Pitru Paksha

 

Take Shradh Karma / take the paternal side, this remedy will remove the Pitra Dosh

This side is of 15 days. Which starts on the full moon day of Bhadrapada and ends on the new moon day of Ashwin. Astrologer Pramod Pandey says that if a person is suffering from Pitru Dosh then he should adopt the remedies mentioned here during Pitru Paksha. It is believed that these remedies remove Pitra Dosh from the life of the person. So let us know about this in detail that after all, in whose life there is Pitra Dosh and what is the remedy for its prevention?

2/5 Such people have Pitra Dosh.

Let us tell you that Pitra Dosh is considered to give very inauspicious effects. Any person who disrespects his parents while alive or who does not perform Shradh to his father after the death of his father or commits snake killing or any innocent murder, then in his next birth there is Pitru Dosh in his horoscope. In such a situation, the life of the person remains related to children, court-courts, discord in family life and mental peace. At the same time, you also get cheated by your loved ones.

If these measures are taken in Pitru Paksha, then they get their blessings.

Do this remedy on every new moon day.

To remove Pitra Dosh, five fruits should be fed to the cow on every new moon. Apart from this, keeping food on the Acacia tree in the evening also pleases the Pitras. Therefore, this remedy must be done regularly on every new moon. Along with this, a Brahmin should also be offered food and dakshina-clothes. By doing this also, Pitra Dosh is reduced. 4/5 Keep this sentiment towards known-unknown ancestors.

To get relief from Pitra Dosh, one should have regular gratitude towards one's known-unknown and ancestors after worshiping God. Apart from this, ask them for forgiveness of mistakes made knowingly or unknowingly. By doing this, ancestors are pleased and Pitra Dosh is removed.

5/5 These remedies are also of great use

To remove Pitra Dosh, the person should chant Mahamrityunjaya by offering water on Shivling every day. Apart from this, worship Goddess Kali regularly. By the grace of the mother, Pitru Dosh gets removed. When food is prepared, first of all, taking out a plate of food in the name of ancestors and feeding it to the cow, there is always the blessings of the ancestors at that house. The head of the household should also take out the first grass from his plate while paying homage to the ancestors and feed it to the crows.

Pitru Paksha

Pitru Paksha (Sanskrit: पितृ पक्ष, Pitṛ pakṣa; lit. "Fortnight of the ancestors") is a 16–lunar day period in Hindu calendar when Hindus pay homage to their ancestor (Pitrs), especially through food offerings. The period is also known as Pitri Paksha/Pitr-Paksha, Pitri Pokkho, Sorah Shraddha ("sixteen shraddhas"), Kanagat, Jitiya, Mahalaya Paksha and Apara Paksha.

 

Pitru Paksha is considered by Hindus to be inauspicious, given the death rite performed during the ceremony, known as Shraddha or Tarpana. In southern and western India, it falls in the 2nd paksha (fortnight) Hindu lunar month of Bhadrapada (September) and follows the fortnight immediately after Ganesh Utsav. It begins on the Pratipada (first day of the fortnight) ending with the no moon day known as Sarvapitri Amavasya, Pitri Amavasya, Peddala Amavasya, Mahalaya Amavasya. Most years, the autumnal equinox falls within this period, i.e. the Sun transitions from the northern to the southern hemisphere during this period. In North India and Nepal, and cultures following the purnimanta calendar or the solar calendar, this period may correspond to the waning fortnight of the luni-solar month Ashvina, instead of Bhadrapada.

Pitru Paksha
Observed by	Hindus
Type	Hindu
Celebrations	16 lunar days
Observances	Shraddha: paying homage to their ancestors, especially by food offerings
Begins	Full moon day of Bhadrapada
Ends	Sarvapitri Amavasya: new moon day
Date	September/October
Frequency	Annual
Related to	Galungan, Veneration of the dead

 

Legend

According to Hinduism, the souls of three preceding generations of one's ancestor reside in Pitriloka, a realm between heaven and earth. This realm is governed by Yama, the god of death, who takes the soul of a dying man from earth to Pitriloka. When a person of the next generation dies, the first generation shifts to heaven and unites with God, so Shraddha offerings are not given. Thus, only the three generations in Pitriloka are given Shraddha rites, in which Yama plays a significant role. According to the sacred Hindu epics, at the beginning of Pitru Paksha, the sun enters the zodiac sign of Virgo (Kanya). Coinciding with this moment, it is believed that the spirits leave Pitriloka and reside in their descendants' homes for a month until the sun enters the next zodiac—Scorpio (Vrischika)—and there is a full moon. Hindus are expected to propitiate the ancestors in the first half, during the dark fortnight.

 

When the legendary donor Karna died in the epic Mahabharata war, his soul transcended to heaven, where he was offered gold and jewels as food. However, Karna needed real food to eat and asked Indra, the lord of heaven, the reason for serving gold as food. Indra told Karna that he had donated gold all his life, but had never donated food to his ancestors in Shraddha. Karna said that since he was unaware of his ancestors, he never donated anything in their memory. To make amends, Karna was permitted to return to earth for a 15–day period, so that he could perform Shraddha and donate food and water in their memory. This period is now known as Pitru Paksha In some legends, Yama replaces Indra.

 

Significance

The performance of Shraddha by a son during Pitru Paksha is considered compulsory by Hindus, to ensure that the soul of the ancestor goes to heaven. In this context, the scripture Garuda Purana says, "there is no salvation for a man without a son". The scriptures preach that a householder should propitiate ancestors (Pitris), along with the gods (devas), elements (bhutas) and guests. The scripture Markandeya Purana says that if the ancestors are content with the shraddhas, they will bestow health, wealth, knowledge and longevity, and ultimately heaven and salvation (moksha) upon the performer.

 

The performance of Sarvapitri amavasya rites can also compensate a forgotten or neglected annual Shraddha ceremony, which should ideally coincide with the death anniversary of the deceased. According to Sharma, the ceremony is central to the concept of lineages. Shraddha involves oblations to three preceding generations—by reciting their names—as well as to the lineage ancestor (gotra). A person thus gets to know the names of six generations (three preceding generation, his own and two succeeding generations—his sons and grandsons) in his life, reaffirming lineage ties. Anthropologist Usha Menon of Drexel University presents a similar idea—that Pitru Paksha emphasises the fact that the ancestors and the current generation and their next unborn generation are connected by blood ties. The current generation repays their debt to the ancestors in the Pitru Paksha. This debt is considered of utmost importance along with a person's debt to his gurus and his parents.

 

Rules of Shraddha

When and where

The shraddha is performed on the specific lunar day during the Pitru Paksha, when the ancestor—usually a parent or paternal grandparent—died. There are exceptions to the lunar day rule; special days are allotted for people who died in a particular manner or had a certain status in life. Chautha Bharani and Bharani Panchami, the fourth and fifth lunar day respectively, are allocated for people deceased in the past year. Avidhava navami ("Unwidowed ninth"), the ninth lunar day, is for married women who died before their husband. Widowers invite Brahmin women as guests for their wife's shraddha. The twelfth lunar day is for children and ascetics who had renounced the worldly pleasures. The fourteenth day is known as Ghata chaturdashi or Ghayala chaturdashi, and is reserved for those people killed by arms, in war or suffered a violent death.

 

Sarvapitri amavasya (all ancestors' new moon day) is intended for all ancestors, irrespective of the lunar day they died. It is the most important day of the Pitru Paksha. Those who have forgotten to perform shraddha can do so on this day. A shraddha ritual performed on this day is considered as fruitful as one conducted in the holy city of Gaya, which is seen as a special place to perform the rite, and hosts a fair during the Pitru Paksha period.

 

In Bengal, Mahalaya (Bengali: মহালয়া) marks the beginning of Durga Puja festivities. Mahalaya is the day when the goddess Durga is believed to have descended to Earth. Bengali people traditionally wake up early in the morning on Mahalaya to recite hymns from the Devi Mahatmya (Chandi) scripture. Offerings to the ancestors are made in homes and at puja mandaps (temporary shrines).

 

Matamaha ("Mother's father") or Dauhitra ("Daughter's son") also marks the first day of the month of Ashvin and beginning of the bright fortnight. It is assigned for the grandson of the deceased maternal grandfather.

 

The ritual is also held on the death anniversary of the ancestor. The shraddha is performed only at noon, usually on the bank of a river or lake or at one's own house. Families may also make a pilgrimage to places like Varanasi and Gaya to perform Shraddha. An annual Pitru Paksha Mela at Gaya on the banks of River Falgu. Pilgrims from all corners of the country visit Gaya for offering Pinda to their Ancestors. According to Bihar Tourism Department estimates, some 5,00,000 to 75,00,000 pilgrims arrive in the Gaya city during the Pitru Paksha Mela every year.

 

Who and for whom

It is essential that Shraddha be performed by the son—usually the eldest—or male relative of the paternal branch of the family, limited to the preceding three generations. However, on Sarvapitri amavasya or matamaha, the daughter's son can offer Shraddha for the maternal side of his family if a male heir is absent in his mother's family. Some castes only perform the shraddha for one generation. Prior to performing the rite, the male should have experienced a sacred thread ceremony. Since the ceremony is considered inauspicious due to its association with death, the royal family of Kutch, the king or heirs of the throne are prohibited from conducting Shraddha.

 

Food

The food offerings made to the ancestors are usually cooked in silver or copper vessels and typically placed on a banana leaf or cups made of dried leaves. The food must include Kheer (a type of sweet rice and milk), lapsi (a sweet porridge made of wheat grains), rice, dal (lentils), the vegetable of spring bean (guar) and a yellow gourd (pumpkin).

 

Rites of Shraddha

The male who performs the shraddha should take a purifying bath beforehand and is expected to wear a dhoti. He wears a ring of darbha grass. Then the ancestors are invoked to reside in the ring. The shraddha is usually performed bare-chested, as the position of the sacred thread worn by him needs to be changed multiple times during the ceremony. The shraddha involves pinda dana, which is an offering to the ancestors of pindas (cooked rice and barley flour balls mixed with ghee and black sesame seeds), accompanying the release of water from the hand. It is followed by the worship of Vishnu (in form of the darbha grass, a gold image, or Shaligram stone) and Yama. The food offering is then made, cooked especially for the ceremony on the roof. The offering is considered to be accepted if a crow arrives and devours the food; the bird is believed to be a messenger from Yama or the spirit of the ancestors. A cow and a dog are also fed, and Brahmin priests are also offered food. Once the ancestors (crow) and Brahmins have eaten, the family members can begin lunch.

 

Other practices

Some families also conduct ritual recitals of scriptures such the Bhagavata Purana and the Bhagavad Gita. Others may be charitable and present gifts to the priests or pay them to recite prayers for the ancestor's well-being.