श्राद्ध
Shradh
The word comes from shraddha, faith. Shradh is the offering a family makes, with faith, to its departed elders: water with black sesame (tarpan), food, and prayers led by a purohit.
- Believed to bring peace and nourishment to the pitrs
- Invites pitru ashirwad, the blessings of ancestors, for the family
- Performed on the tithi of a loved one, on Amavasya, and above all in Pitru Paksha