Importance of shraddha (pitru paksha)

In India, the period of 15 days commencing from 9th September  to 24th september, this year ,  is commonly called pitru paksha. In this period it is desirable to perform 'shraddha'.

 The word ‘pitru' loosely means dead ancestors and relatives. Paksh is one moon cycle of 15days. Hence pitru paksh means the fortnight that belongs to our relatives and ancestors who are physically not present with us. It is the period in which we should remember and thank our departed ancestors and relatives.

 Let us further understand shraddha in form of questions and answers:

Q1  What is the logic behind shraddha?

 Ans . There are many reasons for performing shradha but the primary reason is based on Hindu philosophy. According to Hindu philosophy , the soul never dies . It is immortal and only changes forms. It will either take rebirth or obtain Niravan. The performance of shraddha rites helps the soul to move forward in its spiritual quest. It is spiritual nourishment for the hungry souls of our ancestors.

 Q2   How to perform shraddha ?

Ans. There are many shradhha rites which the Brahmins can perform. But the most important ingredient is your complete faith and belief in this process. It is desirable to make donations of food and clothes in the name of your ancestors.

 Q3   Which other pujas can be performed in this period?

 Ans: The important pujas in this period are Narayanbali for people who have died suddenly or in accidents or whose families are cursed. Nagbali can be performed if one has recurring snake dreams or one has accidently killed a snake.

Q4   What if you do not know when your ancestor has died ?

Ans : If you do not have the exact date of yours death , then you can perform shradha on 24th september 2014 , which is also called SarvPitri Amavsya. This will surely help you receive blessings from your departed ones.

Q5. Does performing shraddha really work?

Ans : An often asked question is that does this really work? Do dead people come and accept our food? How do we know it has worked?

Many people have asked me that what if the brahmin has just fooled us ?

Well my answer to all these questions is two fold-

A. Faith

You must have some faith in yourselves and the scriptures that this does work. Our ancestors really do wait for our shraddha and do appreciate it . Our loved ones do look out for us and bless us all the time.

In this period we share our gratitude with them and thank them for their blessings. The mechanics maybe different but the objective is the same - TO CONNECT WITH OUR DEPARTED AND THANK THEM.

Different countries and cultures follow the same ritual in different ways.

B. Experience

Many people and clients who regularly perform shraddha have reported very intense experiences like-

1. Seeing the departed soul in front of your eyes.
2. Feeling the touch of the loved one.
3. Actually feeding the departed soul with one's own hand
4. Crying spontaneously on performing shraddha


It is fare to say that we must pay our respect and gratitude to our elders in this pious period.