In plain words
The parents-in-law honour the son-in-law as is fitting; they give him new clothes; they lay on a fine feast. The special mark of this festival is that it gives joy to everyone. But today no one knows where the joy of Sankrānti has gone. The son-in-law, who should go happily to his in-laws’ house, goes there in anger, to quarrel. To hurt others for one’s own joy is not the way of the people of Bhārata. It is vital that we recognise the hearts of others and act accordingly. We must share our joy with everyone.
It is Sankrānti that takes us from unrest to Praśānti
Sankrānti is called ‘the auspicious day of Ānanda’. On this day the holy time of Uttarāyaṇa begins. Krānti means change. Sankrānti is what changes sorrow into Ānanda. Sankrānti is what takes us from unrest to Praśānti. Sankrānti is what brings happiness out of hardship. These are cool days, the days the farmers spend happily, without a single worry. They have reaped the harvest and brought it home, so they have no worry at all. ‘A man without worries can sleep even at the fair,’ as the proverb says. Man must live without worry. He must experience Ānanda always. There is no man in this world who does not long for Ānanda. But Ānanda is what springs up from our own heart; it is not something to be had separately from outside. The joy that man today experiences is external and artificial. Only the Ānanda that comes from the heart is natural and lasting. What kind of Ānanda is it?