Pitru Paksha is one of the most significant events in Hindu Dharma, and yet most of us Hindus are not familiar with its concept. That’s why the team of Astrobollywood decided to make a detailed post about everything you need to know about Pitru Paksha in 2019.
What is Pitru Paksha?
In ancient Sanskrit, pitras or pitru is translated to one’s ancestors, whereas Paksha means a specific time of the year. So the term Pitru Paksha implies the time when we greet our ancestors by offering our prayers and food to them.
Pitru Paksha also referred to as Shraddh by many, is an ancient tradition followed by Hindus in which we offer food and water to our ancestors and unprivileged people.
History of Pitru Paksha
As per Hindu mythology, the ritual of offering food and water to poor and needful people is associated with King Karna, the son of the Sun God. Karna was a generous king who spent his entire life donating gold and precious gems to poor people. His soul was offered to heaven. In heaven, he was given gold and gems to eat rather than real food. Confused Karna went to Indra, the king of Gods, to seek an answer for this treatment.
Indra told Karna that he had spent his entire life donating his wealth, particularly gold and precious gems to poor people but never offered food to his ancestors who came to him in the form of needful people. Indra later decided to give Karna one more chance by allowing him to go back to Earth for 16 days and do Shraddha (Donation).
In these 16 days, Karna offered Shraddha to poor people as well as his ancestors and seek redemption.
Who can Perform Pitru Paksha
- The Eldest Son of the family should perform Pitru Paksha.
- The ritual is performed only for heralded three generations.
- A girl is prohibited from offering Pind Daan
How to perform the Ritual of Pitru Paksha (Shraddha) correctly?
To perform Pitru Paksha, eldest son of a family has to take a bath and wear a ring made up of kush grass. The kush grass signifies kindness and spreads purity in the surrounding and invites our ancestors.
It might be overwhelming so you can contact and talk to India’s Trustable astrologers.
After that, the elder son will have to perform Pind Daan, in which he will need to offer rice, sesame seeds and balls made up of barley flour.
Darbha Grass is then used to request blessings from Lord Vishnu. Dharbha grass is a kind of holy grass to help remove obstacles from our life.
Then food is offered to crows in the memory of our ancestors. In Hindu Dharma, a crow is acknowledged as the messenger of Yama. It is also believed that during these 16 days, ancestors visit us as crows in expectation of food from us.
It is very promising to offer Brahmins food and water during this time of the year.
Chanting prayers and verses from Garuda Purana, Agni Purana, and stories from Nachiketa and Ganga Avataram is encouraged by gods.
Pitru Paksha begins with an astronomical event when Sun enters into the zodiac sign of Kanya (Virgo). It is believed that the souls of the ancestor’s descent from Pitru Lok to their descendant’s home and stay there for a month till the sun ventures into next Zodiac sign Vrischika (Scorpio); accepting food offerings during the first half of the month.
Dos and Donts during Pitru Paksha
1. Pitru Paksha is not a proper time to begin something new in your life. Avoid starting a new business, or buying something new.
2. One should not wear any new clothes, not even wash your hair or shave during Pitru Pasha and especially on the last day.
3. You should consider postponing events, getting married, buying a new house, etc. Every significant event should be either postponed or preponed.
4. Do not consume any Non-vegetarian food during Pitru Paksha. Eating onions and garlic is also prohibited.
5. One should try not to bear any negative thoughts towards anyone.
6. Getting into pleasurable activities is also prohibited.
7. If possible, all Family members should eat their meal together.
8. One should feed food to other animals.
9. No animal should be harmed or harassed.
Significant Places for performing the Ritual
There are some essential places in India to perform rituals of Pitru Paksha (Shraadh) for the perished souls to stay in peace and be happy.
Some of the most famous and holy places to perform Pind Daan are Varanasi, Gaya, Kedarnath, Badrinath, Nashik, and Rameswaram. In Varanasi, the ritual is performed on the banks of river Ganga, which is the holiest place for a Hindu.
Pitru Paksha or Shraddha is a medius to connect with your ancestors and present your respect towards them. Whoever performs the ritual with utmost dedication and devotion will be blessed with absolute prosperity.
Why Please Ancestors?
You might think why should you please your ancestors even if they are no one with us. You might have questions that if they are not in this world, then why should we bother them?
Well, our soul still has a connection to our ancestors. We are here because of our ancestors, and we should never forget them. Our ancestors always have expectations of us. As per Hindu Dharma, it is our duty to please our ancestors. If your ancestors are not happy with you, then you will always have one or the other problem lined up in your life.
But if your ancestors are happy with you, then there will be happiness in your life too. Not just your life, your entire family will be prospering. They should be prayed and offered food and water. The pooja during Pitru Paksha makes sure that your ancestors get a healthy afterlife.
Pitru Paksha Timeline for 2019
Pitru Paksha will begin from Friday, 13 September 2019 and end on Saturday, 28 September.
Important Event: Sarvapitri Amavasya on 28 Sep 2019
| Date (Sept 13 – Sept 28) | Day | Shraadh |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Friday | Purnima |
| 14 | Saturday | Pratipada |
| 15 | Sunday | Dwitiya |
| 17 | Tuesday | Tritiya |
| 18 | Wednesday | Chaturthi, Maha Bharani |
| 19 | Thursday | Panchami |
| 20 | Friday | Shashthi |
| 21 | Saturday | Saptami |
| 22 | Sunday | Ashtami |
| 23 | Monday | Navami |
| 24 | Tuesday | Dashami |
| 25 | Wednesday | Ekadashi, Dwadashi |
| 26 | Thursday | Magha, Trayodashi |
| 27 | Friday | Chaturdashi |
| 28 | Saturday | Sarva Pitru Amavasya |