Sri Deva Sthanam

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The Purakas Rites

Hindu Funeral Rites and Ancestor Worship [1]
Antyesti, Sraddha and Tarpana

3. The Purakas Rites  

As we have noted, the notion of an initial subtle body, known as theativahika-sarira, was introduced during the Puranic period. As soon as the gross corporal body was burned, the soul came to inhabit this subtle body composed of only three elements: heat (tejas), wind (vayu), and space (akasa). This was the ativahika body.[1]

The offering of the puraka rites, which involve the offering of handful size cakes made with boiled rice, sesame, honey, milk, sugar and dried fruits, served the function of step-by-step dissolving the ativahika body and gradually creating a subtle preta body. The puraka rites usually last 10 days. The order in which the ativahika body is dissolved and the preta body is created is as follows: On the first day a cake is offered and the deceased obtains the head of the preta; on the second day a second cake is offered and he obtains his ears, eyes and nose; on the third day a third cake is offered and he obtains his chest and neck; on the fourth day he obtains his stomach and abdomen; on the fifth day he obtains legs and feet; on the sixth day, he obtains his vital organs; on the seventh day he obtains bones, marrow, veins and arteries; on the eighth day he obtains nails and hair; on the ninth day all the remaining limbs and organs along with vitality are developed. On the tenth day, when the final cake is offered, the sensations of hunger and thirst associated with the ativahika body are removed. The ativahika body is finally dissolved and the preta bodied is fully developed.

In an emergency situation if the mourning period could only last one day then all the ten funeral cakes must be offered on that day. In some communities these rites are performed on the odd numbered days, but in all cases a total of ten cakes were to be offered.

The ativahika stage is said to involve great suffering due to heat, cold and wind. It is said that during this time the departed soul remains in the sky as wind without any support (akasa-stho niralambo vayu-bhuto nirvasrayah) The subsequent preta body is said to be less subtle than the ativahika body, but still more subtle than the physical body and therefore invisible to the eyes of this world.

Here is a brief description of how the puraka cakes were offered. After returning from the cremation, the nearest relatives of the deceased prepare the ground for the puraka cakes by creating a small altar and marking it with lines. Then with some stands of sacred grass (kusa) the performer sweeps the ground while naming the deceased along with the family gotra, “May this offering be acceptable to thee.” Making a cake with three handfuls of boiled rice, etc. he next says, “Let this first puraka cake restore your head. May it be acceptable to thee.” He then puts fragrant flowers, betel leaves and similar things on the funeral cake and offers a lamp and a woolen scarf to the deceased while saying, “May this lamp and woolen cloth be acceptable to thee.” He then places an earthen vessel of water and black sesame near the puraka cake and says, “May this vessel of water and sesame be acceptable to thee.”

Afterwards the puraka cakes and other things are thrown into sacred waters. The ceremony is then concluded by wiping the ground and leaving some food for crows and other such animals.

For ten successive days the puraka cakes were to be offered using a varied address each day to restore the different bodily parts.

There are many lengthy rules which prescribe who was allowed to perform these puraka rites and the other sraddhas. In fact, the right to perform thesesraddhas and the rights to inheritance were often inter-related. The general hierarchy, going from eldest to youngest within each group, was as follows: the sons, the grandsons, the great-grandsons, the sons of a daughter, a wife, the brothers, the sons of a brother, the father, the mother, the daughters, the daughter-in-laws, the sisters, the sons of a sister and finally any family relation. If no family members are available then the rites may be performed by anyone of the town or village. In making the decision who will perform the funeral rites the emotional and mental competency of a family member was also an important consideration. At any time one family member could defer his or her rights to the next member.

Sixteen Ekoddista-sraddhas

The period of the ten puraka rites was considered a period of mourning. It was also a time of impurity, which meant that the family members would not travel to temples or other holy places. Nor could any sacred ceremonies take place within the family. Ordinarily this time ended after the tenth day with the final dissolution of the ativahika body and the creation of the preta body.[2] The subsequent preta stage lasted for one year. During this time sixteenekoddista-sraddhas were to be performed to maintain the preta body of the deceased and elevate the departed soul to the status of a pitrs. The last of thesesraddhas was called the sapindi-karana at which time the departed soul finally became a pitr. The timing of these sixteen sraddhas is as follows. The firstsraddha is performed on the eleventh day after death. After that twelvesraddhas are performed in each lunar month on the naksatra anniversary of the death.[3] Two further sraddhas are performed on the six-month anniversary of the death. These are usually performed on the day before the regular sixth month and twelfth month naksatra sraddhas. The final sapindi-karana-sraddhawas performed on the day after the last naksatra sraddha. In this way a total of 16 ekoddista-sraddhas were performed.

A brief description of an ekoddista-sraddha is as follows. A clean area is selected so that the performer can face the southern direction, the realm of Yama. The area is washed with cow dung and a seat made of sacred grass (kusa) is prepared. The performer wears his sacred thread over the right shoulder (pracinavitin) and performs a series of rituals and prayers that offer water, cloth, rice cakes (pinda) and other articles to the deceased. In his left hand the performer holds a vessel containing black sesame seeds and water, and in his right hand a special brush made of sacred grass (kusa). This was called a kurca. He pours water through the kurca and names the deceased person saying (in Sanskrit), “May this ablution be acceptable to thee.” Afterwards he takes a rice cake (pinda) mixed with clarified butter and presents it saying, “May this cake be acceptable to thee.” He serves out the food with the following prayers, “Ancestors, rejoice. Take your respective shares and become strong.” He walks counterclockwise around the consecrated spot and says, “Ancestors be glad, take your respective shares and be strong.” He returns to the same seat and again pours water on the ground over the kurca while reciting, “May this ablution be acceptable to you.” The whole affair concludes with the feeding of invited brahmanas in a feeding ceremony call brahmana-bhojanam.

The process of pouring water and black sesame through kurca is calledtarpana. The food that is mixed into cakes is made of boiled rice mixed with ghee and sesame seeds. These are called pindas and they are similar to thepuraka cakes used in the puraka ceremony.[4]

Sapindi-karana the final Sraddha

The sapindi-karana-sraddha is the last of these sixteen sraddhas that are meant to elevate the departed soul to the rank of a pitr. It is performed in a similar manner to the previous sraddha with the following additions. The performer sets out four vessels with water, sesame and fragrance. Three are for the standard hierarchy of pitrs, the father, the grandfather and the great grandfather, and the fourth is for the recently departed soul. The performer then pours the vessel meant for the recently departed soul into the vessels of the three standardpitrs. Similarly, four cakes of rice (pindas) are prepared and the cake belonging to the recently departed soul is broken up and added to the three cakes belonging to three standard pitrs. After the performance of this rite the pretabeing becomes a pitr and joins the assemblage of fathers in their abode (pitr-loka).

Releasing the bull (Vrsotsarga)

At some point during these sixteen ekoddista-sraddhas a rite involving the release of a bull (vrsotsarga) was also performed. Some commentators suggest that it should be performed on the eleventh day, in other words, during the firstekoddista-sraddhas, and others say that it should be performed on last day during the sapindi-karana-sraddhas. The rite is a remnant of the ancient rite of killing the anustarani animal. If an actual bull was not available then an image made of earth, rice or grass could serve the purpose.

Copyright © Sanskrit Religions Institute 2003.
All rights reserved.

[1] The term ativahika has its origins in the Upanisads where it refers to those who are deployed to carry the dead to the other world (ativahe iha lokat para-loka-prapane niyuktah).

[2] The period of impurity would vary according to caste. Higher castes had generally shorter periods of impurity. Ordinarily the major period of impurity would last until the eleventh day. After that regular temple going would resume, but major auspicious family ceremonies such as weddings may be postponed for a year until the final sapindi-karana had been performed.

[3] There are 27 naksatras in a lunar month. See —— for details.

[4] The word pinda is derived from the Sanskrit root pind which means “to form into a ball, to mass, or to join together.” A pinda is that food which is usually made of rice mashed together with various things such as meat, sesame, ghee, dried fruits, sugar, and other condiments. More often it is just made of plain rice. According to some authorities the size of the rice cake should be as small as can easily enter into the mouth of a child of two years. According to other sources it should be one handful of size. Some sources describe it as the size of a hen’s egg. Usually three pinda are offered, one for the father, one for the grandfather, and one for the great-grandfather.

 

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Introduction

1. Introduction 

The following article is a summary of the history of Hindu beliefs and ritual practices regarding death and the worship of ancestors. It includes examples of the final rites for the disposal of the dead, antyesti, and a discussion of the post-mortem rites of sraddha and tarpana, which form the basis of Hindu ancestor worship.According to Hindu belief there are realms of existence and classes of beings that exist throughout this universe. Some of these beings live in regions above this earth and others in regions below this earth. Some are classified as benefic and others are classified as malefic. Among the class of benefic beings are the pitrs, who include the ancient progenitors of mankind as well as the deceased relatives of the living.[2]Hindu rituals for the dead, whether of the most ancient period or of later times serve five purposes: disposal of the body, consolation of those grieving, assistance to the departing soul to reach pitr-loka,[3] sustenance to those pitrs who have reached that destination, and a call by the living for help at special times from the pitrs.

Three Periods

The study of this ancient belief system can be divided into three periods of development: the Vedic period, the Grhya period and the Puranic period. In the Vedic period it was believed that the spirit of a dead person became a pitrimmediately after the disposal of the body. As soon as the spirit became a pitr it became a recipient of various Vedic sacrifices known as pitr-yajnas.During the Grhya period it was believed that a soul did not become a pitr immediately after death, but entered an intermediate stage of life called a preta. This preta being could only become a pitr after certain rituals called ekoddista-sraddhas[4] were performed by living relatives. This usually took a year.During the final Puranic period the idea expanded to include a new stage of life called the ativahikastage. As soon as the physical body was cremated the soul did not become apreta, but instead took on an initial ativahika body. In order to release the soul from this stage, a set of even more specialized rites called purakas had to be performed by the living relatives. This ativahika stage generally lasted for ten days after which the soul became a preta wherein the ekoddista-sraddhaswould be performed to complete the transition into a pitr after one year.Underlying this process was the belief that without the help of living relatives performing particular rites at specific times, the departing soul was unable to obtain the necessary body by which it could partake in the enjoyments of the pitrs. Therefore, in all stages, the living relatives had to perform some required rites.

 

[1] While addressing this topic it is important to understand that Hindu religious traditions do not fall within the jurisdiction of any one central authority. Hinduism has no ecclesiastic body that determines its beliefs, ritual practices or social structure. There are, of course, a large number of religious sects (sampradayas), with a great number of prominent teachers (acaryas), but the authority of the religious sect and the individual guru extends only to a relatively small range of followers. Consequently, Hindu beliefs and practices vary widely from one religious sect to another and from one geographic region to another. This creates a highly diffused and multi-layered tradition. Therefore, it is difficult to determine which practices and beliefs are original and which have been added. It is also virtually impossible to assert that any given regional practice is standard. Nevertheless, this article will attempt to chart the middle ground and draw certain conclusions that describe the general Hindu view on this complex topic.

[2] In fact, tradition describes many classes of pitrs. Here is a list of just a few: Agnisvattas (pitrs of the gods), Barhisads (pitrs of demons), Vairajas (pitrs of ascetics), Somapas (pitrs of brahmanas), Havismats (pitrs of ksatriyas), Ajyapas (pitrs of vaisyas), Sukalin (pitrs of sudras), and Vyamas (pitrsof the outcastes).

[3] Pitr–loka is the name of the realm of existance wherein the pitrs dwell.

[4] The word sraddha means an act of faith. The term is not used during the Vedic period. The word first appears during the Grhya period. In the Asvalayana-sutra (IV 7.1) the sraddha is described as anekoddista rite wherein in the ashes and the bones of the departed soul are collected and placed in an urn. The word ekoddista means “meant for one.” Ekoddista–sraddha are those rights designed solely for the benefit of the departed soul and not for the pitrs in general.

Copyright © Sanskrit Religions Institute 2003.
All rights reserved. 

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The Psychological Benefits of Sacrifice

Hindu Funeral Rites and Ancestor Worship [1]
Antyesti, Sraddha and Tarpana

7. The Psychological Benefits of Sacrifice 

The Satapatha-brahmana, a text of the Vedic period, speaks about the five debts that a human being accrues by living in this world. A person becomes indebted to God, to the gods, to the ancestors, to living persons of this world and to lesser beings. It states that these debts can be repaid through sacrifice. God can be repaid through the sacrifice of studying and teaching the Vedas. The gods can be repaid by the sacrifice of offering oblations into the fire. The ancestors can be repaid through the sacrifice of offering libations of water (tarpana). Elders of this world can be repaid through the sacrifice of showing hospitality to guests, and lesser beings can be repaid by the sacrifice of offering food to animals and other creatures.

In a similar way, the Manu-samhita, a work of the Grhya period, explains how even unknowingly a human being causes suffering and thereby incurs sin while living in this world. Five places are cited: the kitchen, the grinding stone, the broom, the mortar and pestle, and the water pot. Like the Satapatha- brahmana,Manu says that through sacrifice a human being can atone for these sins. In other words, Hindu thinkers from the earliest times recognized that life involved consuming the resource of this world. Both texts recognized that a human being had a debt to settle with the world, and both agreed that it was through sacrifice that a human could settle this debt and establish a just relationship with the world. The pitr-yajna was one such attempt.

The psychological effect of sacrifice was to enlarge one’s individual existence. By performing the worship of the ancestors, one established a relationship with the ancestors. The person no longer lived alone in the universe. The meaning of the opening prayers used in the tarpana ceremony is illustrative, “From the highest point to lowest point, so far as this universe extends, let all divine sages and patriarchs, all deceased fathers, on both the father’s and mother’s side, be worshiped. Let this humble offering of sesame and water go for benefit the whole world, from the highest heaven down to this earth, to benefit the inhabitants of the seven continents belonging to unlimited families in the past.”[1] The rite of pitr-yajna was therefore, an attempt to psychologically harmonize the individual with the larger world outside.

This need for psychological expansion and to establish a just relationship with the universe was also expressed in how the Brahmana texts interpreted thepinda offerings used in the pitr-yajnas.The cakes were not simply food offerings. They represented the pitrs and ultimately the whole of existence. The first cake, for the father, was seen as the image of the earth (bhur) and just as fire enjoys the earth, so the soul of the father was said to enjoy the first cake. The second cake, for the grandfather, was seen as the image of the sky (bhuvar) and just as the wind enjoys the sky, so the grandfather was said to enjoy the second cake. The third cake, for the great grandfather, was seen as the image of the heavens (svar) and just as the sun enjoys the heavens, so the great grandfather was said to enjoy this third cake. In this way, the three pinda cakes were equated with the whole of creation, bhur, bhuvar and svar[2] Offering thepinda to the pitrs was equal to feeding the universe.

Copyright © Sanskrit Religions Institute 2003.
All rights reserved.

[1] a-brahma stamba-paryantam devarsi pitr-manavah

trpayantu pitarah sarve matr-mata-mahadayah

atita-kula-kotinam sapta-dvipa-nivasinam

a-brahma bhuvanal lokadi-dam astu tilodakam

[2] The combination of words bhur, bhuvas and svar become “the great call to creation” (maha-vyahrti) used at the beginning of the savitr-gayatri mantra and when offerings of ghee and other articles were made into the fire.