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| Pitru Paksha | |
|---|---|
 Pitri Paksha rites being performed on the banks of the Banganga Tank in Mumbai, 2007 | |
| Observed by | Hindus |
| Type | Hindu |
| Celebrations | 16 lunar days |
| Observances | Shraddha: paying homage to their ancestors, especially by food offerings |
| Date | Bhadra, Krishna, Prathama, Bhadra, Krishna, Amavasya |
| 2023 date | September 29 – October 14 |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to | Galungan, Veneration of the dead |
Hindu festival dates The Hindu calendar is lunisolar but most festival dates are specified using the lunar portion of the calendar. A lunar day is uniquely identified by three calendar elements: māsa (lunar month), pakṣa (lunar fortnight) and tithi (lunar day). Furthermore, when specifying the masa, one of two traditions are applicable, viz. amānta / pūrṇimānta. If a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa. A lunar year is shorter than a solar year by about eleven days. As a result, most Hindu festivals occur on different days in successive years on the Gregorian calendar. | |
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Pitru Paksha (Sanskrit: पितृ पक्ष, lit. '"fortnight of the paternal ancestors"', IAST: Pitṛ pakṣa), also spelt Pitri Paksha, is a 16-lunar day period in the Hindu calendar when Hindus pay homage to their ancestors (Pitrs), especially through food offerings. The period is also known as Pitri Paksha/Pitr-Paksha, Pitri Pokkho, Sorah Shraddha ("sixteen shraddhas"), Kanagat, Jitiya, Mahalaya, Apara Paksha and akhadpak.[2][3][4]
Pitru Paksha is considered by Hindus to be inauspicious, given the death rite performed during the ceremony, known as Shraddha or Tarpana. In southern and western India, it falls in the second paksha (fortnight) Hindu lunar month of Bhadrapada (September) and follows the fortnight immediately after Ganesh Utsav. It begins on the Pratipada (first day of the fortnight) ending with the no moon day known as Sarvapitri Amavasya, Pitri Amavasya, Peddala Amavasya or Mahalaya Amavasya (simply Mahalaya) Most years, the autumnal equinox falls within this period, i.e. the Sun transitions from the northern to the southern hemisphere during this period. In North India and Nepal, and cultures following the purnimanta calendar or the solar calendar, this period may correspond to the waning fortnight of the luni-solar month Ashvina, instead of Bhadrapada.
- ^ Purnima to Amavasya Shraddha Days
- ^ Sharma, Usha (2008). "Mahalaya". Festivals In Indian Society. Vol. 2. Mittal Publications. pp. 72–73. ISBN 978-81-8324-113-7.
- ^ Underhill, M. M. (2001). The Hindu religious year. Asian Educational Services. pp. 112–116. ISBN 978-81-206-0523-7.
- ^ Vidyarathi, L. P. (1978). The Sacred Complex in Hindu Gaya. Concept Publishing Company. pp. 13, 15, 33, 81, 110.
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