“Marghazi Musings – Being Hindu in Myriad Ways”, Hindu American Organisation, December 22, 2025
“Marghazi Magic:
It’s that time of the year! When the entire world is heading to a mega celebration!! Thanks to a global corporate culture, December and January have become synonymous with Christmas and New Year, and the magic of the Holidays. But the same magic, and much more, holds for the Hindus too, for in December and January, falls the Hindu month of Mrughasheerisha, or Marghazi in Tamil, hailed by Shri Krishna in the Bhagwad Geeta.
“māsānāṁ mārgaśīrṣo ‘ham ṛtūnāṁ kusumākaraḥ” – Chapter 10, Verse 35, Bhagwad Geeta
What makes Margazhi so special? It is a month of intense spiritual practices for both the Shaiva and the Vaishnava sampradayas. During Margazhi, the nights are longer and days shorter, thus confining humans mostly indoors. It also comes after back-to-back celebrations, from Ganesh Chaturthi in August/September to Deepavali in October/November. These celebrations are heavy in rituals, communal meetings, and age-old traditions. Margazhi, with its winter hues, is the exact opposite. It beckons an individual to instead focus on quiet retreat and introspection after months of elaborate external celebrations. Spiritual practices range from a simple lighting of an oil lamp or diya at the porch everyday at dusk to intense spiritual practices, like 3am chanting, meditation. Tamil Vaishnavas especially hail Margazhi as the purest and most special month of the year. In Tamil Nadu, South India, devotees sing and dance to Tiruppavai, a Tamil poem dedicated to Andal, who fell in love with Vishnu and eventually married him. Vaikunth Ekadasi, Arudra Darshanam, and Pongal are among the other major festivals that fall during the Marghazi season.
Marghazi: A Time for Celebrating The Arts
Margazhi is also a time of beautiful artistic expression whether through drawing elaborate kolams or via Indian classical music and dance. To me Margazhi literally feels like the time to rebirth the artist and beauty within. South Indian cities like Chennai and Chidambaram host massive Indian classical music and dance festivals, attracting artists from all over the world. The Chennai Music Festival is where both seasoned and emerging artists showcase their talents to the world…..”
Read full article at hinduamerican.org
