Pitru Paksha 2027 in USA: Sep 16 – Sep 29 — Puja Time by City

Related days (New York)

Other cities may differ by a day; open the festival's own page for city-wise dates.

How the Pitru Paksha (Shraddha) date is decided

Pitru Paksha runs from the Purnima/Pratipada of Bhadrapada-Ashwina Krishna to Amavasya. Sarva Pitru Amavasya is the day on which Amavasya covers more of the afternoon (Aparahna, the time for Shraddha); Shraddha is done in Kutup Muhurat.

Significance

The doctrine of debts: three debts rest on a person — to the gods, the sages and the ancestors; the ancestral debt is repaid through the line of descendants and shraddha; the Garuda/Markandeya Purana and Manusmriti prescribe the shraddha — 'from the satisfaction of the ancestors come long life, children, wealth, learning, heaven'; not performing the shraddha is believed to bring pitru dosha (combinations of the Sun with Rahu/Ketu/Saturn in the chart) — obstacles to children, illness, discord; Pitru Paksha is the best period for its pacification.

The time of the shraddha: the afternoon (12-1:30 — the Kutup and Rauhina muhurats, Aparahna above) is best; the direction south (the ancestors' direction), the sacred thread on the right shoulder (apasavya), sesame-kusha-water, balls of rice-barley-sesame; the crow is Yama's messenger, the cow, dog, ant and the gods — the panch-bali (five morsels) is part of the shraddha; feeding a Brahmin/the daughter and son-in-law/the nephew = feeding the ancestors.

Gaya (Bihar) — pind-daan at Vishnupad is the greatest pilgrimage of Pitru Paksha (the Pitrupaksha Mela, 17 days), then Haridwar (Narayani Shila), Prayag, Kashi (Pishach Mochan), Siddhpur (Gujarat — the Matru Gaya), Badrinath (Brahma Kapal), Rameswaram, Nashik-Trimbak (Panchavati), Pushkar, Lohargal; in Bengal the Mahalaya Amavasya is 'Mahalaya' — the arrival of Durga (the radio 'Mahishasura Mardini'), tarpan on the Ganga ghats.

Puja vidhi (brief)

1. The start of the paksha (Purnima/Pratipada): cleaning the house, the ancestors' picture/place in the south — water, lamp, flowers, Tulsi; sankalp — 'the shraddha and tarpan of the ancestors of (name) gotra in this Pitru Paksha'; tarpan every morning through the paksha (if possible) — water, sesame and kusha in a copper pot, facing south, water released over the thumb side (the pitru tirtha), '(name) gotra (ancestor's name) tripyatam' three times.
2. The tithi shraddha (on the ancestor's death tithi): bathe in the morning, the men of the house (son/grandson — if none, the daughter/wife may perform it, FAQ below) facing south; invoking the ancestors — a kusha seat, sesame-water-barley; padya and arghya to the Brahmin (or the ancestors' symbol); pind-daan — 3 (or 1) balls of cooked rice-barley-sesame-ghee-honey — father, grandfather, great-grandfather; a reading of the Pitru Sukta/Gajendra Moksha/Gita chapter 7.
3. Panch-bali (five morsels): five morsels of the shraddha meal on leaves — the cow (go-bali), the dog (shwan), the crow (kaka — place it on the roof/in the open, if the crow comes the ancestors are satisfied), the ant (pipilika — flour and sugar), the gods (Agni — a share of ghee and food); these first, then the Brahmin, then the family.
4. Feeding Brahmins: the shraddha meal (kheer-poori-sabzi-the ancestor's favourite) for 1-3 Brahmins (or the daughter and son-in-law/nephew/sister — equal to the ancestors), dakshina, the gift of clothes-umbrella-footwear-grain; silence while serving, no fanning (some customs), the farewell with sesame-water after the meal — 'Pitarah priyantam'.
5. Women: the shraddha meal cooked after bathing, in silence, without tasting (the ancestors first); no garlic-onion-masoor-brinjal; Tulsi and banana leaves; on the death tithi of the mother-in-law/mother/grandmother or on Matri Navami, a meal and suhag items for a married Brahmin woman/the daughter.
6. Sarva Pitru Amavasya (Mahalaya): the shraddha and tarpan for those whose tithi is unknown, all ancestors, married daughters, gurus, friends, those who died untimely — for all; pind-daan in the afternoon, panch-bali, feeding Brahmins, charity (grain-clothes-umbrella-footwear-cow); a lamp in the south in the evening — the farewell of the ancestors 'punaragamanaya'; from Pratipada the next day the Navratri — the ghatasthapana.
7. Pacifying pitru dosha: water, milk and sesame at a peepal on the Amavasya, 'Om Pitribhyah Namah' 108 times, Gita 7/the Pitru Sukta, daily morsels for the cow, dog and crow, feeding the poor; a vow of the Gaya shraddha (as means allow); whether or not the chart has the dosha — the shraddha of Pitru Paksha is for everyone.
8. Through the paksha: no weddings, engagements, housewarming or new purchases (jewellery-vehicle-house — folk custom; in the scriptures only auspicious sanskaras are forbidden); no cutting hair, nails or beard (men — many homes), celibacy, sattvic food, remembrance of the ancestors, charity.

Frequently asked questions

Is Pitru Paksha (Shraddha) 2027 on the same day in USA and India?

Yes — Wednesday, September 29, 2027.

What is the puja time for Pitru Paksha (Shraddha) 2027 in New York?

Kutup Muhurat (Shraddha): 12:22 PM to 1:10 PM (EDT). Other cities are in the table above.

Which time zone are these timings in?

Each row is in that city's own local time with daylight saving applied (Eastern Time (EST/EDT) for New York).

On which tithi to perform the shraddha if the death tithi is unknown?

On Sarva Pitru Amavasya (Mahalaya) — for all ancestors, unknown tithis, married daughters, untimely deaths (accidents — Chaturdashi too), gurus, friends, everyone; for married women on Matri Navami too; if the tithi is known, on that day and the sarva shraddha on the Amavasya as well.

Can a woman/daughter perform the shraddha?

Yes — if there is no son, the wife, daughter, granddaughter, daughter-in-law, brother or nephew may perform it (the Dharma Sindhu/Garuda Purana for those without sons); Sita performed Dasharatha's pind-daan at Gaya; modern priests conduct pind-daan for daughters at Gaya; faith is what matters, not gender.

Why no new purchases/auspicious work in Pitru Paksha?

In the scriptures only auspicious sanskaras (weddings-mundan-sacred thread-housewarming) are forbidden — because this is the ancestors' time, not one of celebration; the ban on new purchases (jewellery-vehicle-house) is folk custom — some priests say the ancestors give blessings and a purchase is auspicious; follow your household custom; everything opens from the Navratri.

What if the crow does not come?

The crow is Yama's messenger, its taking of the morsel satisfies the ancestors — folk belief; if it does not come, place the morsel on the roof/in the open and wait, 'Kakaya Namah' — then give it to the cow/dog; in the scriptures the spirit of the panch-bali is 'food for all beings' — if no crow, a sparrow/any bird; the ancestors are not displeased, faith is what is seen.

Daily panchang in USA

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