Pitru Paksha (Shraddha Paksha)

A fortnight set aside for the ancestors — not a festival but a debt being paid, with water, sesame and a cooked meal offered on the tithi on which each person died.

Hindu tradition speaks of three debts, and pitru rina — the debt to those who came before — is one of them. Pitru Paksha places that debt on the calendar so it is not left to feeling. It falls just before Navaratri: the ancestors are settled first, then the year turns to the Goddess. Auspicious beginnings — weddings, house entry, new purchases — are avoided in this fortnight, not because it is inauspicious in itself, but because attention belongs elsewhere.

• Anyone who wishes to honour Pitrs, Yama, Vishnu may observe it; there is no requirement of initiation or priesthood for the home version.
• Families often keep the fast together, while children, elders, pregnant or unwell people take a lighter form — fruit, milk, or simply the puja without fasting.
• In many families the observance passes down through the women of the house or through a family tradition tied to Pitrs, Yama, Vishnu; follow your family's custom where it differs from the general description here.

1. 1Bathe, wear clean clothes and clear a small space for the deity.
2. 2Light a lamp and an incense stick, and offer water, flowers and a simple sweet from the samagri list below.
3. 3Say Pitrs, Yama, Vishnu's name or the mantra on this page eleven times, with your intention for the day.
4. 4Read the short katha on this page aloud, offer the bhog, and share the prasad.
5. 5Keep the day's food rule as far as your health allows, and end it gently the next morning.

The person performing shraddha usually takes one satvik meal a day, without onion, garlic, masoor dal or non-vegetarian food, and eats only after the offering and the feeding of guests are finished. Many households keep the whole fortnight free of meat, alcohol and celebration. Those unable to fast may keep the dietary restraint alone.

• ×Fixing the puja by the clock instead of the tithi. Bhadrapada Purnima to Ashvina Amavasya (sixteen tithis) can begin or end part-way through the day in your city, so check your Panchang the evening before.
• ×Gathering samagri on the morning itself. Items such as kusha grass, black sesame (til) and barley for the tarpana water and a copper or kansa vessel and a plate kept only for shraddha are often unavailable at the last minute.
• ×Breaking the fast heavily or at the wrong moment. Parana is meant to be gentle — water, fruit or prasad first — and is kept within the window your tradition follows.
• ×Taking one region's practice as the only correct one. In Bengal the fortnight ends with Mahalaya, when Devi is invoked at dawn and Durga Puja begins.
• ×Rushing the steps without knowing why each one is done, which makes the observance hard to repeat next year.

In Bengal the fortnight ends with Mahalaya, when Devi is invoked at dawn and Durga Puja begins. Gaya, Prayagraj, Nashik, Pushkar, Badrinath's Brahma Kapal and Rameshwaram are the classical places for pinda dana. Sarva Pitru Amavasya (Mahalaya Amavasya) serves for anyone whose tithi is unknown or was missed. South Indian practice emphasises tarpana on Amavasya through the year; some communities also perform Mahalaya shraddha for those who died by accident on Chaturdashi. Daughters and sons alike perform shraddha in many families today, and a priest is not required for tarpana done with water and sesame. Three questions come up every year. Can women perform tarpana and shraddha? Yes — the Garuda Purana and later digests allow daughters, wives and daughters-in-law to perform the rites, especially when no son is available; some families still follow the older custom of a male karta, so follow your family's practice where it differs. Can pinda dana be done for someone outside the family? Yes — tradition allows it for friends, teachers and anyone with no one to remember them; the sankalpa simply names that person. And does pinda dana at Gaya end the yearly shraddha? A popular belief says one Gaya shraddha frees the family from annual rites, but most traditions and priests still continue the yearly shraddha at home; treat Gaya as a special additional merit, not a replacement, unless your family priest advises otherwise.

Regional scope

Pan-Indian practice, with regional notes given above

Last reviewed

September 2026

Reviewed by

DharmaPath editorial team, from traditional texts and household practice

Explanations here are written in our own words from traditional sources; timings, muhurta and local custom should be confirmed with your Panchang or family priest.