Prayagraj. The Pinddaan and Tarpan offered with devotion for the satisfaction of the souls of ancestors is called Shraddha. There are many differences regarding the beliefs of when and how the tradition of Shraddha started. The word “Shraddha” is not mentioned in the Vedic texts, but a word “Pitryagya” got expanded which was later linked to ancestors and came to be called Shraddha.
There is no factual evidence of the Shraddha tradition. There are many differences regarding its beliefs. Different descriptions are found about it in the Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads, Ramayana and other religious texts. Pitru Paksha begins from the full moon of the Shukla Paksha of Bhadrapad month and continues till Sarvapitre Amavasya. There is a mention of Pitru Yagya in the Rigveda and Vedic hymns addressed to various gods and goddesses have been sung in praise of many ancestors and death.
There is a Pitru Sukta in the tenth Mandal of the Rigveda in which the ancestors are invoked to provide wealth, prosperity and power to the worshippers (descendants). It can be very logical and possible to infer that in ancient times, the need for a specific name for the work related to ancestors was not felt. When the number of works done in honor of ancestors increased, the word Shraddha originated.
Grammarian Dr. Gayatri Prasad Pandey, who has done Vidyavaridhi (PhD) from Sanskrit, told that according to Valmiki Ramayana and Ramcharit Manas, in Treta Yuga, Shri Ram performed Shraddha of Atri Muni and in Dwapar Yuga, according to a story in the Anushasana Parva of Mahabharata, there is a mention of Shraddha. After that the Shraddha tradition started. This tradition has been going on since ancient times but the “Vishnudharmottar Purana” tells something different, the comparison of which is meaningful and different from others.
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