Lohri 2024: The auspicious festival of Lohri is celebrated with great enthusiasm and pomp in Haryana and Punjab. From date to puja timings, all details inside.
Lohri 2024: The auspicious festival of Lohri is celebrated with great enthusiasm and pomp, especially by the Hindu and Sikh communities in Haryana and Punjab. Also known as Lohadi or Lal Loi, Lohri is celebrated a day before Makar Sankranti. To celebrate this festival, individuals follow the tradition of lighting a bonfire either outside their homes or in an open area, using wood and cow dung cakes.
As part of the ritual, offerings such as sesame seeds, jaggery, gajak, rewdi and peanuts are offered to the blazing fire while participants perform parikrama around it. The day also marks the harvesting of crops, the produce of which is used to prepare bhog offerings which are reverently offered to the fire. From date to timings, scroll down to know more about this auspicious occasion.
Is Lohri 2024 on January 13 or January 14?
This year, there seems to be uncertainty surrounding the precise date for the celebration of Lohri, with confusion arising over whether it should be observed on January 13 or 14. As per Drik Panchang, Lohri is slated to be celebrated on Sunday, January 14, 2024. This implies that Makar Sankranti, a related festival, is expected to occur on Monday, January 15, 2024
Lohri 2024 puja timings
According to Drik Panchang, the puja timings for this year’s Lohri festival are as follows:
Tritiya tithi upto 07:59 AM, January 14
Chaturthi tithi upto 04:59 AM, January 15
Brahma Muhurta: 05:27 AM to 06:21 AM
Abhijit Muhurta: 12:09 PM to 12:51 PM
Why is Lohri celebrated?
Lohri is a special festival associated with the sowing and harvesting of crops. It also heralds the arrival of warmer weather as the days get longer and the nights shorter after Makar Sankranti, which falls a day after Lohri. The same concept is represented by the bonfire lit during the festival celebrations.
On the occasion of Lohri, people offer prayers to the Sun God (Surya Devta) and Fire God (Agni Devta), worship the new crop, light a fire outside their homes, and make wishes for a bountiful harvest for the next year. To the Lohri bonfire, they also offer bhog made from the harvested crops, rewadi, groundnut, jaggery, gajak, and peanuts. People also perform traditional songs and dance to the beat of the dhol while circling the fire (Parikrama) during the Lohri celebrations.