Remembering ancestors: Shraddha, Tarpan and Pind Daan

Why Hindus remember their ancestors

In Hindu thought, no one arrives in the world alone. Your body, your name, your family and often your faith came to you through parents, grandparents and many generations before them. Remembering them is an act of gratitude, and the tradition gives that gratitude a clear form.

The scriptures speak of three debts a person is born with: to the gods (Deva Rina), to the sages and teachers (Rishi Rina), and to the ancestors (Pitru Rina). Rina means debt or obligation. The debt to ancestors is traditionally repaid by living a good life, raising a family with care, and offering water, food and remembrance to the departed at fixed times.

Texts such as the Garuda Purana and the Dharmashastras describe a realm of the forefathers, Pitru Loka (the world of the Pitrus). Many families understand the offerings as nourishment and goodwill sent to that realm. Others understand them mainly as a disciplined way to keep memory, family stories and values alive. Both views are held by sincere practitioners.

The three generations

Shraddha rites traditionally name three generations on the father's side: father, grandfather and great-grandfather. In the ritual language they are linked with the Vasus, the Rudras and the Adityas. The mother's line is honoured in the same way: mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, and also the maternal grandfather and his two forebears. Families often add other relatives, teachers and friends who have passed away. Practices differ, so follow your family's custom or your priest's guidance.

The vocabulary

• Pitru (also Pitr or Pitri) = ancestor, forefather. The plural Pitaras means the whole body of departed forebears.
• Shraddha = a rite performed with faith (shraddha) for the departed. It usually includes a food offering, remembrance, and feeding or giving to others in their name.
• Tarpan (Tarpana) = "satisfying". Offering water, usually with black sesame, to gods, sages and ancestors. It is the simplest and most common rite and can be done at home.
• Pind Daan (Pinda Dana) = offering of pindas, balls of cooked rice or flour mixed with sesame and other items, as part of a fuller Shraddha.
• Pitru Paksha = the fortnight of the ancestors, the best-known season for these rites. See Pitru Paksha.
• Mahalaya = a name for the last day of that fortnight, the Amavasya, and in Bengal also the dawn that opens the Durga festival season.
• Amavasya = the new moon day. Many families offer Tarpan on every Amavasya.
• Gotra = the family lineage traced to a legendary sage. It is named in the rite to identify the family line.
• Kusha (also darbha) = a sacred grass used in nearly all ancestor rites.
• Til = sesame seed. Black sesame is the usual offering for ancestors.
• Sankalpa = the spoken resolve at the start of a rite, stating who is performing it, for whom, and on which day.

Three kinds of observance

1. Tarpan. A short water offering. Many people do it on Amavasya and during Pitru Paksha.
2. Shraddha. A fuller rite with cooked food, often on the death anniversary tithi or on a day in Pitru Paksha.
3. Pind Daan. The offering of pindas, performed within a Shraddha, and especially at holy places such as Gaya.

A person may do all three over the year or only the simplest. A sincere short rite is better than a long one done with worry.

How this site helps

Dates for these rites depend on the Hindu calendar and on your city's sunrise and sunset. This site shows the dates for Pitru Paksha, Amavasya and the other occasions according to your city's local time, so you do not have to convert from an India-based calendar.

Map of the guides

• Pitru Paksha: the fortnight, which day suits which person, and the special days.
• Shraddha days through the year: Amavasya, the death anniversary and other occasions.
• Tarpan vidhi: a step-by-step Tarpan you can do at home.
• Pind Daan vidhi: the offering of pindas and what follows.
• Shraddha in the USA: practical help for apartments, work days and finding a priest.
• Who can perform: sons, daughters, wives, relatives and special cases.
• Frequently asked questions: short answers to common doubts.

For holy places connected with these rites, see Gaya, Prayagraj, Varanasi and Rites for ancestors in the USA and abroad.