Pitru Paksha Begins

Pitru Paksha 2026: key dates and times

• Begins: Sunday, 27 September 2026 (Pratipada Shraddha)

• Ends (Sarva Pitru Amavasya): Saturday, 10 October 2026

• Kutup muhurat: 11:45 AM to 12:35 PM (approx.)

• Rohina muhurat: 12:35 PM to 01:25 PM (approx.)

• Aparahna kaal: 01:25 PM to 03:40 PM (approx.)

What the fortnight is for

Hindu tradition holds three debts, and one of them is owed to those who came before. Pitru Paksha is when that debt is paid. The ancestors of the last three generations are believed to come close during these sixteen days, and what the family offers reaches them. The mood is not festive. There is no decoration and no celebration, only a steady daily attention that most families fit around ordinary work.

Shraddha and tarpan

The central rite is shraddha, performed in the afternoon aparahna period rather than the morning. Water mixed with black sesame is offered through kusha grass, and pind, small balls of rice and barley flour, are made and offered. Food cooked for the day is served to a Brahmin, and portions are set aside for a crow, a cow and a dog before the household eats. The crow in particular is treated as the carrier of the offering. Where a formal shraddha is not possible, many families simply offer tarpan with water and give food or cloth in daan.

Finding your day

The day within the fortnight is chosen by the tithi on which the person died, not by the date on the calendar. A parent who passed on a Panchami is remembered on Panchami Shraddha. Some tithis carry their own rule: Chaturthi and Panchami are used for those who passed in the past year, Navami is Matru Navami for mothers and other women of the family, and those who died an untimely death are remembered on Chaturdashi. If the tithi is not known, or if the right day was missed, the offering is made on Sarva Pitru Amavasya, which covers every ancestor.

What people avoid

Many households hold back from starting anything new during these sixteen days: no weddings, no griha pravesh, no new vehicle or property, and no beginning of a new venture. Some also avoid non vegetarian food, onion and garlic for the fortnight. The restraint is not treated as inauspiciousness so much as a matter of attention being given elsewhere.

Choosing the right time

Shraddha is performed in aparahna, and within it the Kutup and Rohina muhurats are held to be the most suitable. Both are short windows and both shift with your city. Check the muhurat for your city and the tithi falling on each day of the fortnight in the Panchang above, or in the Kaalo app.