Questions tagged [sraddha]
Sraddha (Sanskrit: श्राद्ध) is the ritual that one performs to pay homage to one’s 'ancestors', especially to one’s dead parents.
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Why are crows considered to be a link to our pitris (spirits of ancestors)?
In Devasams (srardham) or annual memorial ritual performed to the deceased, rice is fed to crows. I was told by elders at home that the crows represent our Pitris.
What is the reason behind crows ...
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Do all Non-Hindus remain as Pretas after death?
The Jivatma will remain as a Preta unless Śrāddha is done, but non-Hindus do not perform Śrāddha.
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Can women do Pitru Tarpanam?
Pitrus are our ancestors who have deceased.And "Tarpanam" means "to satiate". Pitru Tarpanam is done to please our deceased ancestors with offerings of black sesame seeds mixed with water.
It can be ...
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What is the story of the origin of Sraadha ritual?
As I asked in this question the story of Karna from Mahabharat is given in many portals for the origin of the ShrAdh ritual but as is apparent from the discussions on it this seems unlikely since the ...
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How do the departed souls get the food given by their siblings?
How do the departed souls get the food given by their siblings?
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Which scripture says that a sannyāsi can liberate 21 generations of ancestors without performing the śrāddha?
As most people know when a Hindu takes up sannyāsa, he no longer performs the daily and other rituals like the śrāddha that normal householders do.
Swami Chandrasekarendra Saraswati in the book Hindu ...
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What do Scriptures say about doing Puja/Archanas in "Mleccha Deshas"?
First of all, i need to know which countries are referred to as "Mleccha Deshas" in Hindu Shastras.
The Vishnu Purana supposedly prohibits performance of Pitru Shraddhas in "mleccha deshas".
Na ...
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Who are Pitru Devatas? Is Pitru Dosha caused due to the Pitru Devatas being unhappy?
Who are Pitru Devatas? Is Pitru Dosha caused due to the Pitru Devatas being unhappy? How many generations of ancestors are counted as Pitru Devatas?
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Does Anushasan Parva, chapter 88 of the Mahabharata, allow cow sacrifice?
In the following video, Dr. Zakir Naik says that Bhishma Pitamaha tells Yudhishtira that sacrificing a cow will satisfy their dead ancestors for a period of 1 year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=...
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How can Karna, the son of a god, be associated with the origin of Pitri Paksh?
I was checking out the legends associated with the Pitri Paksh or Shraadh rituals and it led me to the story of Karna which goes like this:
When the legendary donor Karna died in the epic ...
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Tarpana mantras and their literal meaning word by word
I wanted to understand the tarpana mantras all inclusive after sankalpam ... starting from asking the pitrus to sit on koorcha and giving the manes oblations to asking them to leave and come when ever ...
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What would be the authentic source for Śrāddha vidhi?
As the Wikipedia defines it:
Śrāddha or Shraaddha (Sanskrit: श्राद्ध) is a Sanskrit word which
literally means anything or any act that is performed with all
sincerity and faith (Śraddhā). In ...
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Is Dauhitru (Daughter's son) allowed to be a bhokta at annual Shraddha?
My maatulah (maama, mother's brother) is performing annual Shraddha of my maternal grand father and he invited me to take part in the Shraddha as a bhokta.
Is Dauhitru (Daughter's son) allowed to be a ...
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Why do we offer to 3 generation during Sraddha ceremony?
Why do we offer pinda, tarpanam, food etc to only to 3 generation of ancestors during Sraddha ceremony? Why not for 4 generations or 2 generations? I know before sapindikarna we offer food only to ...
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How is Aryama linked to the Pitrs, and how is his role different from Yama's?
It is said that the Vedic god Aryama, the son of Aditi, is the foremost among the Pitrs or manes. This has also been stated by Lord Vasudeva in the 10th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita:
अनन्तश्चास्मि ना...
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Can son perform a tarpanam to his mother when father is alive
Can the son perform tarpanam and pitru paksha rituals to his dead mother while his father is still alive? Some people say he can perform tarpanam to his mother, grandmother, great grandmother only not ...
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What scriptures say about sraddha (श्राद्ध) during pitru paksha for untimely deaths?
Is sraddha (श्राद्ध) during pitru paksha for untimely deaths such as suicides, accidents prescribed in scriptures? Some random sources say it's not allowed, and few say it should be done on Amavasya. ...
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Pitru Tarpan for childless parents or with children not following Sanatan Dharma
Traditionally, we perform tarpan kriya either daily or yearly for our ancestors so that they either become free from their karma phal or it's effects are reduced. However, with increasing ...
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Why do Hindus believe in doing 'Sraddha ' (annual death anniversary) of ancestors, even though they believe in the concept of rebirth?
'Sraddha' (death anniversary) is performed every year by Hindu. if the departed soul takes rebirth as believed, it is in some physical form . Then how does those rituals reach to ancestors? So some ...
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How to find the lunar day for Pitru Paksha Shraddha?
If we have the date and time of death, how can we find the specific lunar day to perform Pitru Paksha Shraddha?
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What type of foods we must not eat during Amavasya tharpanam?
I've noticed that there are certain foods that we must not eat during Amavasya days.
I've been told that foods like onion and garlic and certain other foods should be avoided.
But some people tell ...
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What is the reason behind opposite rituals during Shraddha and last rites as compared to those for devatas
(Though the question may seem long, actually it is short. Even if one is able to read till the first point of Edit it would be nice)
It is seen that while performing the last rites (antyeshti, ...
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Who should perform shraddha/funeral ceremony of a married women whose husband is still alive
According to shastra (specifically to Brahmin, no offence to others though) who should perform funeral and post death rituals of a married women whose husband in still alive (they call muttaide in ...
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What are the consequences of not doing shraddha for the departed ancestors?
I have heard people say that they can be bad. Are there ways to compensate for missed Shraddhas?
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Shraddha on Ekadashi day
If Shraddha falls on ekadashi day, should it be done on same day or done on dwadashi? What does puranas, smritis say about it? If done on ekadashi, how to feed Brahmana while they are fasting?
Some ...
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Can the bad effects of not performing Shradhha Paksha be avoided through Hari Nama?
If a person for some reasons forgets or is not able to do Shradhha Paksha of his ancestors, but does lots of Namajapa or chants Hari-nama lots of times in his life everyday, does he still get the ill ...
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Why is it advised to avoid foods that are grown under the land on Shraddham days?
I've learnt that certain vegetables are avoided (Onion, Garlic, beetroot etc) on Shraddham/Tharpanam days for 2 reasons:
They are Aphrodisiac in nature.
They are grown under the land.
Can someone ...
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Shraddha/Pinda offering when father is alive
In this answer it is stated that sons can offer pinda when father is alive. Also, here in Skanda Purana it says that Krishna offered Pinda when Vasudeva was with him.
But in practice, normally, ...
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Shraddha Ritual - On Pindadaan and its offering locations
I have heard that Pindadaan is given in Gaya. Why can't "any place" be suitable for Pindadaan? Does Gaya (or Pinda-eligible places) contain any sort of spiritual momentum or subtle spiritual forces, ...
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Significance of death on Ganesh Chathurthi
If one's father expires on the same day as Ganesh Chaturthi, I would like to know if there's a significance attached to one's death on an auspicious day like the Ganesh Chaturthi.
Secondly, as both ...
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Shraddha performance by host (himself)
Whether 'Shraddha' can be performed by the 'yajaman' (host) himself if he is a Brahmin?
The purpose of asking this is now a days it is difficult to get a Brahmin who performs this 'sincerely', ...
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which scripture prescribes offering food to Brahmins in the Shraddha ceremony?
Which scripture prescribes this and is it believed that feeding Brahmins on earth effectively feeds the departed ancestors in Pitr Loka?
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What are the expected rituals to perform during Sorha Sraddha(सोह्र श्राद्ध)?
I am a Nepalese hindu. So, Sorha Sraddha(सोह्र श्राद्ध) started yesterday. It is given a high importance in Nepal, probably also because it comes just before Dashain(Navaratri + vijaya dashami). But a ...
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A couple without a son (in any form) is never freed from the Pitṛ Ṛṇa and becomes a preta?
In this QnA discussion, we have a remedy for couples who lack a son to clear off their "ancestor debt - "
Manu Smriti:
9.127. He who has no son may make his daughter in the following manner ...
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Is there a shrAddha ceremony as per agama? (if any)
We very well know about the shrAddha ceremony in our tradition which is done for the pitr/manes. It is towards their departed souls. Every year it is done during the pitru paksha.
However, apart ...
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Funeral for Varna Sankar वर्ण संकर?
How does a Varna Sankar perform funeral of his parents ?
Will they be stuck in preta yoni ? Can they be given Pind Daan ?
Please give sashstra reference, as far as possible.
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Remedy for Varna Sankar वर्ण संकर?
Gita (1.40 - 1.42) talks about varna shankar, can not perform shraddha/tarpan, hence his ptiris fall to hell along with him.
सङ्करो नरकायैव कुलघ्नानां कुलस्य च |
पतन्ति पितरो ह्येषां लुप्तपिण्डोदकक्रि...
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What is the procedure for Shudras to do tharpanam?
Namaskaram, I tried searching online for the procedures for a shudra to do tharpanam and I wasn't able to find it. Since we do not wear yajnopavitam, what is the procedure to do tharpanam.
Dhanyosmi.
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Is planting a Peepal tree a remedy for "afterlife tarpaṇa" rituals, in case a couple doesn't have a male progeny?
Recently on a dhārmika TV channel, I heard a pundit talk on the importance of the Peepal tree.
What caught my attention was when the pundit proclaimed that -
" Planting a Peepal tree as a ...
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Do scriptures allow men to perform last rites for relatives that are still alive?
According to this news report, a group of Indian men decided to perform last rites for their former wives.
They say taking a dip in the Ganga redeems you of all your sins. But a group of Indian men ...
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Offerings made at Shradda
In Anushasana parva, Bhishma explains about giving our taking offerings Shraddha by Bhrahmachari...
If, having practised the vow of Brahmacharyya for the prescribed period (of twelve years) and ...
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Why do Hindus give the bhoz (party) after someone's death?
I am a Hindu but sometimes I really think what is going on in our religion. Someone lost his family member and gave bhoz (party) to all the relatives and brahmins. Why is this happening in Hindu ...
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Is it true that after offering Gaya Shraddha, the annual Shraddha ceremony need not be done any more?
I recall hearing this from several people.
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Do scriptures prescribe what dues must be paid to the dead?
I believe immediately after death, the Preta (the one that has been sent) has to be guided to heaven with rituals and mantras. Are there similar rules about the shraddha ceremony also?
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How are Shudras supposed to perform shraddha?
Namaskaram. Performing shraddha involves feeding brahmanas. A brahmana who strongly follows acharams will not eat in a shudra's home for obvious reasons. How should a shudra get around this issue?
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What is the purpose of both brahmana bojanam and pinda pradanam in shraddha
I have a curious question on shraddha ceremony we perform, during shraddha we invite brahmins for brahmana bhojanam as per ritual we invoke our pitrus(vasu, rudra and aditya) on body of brahmins and ...
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What happens if a snake comes from the river during Varsi ritual of pitru?
Recently I was doing the ritual of Varsi at Haridhwar on the banks of river Ganga. The Shivalinga was there, and suddenly a snake appeared from the river and we had to go around it in order to ...
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Are there formal refutations of the Charvaka criticism of the Shraddha ceremony?
Their argument is stated as below:
https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/the-sarva-darsana-samgraha/d/doc79745.html
If the Śrāddha produces gratification to beings who are dead,
Then here, too, in ...
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Why is the Virata Parva of the Mahabharata is read during the srAddha ceremony?
In Bengal, I heard that the Virata Parva of the Mahabharata is read aloud during the srAddha ceremony.
I am not aware of whether this is followed in other parts of India though.
What is the ...
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