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Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Mahalaya Paksha/ Pitru Paksha 2015

Pitr Paksha (Mahaalaya Pakshaa ) is about to begin from September 28, 2015 and is to be observed until October 12, 2015 (October 12, 2015 is Mahalaya Amavasya).

It is a powerful period for propitiation of manes(ancestors). Pitrus are said to Grace the households of their descendants with Divine Permission from the other Planes of Existence and are waiting to Bless any descendant who is willing to Honour them in whatever little way they can.

Austerities during Pitr Paksha (applicable to those who have lost atleast one parent) include:

1) Not eating non-veg (in case of non-vegetarians).

2) Not eating onion, garlic, outside food, processed foods,drumstick, etc (for pure vegetarians).

3) If possible avoiding shaving for the entire fortnight till Mahalaya Amavasai; obviously it may not be possible for everyone due to current secular life restrictions (like office policy requiring an executive placed in a cutting-edge responsibility to be clean shaved). Even in these cases, shaving should be avoided at least on the thithis of one's ancestors (father/ mother).

4) Performing obsequies (shradh) on the thithi of the ancestor's death to the extent possible or at least offering "anna dhaanam"(offering food) to poor persons/ priests as per one's convenience.(On this day, you should not shave as already stated)

5) Abstaining from carnal intercourse with members of opposite gender during the fortnight as a mark of respect to Pitrs.

6) Doing recitals like Garuda Puraanam (depicting passage of asoul), Nachiketa story from Upanishads (where Yama Gitaa is there -it contains Lord Yamaa's elucidation of the journey of a soul  which was first revealed to the devoted Nachiketaa), Pitru sthothra and Gangaa Avatarana chapter from Shrimad Vaalmiiki Raamaayan. These recitals are stated to grant satisfaction of Pitrs and thereby ensure their blessings upon us. In fact these recitals can be done even by those who have parents alive! (The other rituals like tarpanam should not be observed by those who have parents living). These are auspicious and do not come under the category of shraardha - but at the same time have the potency to give peace and happiness to the souls of ancestors of one's dynasty when they are recited. Those who cannot recite them personally may organize such recitals in honour of their ancestors with the help of vedic/ puranic experts.

Some important days during the pitru paksha
The following are auspicious days to perform shraardha to pitrus - irrespective of the thithi of their demise.
Those who cannot observe the ritual procedures/ restrictions outlined above through the pitru paksha may at least observe the ritual guidelines on these auspicious days in honour of their pitrus.

1) Mahaa Bharani - This falls on September 30, 2015.

2) Madhyaashtami - This is to be observed on October 5, 2015 throughout the world.

3) Mahaalaya Amaavasya - This should be observed on October 12, 2015 throughout the world.

Some controversial issues regarding the observance of pitru paksha rituals/ shraardham and dharma shastraic clarification for the same

1) There are many persons who feel that Mahaalaya paksha rituals need not be done in honour of step mother (called Sapatnii maataa - by shaastraas); doing it for just one's mother and father is enough. There are some who feel that only the eldest son of the second wife of one's father needs to do the shraardha if the first wife of the father died without issues.

Clarification: Though the eldest son is the first Adhikaari for rituals, when property has been divided among the brothers or when they have started living apart from each other as separate families, shraardha and other pitru rituals need to be done by each brother individually. The same holds true for honoring the Sapatnii maataa (Step mother who has died without issues also). Just think....will that Honourable Mother have taken care of just the eldest son and left the other sons in the lurch if she had been alive and the biological mother had been dead? Please use this logic for your clarity in this regard. Just as the step-mother cannot ignore the other children (nor should she!), the children also should not be partial towards performing rituals in Her Honour for Her Soul - especially if she had died without issues. This applies more sternly in cases where the eldest brother of the family is not alive. Unfortunately many families do this mistake of leaving the poor step-mother (the first wife of one's father who died without issues) after the eldest brother is dead. As long as at least one brother is alive, the sapatnii maataa should be honoured during pitru paksha on the day when you do the shraardha of your father (you can invoke one Brahman priest to represent the step-mother's lineage just as you do for your own mother's lineage). Please note that this guideline does not apply in cases where the other woman has voluntarily left one's father (say divorce), or has been indicted by a dharma parishad for undesirable behaviour and hence denied karma benefits in accordance with dharma shastraic principles after giving ample opportunity to exonerate herself. In cases where the father has done an injustice to another woman (who is no more) and has married one's mother, the son who performs rituals in honour of that wronged woman (father's first wife - who is deemed one's saptnii maataa) redeems himself from that dosha. A righteous son should try to do what he can to set right the wrongs done by his deceased parents - as and when he comes to know of that possibility. Though each person is answerable to his/ her own karma and sins, family doshas do arise out of adharmic activities of one's ancestors and these doshas do affect the family for many generations to come (usually seen as Stree saapa in the horoscope of many members of a family). Such doshas are cleared when that wronged soul is honoured appropriately in consultation with dharma shastraic experts in this regard.

2) Some think that if the annual shraardh is done properly, Mahaalaya paksha (pitru paksha) shraardha/ tarpanam need not be done!

Clarification: If you get double-increment will you say "I already got one; so please ignore me for this increment!" No one does that. Yet, when it comes to accumulating spiritual merit, we often tend to say "I have done that and so I need not do this." This attitude of excusing ourserlves from dharmic duties should be overcome consciously. Rather, we should think that the Mahaalaya paksha is a God -Given opportunity for us to honour our pitrs yet again. In fact, Mahaayalaya Paksha shraardh is mandatory, and there is no way out of it, and the benefits accruing out of Mahaalaya paksha shraardha/ tarpanam are actually more than what can accrue out of annual shraardha. The pitru paksha observance gladens our pitrus and we should not miss it for any reason. If we are unable to offer the shraardha/ tarpan on the thithi of our father, we should at least do it on the other special days like Mahaa Bharani, Madhyaashtami, or Mahaalaya Amaavasya (any one of these days). We should not miss it giving any excuse - because no such excuse exists!

3) There are some who think that if Gaya Shraardha has been done, there is no need for Mahaalaya paksha shraardha/ tarpanam.

Clarification: Gaya Shraardha is definitely a wonderful ritual for satisfaction of pitrs. But, having done that is no excuse for exempting oneself from Mahaalaya paksha tarpanam/ shraardha and annual shraardha. These should be continued as long as one is alive (or at least till one is healthy enough to carry on the rituals). Only those who are bed-ridden are exempt this due to obvious reasons! It is a sin to skip these rituals in mistaken sense of having attained a level where these are not necessary - no human being living an ordinary life is exempt these karmas. Even great rishis who were highly spiritually evolved and avatars like Shri Raama, Shri Krishna, have observed these, and obviously we are not above all of them in our spiritual standing! Only sanyaasins are exempt these because they don't have karmaa adhikaara (ritual right to perform a karma). Everyone else who has karmaadhikaara (due to death of one's parents) should observe this - even if they have done the Gaya Shraardha and Akshaya vata pinda daan.

4) Only those who have lost their parents can do any ritual to satisfy pitru devatas..

Clarification:  Shraardhas in Honour of pitrus and tarpanam in their Honour are the only activities that are restricted by the above taboo.

Activities like offering greens to cows in memory of deceased ancestors of the family, recital of Raamaayana chapter to ensure peace to the soul of deceased ancestors,  performing annadhaanam (donation of food to needy) in honour of deceased ancestors, and recital/ arranging recital of Pitru sthothra are austerities that anyone can do in honour of pitrus. In fact, if one's father or other main kartas are not enthusiastic in performing pitru related rituals and there is consequent pitru saapa indicated in charts, descendants of such families, if they are believers must take measures to please pitrus by their own austerities or by arranging suitable recitals for peace of their ancestors.


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I hope these clarifications help our members to get this matter in the right perspective.



Those who want to offer special recitals for pitru trupti (satisfaction of deceased ancestors) might get in touch with me through my email-id.

The suggested offerings are as below:

Ganga Avatarana sarga recital and Pithru sthothra recital on one day : US$25 (US Dollars twenty five only).

For the above recitals on all the days of the pitru paksha : US$300 (US Dollars three hundred only).
May our members observe these dharmic guidelines in connection with Mahaalaya paksha (Pitr paksha) and become recipients of the Grace of pitrus - our Benevolent Ancestors who have the capacity to shield us from the dangers of existence and improve our luck with their Blessings.

Blessed be.
Pandit R DAKSHINAMOORTHI.

dakshinastrologer@yahoo.co.in
www.kasamba.com/psychic/pandit-dakshinamoorthi

8 comments:

Unknown said...

namaste guruji
sir i have few doubts,some astrologer predicted that my husband has pitrudosham and has been asked to do tila homam ,but we cant do it directly as his parents are alive.Problem is even though my in laws are orthodox (perform rudram and chamakam everyday)they dont believe in horoscope,they do the shradham with all dues(to their parents).
even my husband doesnt believe in horoscope bcoz of my complusion he does it.The astrologer said that if the remedies are not done the future generation(our kids)will suffer.
My father is no more,i follow the pitru paksha and offer food,thamboolams to sumangali on fridays(ashadam fridays as his grandmother died as a sumangali )and on navratris,even to some girls.whenever possible offer dhothis to pandits and offer fruits to cow.

sir what should i do to please the ancestors and relieve our generations of pitrudosham.plz need your advice.
thanks in advance
lakshmi

Pandit R. DAKSHINA MOORTHI said...

If the Shradham is done perfectly, as you say, there is no scope for pitru dosha in the family unless one of the following conditions apply to your situation:

a) There has been some injustice while sharing the ancestral property which caused heart-burn to rightful claimants (jealousy of others who have no right or claim to the property won't cause dosha - but if a rightful claimant has been denied his/ her share by citing some excuse, pitrus DON'T accept that shraddha done by a person who meted that injustice; in such instances, the shradha becomes void and pitru dosha follows that branch of the family).

b) The ancestors themselves had committed some sin the karma of which has potential to follow generations succeeding them.

If these conditions don't exist, you must not worry unduly about "pitru dosham."

If you really believe shraddham is being done the right way, have no worries; there is likely to be no pitru saapa/ dosha. And even if the pitru dosha is seen in the natal chart of your husband, it possibly has been already controlled by the shraddhas done regularly - and no further remedy is needed.

There is no harm in doing Tila homam at Rameshwaram even if there is no pitru dosha. It is good for the whole family. So, since you say your in-laws believe in rituals, you can gently suggest performance of Tila homam as mark of respect to all ancestors (without saying that some astrologer asked them to do it from your husband's chart!).

On a related note, it is really a joke to me when people say "we believe in shastras but not on astrology" - because astrology is one of the 6 limbs of vedic studies, and saints of the calibere of His Holiness Chandrasekara saraswathi, His Holiness Chandrasekara Bharati, and Shri Raghavendra have shown examples in their life-time of how relevant astrology is to human existence!

It may be a news to some readers here that a Pontiff to the exalted Aamnaaya mutts is chosen only after careful study of many horoscopes to shortlist the best possible person to hold the mantle and lead the Faithful as their Religious Preceptor (reading on biographies of Ugra Narasimha Bharati, His Holiness Chandrasekara Bharati, etc. will give evidence to this fact).





Blessed be.
Pandit R DAKSHINA MOORTHI.

Unknown said...

hi sir, me too having pitur dosha in my horoscope , we plan to do tila homam but my father still alive not living together , can we do homan along with my elder brother...

Pandit R. DAKSHINA MOORTHI said...

Thila homam cannot be done if both parents are alive.

Unknown said...

thanks sir ,
then guide us how to come out of pitru dosha in horoscope , some one told doing navagraha homam it will clean the dosha ,is it true can i do this..
regards
gskumar

Pandit R. DAKSHINA MOORTHI said...

Dear Shri. Kumar:

Though navagraha homam can be generally good for overall welfare of family and reduction of doshas in life, IF the pitru dosha is due to specific instances/ events in the family, navagraha homam will not clean it by itself.

A thorough analysis of your chart and the charts of important members of your family might be needed to see what can be done - when Tila homam is ruled out due to the fact father is alive.

One thing - from your message I understand that your father is not in good terms with you all - if that is the truth - that itself is a manifestation of pitru dosha (and possibly putra dosha in his chart!). So, unless there are other serious obstacles in your life that you believe are due to pitru dosha, I would suggest to just leave things here....after death of your father - do the karmas properly (even if he was not in good terms during his life time), and let Universe clear those pitru dosha.

The other general remedies for pitru trupti I have already detailed here in this write-up. so, read this carefully (including some general queries and answers on this I have written as a part of this write-up in full), and find your answer (I hate it if people go on tangents leaving the original message undigested). Your answer is already in this write-up - regarding what you can do...

Blessed be.
Pandit R DAKSHINA MOORTHI.

Unknown said...

Dear sir

Thanks for your kind information , which is highly useful for me & others ..

As per your words , we consider it and later of doing this...

we required your mail id which is useful for us..

regards
Gskumar

Pandit R. DAKSHINA MOORTHI said...

Dear Shri. GS Kumar:

You may get in touch with me for guidance or spiritual chants request (like for instance - in your case - recital of Ramayanam chapters for removal of pitru dosha during Mahalaya Paksha by mailing me at dakshinastrologer@rediffmail.com (or dakshinastrologer@gmail.com, dakshinastrologer@yahoo.co.in)

Please note that while I write the blog as a service to people who wish to observe important spiritual dates/ occasions, individual queries through email may be chargeable - especially for astrological queries and for queries on doshas, etc. which require individual analysis.

Best regards,

Blessed be.
Pandit R DAKSHINA MOORTHI.

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