlanding and worship of oxen and cows on Mattu Pongal
- 5.Sugarcane, turmeric, and ginger offerings to Surya
Significance
Thanksgiving to Surya, the cattle, and the earth for the harvest. The overflowing pot symbolises prosperity overflowing into the new year. Marks Uttarayana — the Sun's northward journey — considered the most auspicious half of the year per the Mahabharata (Bhishma waited for it before leaving his body).
Learn more about Surya →