Mesha Sankranti 2053: Pomona, California

Mesha Sankranti marks the Sun's transit into Aries and is a Vishuva Sankranti -- day and night are of equal length. It is celebrated as a solar New Year in several regional calendars (Vishu in Kerala, Pana Sankranti in Odisha, Bikhu in Assam, Baisakhi in Punjab, Puthandu in Tamil Nadu), each with its own distinct customs, though this page covers the Sankranti moment and its Punyakala rather than any one of those separately-observed festivals.

The exact moment the Sun crosses into Mesha (Aries) is called the Sankranti. The Punyakala is the auspicious window around that moment -- its exact length and placement (before or after the Sankranti, and how it is measured) follows a traditional rule that depends on which of the twelve Sankrantis this is; Karka and Makara Sankranti (the two Ayana Sankrantis, marking the start of Dakshinayana and Uttarayana) each have their own distinct rule, and the Vishuva (Mesha/Tula), Vishnupadi, and Shadshitimukhi Sankrantis each follow one of three other rules. Charity (daan), holy baths, and worship performed during the Punyakala window are traditionally held to be especially meritorious.