How to Do Pitru Paksha Puja at Home: Simple Vidhi and What to Chant

Hare Krishna!

Many families want to honour their forefathers during Pitru Paksha but hold back from doing anything at home. They worry that they don't know the mantras, that no pujari is available, or that they will get the ritual wrong. This article answers those doubts first. It then sets out the simple home offering that the Srimad-Bhagavatam itself recommends, which every householder can make.

It also explains what the classical pinda-dana and tarpana rites require for those who wish to perform them, and when to call a pujari. The last part covers what to chant and gives each prayer with its meaning.

Before You Begin: The Home Puja at a Glance

Time needed:: about an hour, plus cooking

When to do it:: in the morning, after bathing, before the household eats

What you need:: a clean cloth, Krishna's picture or Deity, a ghee lamp, incense, flowers, tulasi, water and food cooked with ghee

How difficult is it:: simple, with no Sanskrit or special training needed

Who can do it:: anyone in the family

Can You Perform Pitru Paksha Puja at Home?

Yes. The offering the Srimad-Bhagavatam recommends for the forefathers is made at home by the householder. Food cooked with ghee is offered to the Lord, and His prasadam is then shared in the forefathers' name (SB 7.15.5). Srila Prabhupada calls this distribution of the Lord's prasadam "a first-class śrāddha ceremony" (SB 7.15, chapter summary).

The classical rite of pinda-dana and tarpana is also a household rite by origin. It is prescribed in the Grhyasutras, the manuals of household ceremonies, and the Manusmriti (3.122–123) treats it as a duty of the home. The smriti lists the home among the valid places to perform it. What stands between most readers and that rite is qualification, not location, as explained further below.

Do You Need a Pujari?

For the offering described in this article, no. The Bhagavatam's procedure asks only for clean food, cooked with love and offered to the Lord.

For the classical pinda-dana and tarpana, a pujari is usually needed. The mantras and sequence of that rite are given by the officiating brahmana. Most readers will need to engage one, as explained in the section on what the rite requires.

Who in the Family Should Perform It?

Anyone. In the traditional ritual shraddha, the son performs the rite, as Prahlada did for his father at the Lord's instruction (SB 7.10.22). Offering puja and prasadam to Krishna in a forefather's name carries no such restriction. A son, daughter, wife, grandchild or any relative may make it, and anyone may have prasadam offered on their behalf.

What You Need and When to Begin

Puja Samagri List

For the home offering you need only a few things:

A clean cloth for the altar
A picture or Deity of Sri Krishna
A ghee lamp
Incense
Fresh flowers
Tulasi leaves
Clean water in a cup
Food cooked with ghee, prepared that day in a clean kitchen

That is the complete list. Tulasi is essential: in Vaishnava practice, food is not offered to Sri Krishna without a tulasi leaf. If you do not keep a tulasi plant at home, most temples can give you a few leaves.

Sesame seeds (til), kusha grass and rice pindas are not part of this offering. They belong to the classical rite, which is described separately below. Keep the two apart; they are different offerings.

Choosing the Right Tithi

Make the offering on the tithi on which your family member departed. The full list of the sixteen tithis of Pitru Paksha 2026, with dates, is in our guide, Pitru Paksha 2026: Dates, Meaning and How to Honour Your Forefathers.

If you do not know the tithi, make the offering on Mahalaya Amavasya, Saturday 10 October, the day kept for all forefathers.

If your day falls on 6 October, that is Indira Ekadashi. Shraddha is not performed on Ekadashi; the ceremony moves to the next day, Dwadashi, 7 October (SB 7.14.20–23). If you still offer food to the Lord in your forefather's memory on 6 October, keep it grain-free. The reason is explained in our Pitru Paksha 2026 guide.

Best Time of Day: The Kutup Muhurat

The dharmashastra tradition places shraddha in the Kutup muhurta, the eighth muhurta of the day around midday, and the Aparahna kala, the afternoon period that follows. These are the hours traditionally observed for the classical rite.

For the offering described here, the guidance is simpler: make it in the morning, after bathing, before the household eats. That way the family's first meal of the day is the Lord's prasadam, taken in the forefathers' memory.

The Home Vidhi: What Srimad-Bhagavatam Recommends

The steps below come from the Seventh Canto of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, where Narada Muni instructs Maharaja Yudhisthira on how a householder should make offerings for the departed.

Step 1: Preparing the Space and Yourself

Bathe and put on clean clothes. Clean the place where you will offer and spread a fresh cloth. Set Sri Krishna's picture or Deity on it, with the lamp, incense, flowers, tulasi and a cup of water.

Cook the offering in a clean kitchen, with ghee, and keep onion, garlic and all non-vegetarian ingredients out of it. As devotees do for every offering, do not taste the food while cooking; it is prepared for the Lord first.

Step 2: Keep It Simple

The Bhagavatam is direct about this. For the forefathers' ceremony, one may invite three brahmanas, "or, in either case, only one brāhmaṇa will suffice." Even a very wealthy man should not invite more or make expensive arrangements (SB 7.15.3). The next verse gives the reason: feeding large numbers creates discrepancies in time, place, respectability, ingredients, the person worshipped and the method of worship (SB 7.15.4).

Srila Prabhupada's purport gives an example from our own tradition. For the ceremony offering oblations to the forefathers, Srila Advaita Acarya "invited only Haridāsa Ṭhākura." Haridasa Thakura was not born a brahmana, but he was a great devotee. Srila Prabhupada explains that Advaita Acarya was following the Lord's principle: even one born in a family of dog-eaters becomes very dear to the Lord by becoming His devotee, and offerings should be given to the Lord's devotee. His conclusion is that one should invite "a first-class brāhmaṇa or Vaiṣṇava—a realized soul" and feed him (SB 7.15.3, purport).

That is the spirit of the whole home vidhi: one sincere offering, made through the Lord and shared with His devotee.

Step 3: Offering the Food to Krishna

This is the heart of the vidhi. The Bhagavatam says that at a suitable and auspicious time and place, one should, with love, "offer food prepared with ghee to the Deity of the Supreme Personality of Godhead" and then offer the prasadam to a suitable person, a Vaishnava or brahmana. "This will be the cause of everlasting prosperity" (SB 7.15.5).

Place the food on a clean plate before Sri Krishna, with a tulasi leaf on each preparation. Offer the lamp, incense and flowers. Then ask the Lord, in your own words or by chanting His holy name, to accept what you have cooked. Leave the plate before Him for a few minutes. What was food is now prasadam.

Taking the Sankalpa, in Plain Language

A sankalpa is a statement of intention: for whom the offering is made. You do not need a Sanskrit formula. As you offer the plate, say simply:

"May this offering to Sri Krishna be for the benefit of my father, [name]."

Name each forefather you are offering for: father, mother, grandparents, or anyone whose memory you are honouring. Say it in whatever language you speak at home. The Lord understands every language, and a sentence you mean is better than a formula you do not.

Step 4: Distributing the Prasadam

Now the prasadam is shared. The Bhagavatam says to offer it to "the demigods, the saintly persons, one's forefathers, the people in general, one's family members, one's relatives and one's friends, seeing them all as devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead" (SB 7.15.6). In his purport, Srila Prabhupada adds that even in feeding the poor, one should distribute prasadam.

Offer the first portion to a Vaishnava or brahmana if one can come, as Step 2 describes.
Share it with your family, relatives and friends.
If you can, give prasadam to those in need.

Srila Prabhupada's summary of the chapter puts the point in one line: distributing bhagavata-prasada to one's forefathers and relatives "makes a first-class śrāddha ceremony" (SB 7.15, chapter summary).

Step 5: Concluding the Puja

Offer your obeisances to the Lord. Chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra for a while, as a family if possible, remembering your forefathers as you chant. You may also read a portion of the Bhagavatam together; Prahlada Maharaja's prayers in the Seventh Canto, Chapter 9, are especially suited to the fortnight. Then the family honours the prasadam.

A few verses later, the Bhagavatam returns to the same point. One should happily perform these sacrifices "with whatever food is available easily by the grace of the Lord" (SB 7.15.11). This offering is not meant to be expensive or difficult.

Common mistakes to avoid

Blending the two rites. Adding til, kusha or pitr formulas to the offering to Krishna turns a simple offering into a half-performed classical rite. Keep them separate.
Making it elaborate. Many dishes and many guests are not required; the Bhagavatam advises against it (SB 7.15.3).
Offering what the Lord does not accept. No meat, eggs or fish, and no onion or garlic in the cooking.
Offering without tulasi. Place a tulasi leaf on each preparation before you offer it.
Eating or tasting before offering. The Lord is offered first; the family eats after.
Offering grains on Ekadashi. On 6 October, keep the offering grain-free.
Copying a Sanskrit sankalpa from the internet. A pitr formula you do not understand adds nothing to this offering. A sincere sentence in your own language is enough.

If You Wish to Perform Pinda-Dana or Tarpana: What It Requires

Some families wish to perform the classical rite: pinda-dana, the offering of rice balls, and tarpana, the offering of water with sesame. This section sets out what that rite requires. The mantras and sequence of the rite are given by the officiating brahmana.

What the classical rite requires:

A qualified officiant. Traditionally, the performer must know the mantras of the rite or engage a brahmana who does.
The sacred thread, worn prachinaviti. For the pitr portion of the rite, the thread is worn over the right shoulder. This presupposes that the performer has received upanayana, and for most readers it is the practical barrier.
Gotra and three generations. The performer needs the family gotra and the names of three paternal generations: father, grandfather and great-grandfather. Many traditions include the maternal line as well.
Purity, fasting and the correct time. The performer keeps ritual purity and fasts on the day. The rite is traditionally performed in aparahna, the afternoon period.
A fit place. The smriti rules out performing the rite at night, in the open, or in an unfit place. The home is explicitly permitted.
The materials of the rite. These are cooked rice for the pindas, black til, kusha grass and water.

If you have these qualifications, you may perform the rite at home with a qualified pujari. If you do not, engage a pujari to perform it, or go to Gaya, Haridwar, Prayagraj or another tirtha, where the tirtha-purohitas conduct it and where the tradition holds its fruit to be greatest. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself went to Gaya to offer pinda for His father, and Srila Prabhupada explains that the offering there is made at the lotus feet of Lord Vishnu (CC Ādi 17.8, purport).

If You Cannot Do the Full Rite

The Bhagavatam's own answer is simple, and it is not a lesser one. Narada Muni says that for the forefathers' ceremony even one brahmana will suffice (SB 7.15.3), and that food prepared with ghee should be offered to the Deity and the prasadam then given to a Vaishnava or brahmana (SB 7.15.5). Srila Prabhupada calls this distribution of the Lord's prasadam to one's forefathers and relatives a first-class shraddha (SB 7.15, chapter summary).

Feeding even one devotee with the Lord's prasadam in your forefathers' names, as described in the home vidhi above, is therefore not a substitute for the rite. It is the offering the Bhagavatam recommends. If you cannot feed a Vaishnava at home, the temple's Annadan supports the daily prasadam distribution to sadhus and pilgrims, offered on their behalf.

The traditional digests of dharmashastra also make provision for those who cannot perform the full rite, with graded alternatives:

A simple sankalpa-shraddha: the offering made by intention and dedication, without the full ritual.
Offering food and observing a fast for the day.
Giving a pitcher of water and fruit to a brahmana.
Where nothing else is possible, giving grass to a cow.

These alternatives show that the tradition never intended the forefathers to go without an offering simply because a family could not arrange the full ceremony. Feeding a cow is something anyone can do, including through a gaushala.

What to Chant: Mantras with Meaning

The answer to "what should I chant?" is simple: chant the holy name of the Lord. This is the recommended practice of the age, open to everyone, and it needs no qualification and no knowledge of Sanskrit. Narada Muni ends his teaching on the householder's duties by saying that chanting the holy name is so powerful that "even householders [gṛhasthas] can very easily gain the ultimate result achieved by persons in the renounced order" (SB 7.15.74).

Devotees chant in this order: obeisances to the guru, then the Panca-tattva mantra, then the maha-mantra itself.

Obeisances to the Guru

This is the first verse printed in the invocation of Srila Prabhupada's books.

ॐ अज्ञानतिमिरान्धस्य ज्ञानाञ्जनशलाकया । चक्षुरुन्मीलितं येन तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः ॥

om ajñāna-timirāndhasya jñānāñjana-śalākayā cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ

"I was born in the darkest ignorance, and my spiritual master opened my eyes with the torch of knowledge. I offer my respectful obeisances unto him." (Bg., Introduction)

The Panca-tattva Mantra

This is chanted before the maha-mantra, honouring Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates (CC Ādi 7.169).

श्रीकृष्ण चैतन्य प्रभु नित्यानन्द । श्रीअद्वैत गदाधर श्रीवासादि गौरभक्तवृन्द ॥

śrī kṛṣṇa caitanya prabhu nityānanda śrī advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

"I offer my obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, Prabhu Nityānanda, Śrī Advaita, Gadādhara, Śrīvāsa and all others in the line of devotion." (Bg., Introduction)

The Hare Krishna Maha-Mantra

हरे कृष्ण हरे कृष्ण कृष्ण कृष्ण हरे हरे । हरे राम हरे राम राम राम हरे हरे ॥

hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare

Meaning: The mantra is made entirely of the Lord's names. Kṛṣṇa and Rāma are names of the Supreme Lord, and Hare addresses His divine energy. The chant is a prayer to the Lord and His energy: please engage me in Your service.

Srila Prabhupada prints this mantra at the opening of the Bhagavad-gita As It Is, and he ends his Introduction by proposing one mantra for the whole world: this one (Bg., Introduction). The Caitanya-caritamrta quotes the scriptural verse that in this age there is no other way than "chanting the holy name of Lord Hari" (CC Ādi 17.21).

You may chant it aloud as a kirtan with the family or softly on beads. Chant it while the offering sits before the Lord, and again when you have finished. It is the best thing you can give your forefathers.

Also Chanted by Devotees: Oṁ Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya

ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

"I offer my obeisances unto Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, son of Vasudeva, who is the supreme all-pervading Personality of Godhead." (SB 1.1.1)

These are the opening words of the Srimad-Bhagavatam. They are also the twelve-syllable mantra Narada Muni gave to the child Dhruva Maharaja for worshipping the Lord with offerings of flowers, fruits and food (SB 4.8.54). It is a mantra devotees receive from their spiritual master and chant in their worship. For everyone else, the Hare Krishna maha-mantra above is complete in itself.

Prahlada Maharaja's Prayer

The Bhagavatam connects the forefathers' offering with Lord Nrsimhadeva, who returned the forefathers' stolen offerings (SB 7.8.44) and asked Prahlada to perform his father's shraddha (SB 7.10.22). It is fitting to read Prahlada's prayers from the Seventh Canto during this fortnight. In this verse, he prays not for himself alone but for everyone who is suffering.

एवं स्वकर्मपतितं भववैतरण्याम् अन्योन्यजन्ममरणाशनभीतभीतम् । पश्यन्जनं स्वपरविग्रहवैरमैत्रं हन्तेति पारचर पीपृहि मूढमद्य ॥

evaṁ sva-karma-patitaṁ bhava-vaitaraṇyām anyonya-janma-maraṇāśana-bhīta-bhītam paśyañ janaṁ sva-para-vigraha-vaira-maitraṁ hanteti pāracara pīpṛhi mūḍham adya

"My dear Lord, You are always transcendentally situated on the other side of the river of death, but because of the reactions of our own activities, we are suffering on this side. … Now kindly look upon us—not only upon me but also upon all others who are suffering—and by Your causeless mercy and compassion, deliver us and maintain us." (SB 7.9.41)

Nrsimha Pranama

These prayers, from the Puranic literature, are recited daily in Vaishnava temples, including ours.

नमस्ते नरसिंहाय प्रह्लादाह्लाददायिने । हिरण्यकशिपोर्वक्षःशिलाटङ्कनखालये ॥

इतो नृसिंहः परतो नृसिंहो यतो यतो यामि ततो नृसिंहः । बहिर्नृसिंहो हृदये नृसिंहो नृसिंहमादिं शरणं प्रपद्ये ॥

namas te nara-siṁhāya prahlādāhlāda-dāyine hiraṇyakaśipor vakṣaḥ-śilā-ṭaṅka-nakhālaye

ito nṛsiṁhaḥ parato nṛsiṁho yato yato yāmi tato nṛsiṁhaḥ bahir nṛsiṁho hṛdaye nṛsiṁho nṛsiṁham ādiṁ śaraṇaṁ prapadye

"I offer my obeisances to Lord Nrsimha, who gives joy to Prahlada Maharaja, and whose nails are like chisels on the stone-like chest of Hiranyakashipu. Lord Nrsimha is here, and He is there. Wherever I go, Lord Nrsimha is there. He is outside, and He is in the heart. I take shelter of Lord Nrsimha, the origin of all."

The Nrsimha-kavaca, a longer protective prayer from the same tradition, is also recited at Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir.

What to Offer: Naivedya, Kheer and the Bhog

What Food Is Traditionally Prepared

The Bhagavatam asks only that the food be prepared with ghee and offered with love (SB 7.15.5). Families traditionally cook the dishes the departed person loved, alongside the preparations long associated with the forefathers' offering:

Kheer, rice cooked in milk
Puris or rice cooked in ghee
A simple dal
Seasonal vegetables
Fruits
A sweet

Cook what your family can prepare well. The Bhagavatam asks for the food that is easily available, not the most expensive (SB 7.15.11).

Two notes for 2026:

Ekadashi: any offering made on 6 October should be grain-free.
Caturmasya: devotees keeping Caturmasya abstain from milk during its third month, which begins on 27 September. Those devotees should ask their temple what to prepare in place of kheer.

What Should Never Be Offered

The Bhagavatam states it plainly: "A person fully aware of religious principles should never offer anything like meat, eggs or fish in the śrāddha ceremony." When suitable food prepared with ghee is offered to saintly persons, "the function is pleasing to the forefathers and the Supreme Lord, who are never pleased when animals are killed in the name of sacrifice" (SB 7.15.7).

Feeding the Crow, Cow and Brahmin: What It Signifies

In many households, portions of the shraddha meal are set aside for a crow, a cow and a brahmana before the family eats.

The principle behind it is the one the Bhagavatam gives: the Lord's prasadam is to be shared widely, with the forefathers, the saintly, the people in general and one's own family, seeing all of them in relation to the Lord (SB 7.15.6). Feeding the cow and the brahmana are among the oldest expressions of that spirit.

Gau seva and offering prasadam to Vaishnavas and brahmanas can both be taken up through the temple. Your offering supports the ongoing care of the cows at the Surabhi Gaushala and the daily prasadam distribution at the temple, offered on your forefathers' behalf.

Why the Crow?

The traditional belief is that the forefathers receive the offering through the crow. A portion is placed outside, often on the roof or at a window, and when a crow takes it, the family takes this as a sign that the offering has been accepted.

When to Involve a Pujari Instead

The home offering in this article is complete in itself. But there are times when a qualified pujari is the right choice:

You wish to perform pinda-dana or tarpana, and you do not have the qualifications described above.
Your family's custom requires the full classical rite, for example, on a first death anniversary.
You are unsure what your family's tradition expects and want guidance from someone who knows it.

For the classical rite, engage a qualified pujari locally or the tirtha-purohitas at Gaya or another tirtha. Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir does not perform tarpana or pinda-dana.

What the temple can do is offer service to the Lord in your forefathers' name:

Special Puja and Sankalpa are offered to Sri Radha Vrindavan Chandra on Mahalaya Amavasya, Saturday, 10 October 2026, at 10:00 am, with a sankalpa taken in your forefathers' names.
Narasimha Havan is offered to Lord Nrsimhadeva at the temple on Mahalaya Amavasya, Saturday, 10 October 2026, at 8:30 am.
Annadan: your offering supports the daily prasadam distribution at the temple, offered on their behalf.
Gau Seva: your offering supports the ongoing care of the cows at the Surabhi Gaushala, offered on their behalf.
Mandir Nirman: a contribution towards building Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, offered on their behalf.

Hare Krishna!

Pitru Paksha Puja at Home: FAQs

1. Can I do this puja if I live abroad or in a small apartment?

Yes. When Narada Muni gave Dhruva Maharaja the method of worship, he said it should be done with consideration of place, time and the conveniences available. Srila Prabhupada explains in the purport that the method of worship is not stereotyped, nor exactly the same everywhere (SB 4.8.54, purport). A clean corner, a picture of Krishna, a few tulasi leaves and a simple offering are enough.

2. Can I make one offering for several forefathers?

Yes. Name each of them in your sankalpa: "May this offering to Sri Krishna be for the benefit of my father [name], my mother [name] and my grandparents [names]." On Mahalaya Amavasya, the offering is made for all forefathers together.

3. I do not have a Deity. Is a picture of Krishna enough?

Yes. A clean, respectfully kept picture of Sri Krishna is sufficient for the home offering. Place it where it will not be disturbed, and make the offering before it with the same care you would give a Deity.

4. Can I offer on the death anniversary as well as during Pitru Paksha?

Yes. Narada Muni includes annual death ceremonies among the occasions for shraddha (SB 7.14.26), and the Bhagavatam speaks of shraddha offered by descendants on the anniversaries of the forefathers' death (SB 7.8.44). It also lists many other occasions through the year (SB 7.14.20–23). The same simple offering may be made on any of them.

5. Should I fast on the day of the offering?

For the classical rite, fasting until the rite is complete is part of the tradition. For the home offering, no fast is required. The family simply eats nothing until the food has been offered to the Lord, and then honours the prasadam together.

6. What if I miss my forefather's tithi?

Make the offering on Mahalaya Amavasya, Saturday 10 October. It is kept for every forefather, including those whose tithi was missed or is not known.

7. Can I have the offering made at the temple instead?

Yes. The Special Puja and Sankalpa at 10:00 am and the Narasimha Havan at 8:30 am are offered at Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir on Mahalaya Amavasya, 10 October, in your forefathers' names. Annadan and Gau Seva support the temple's ongoing prasadam distribution and cow care, offered on their behalf. You do not need to be present — offer seva in their names.

8. Do I need to be initiated to make this offering?

No. Lord Krishna asks only for devotion: "If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it" (Bg. 9.26). In his purport, Srila Prabhupada describes exactly this practice: preparing simple vegetarian dishes and offering them before the picture or Deity of Lord Krishna, praying for Him to accept them. He adds that the most important thing is to make the offering with love. Anyone can do this.

9. Can children take part in the offering?

Yes, and it is a good way to pass the tradition on. Children can help clean the altar, arrange the flowers, chant the holy name and serve the prasadam. The Bhagavatam's own example of honouring a father is a child: Prahlada Maharaja was "only a little boy" when he approached Lord Nrsimhadeva with his prayers (SB 7.9.4). Later, at the Lord's instruction, he performed his father's ceremonies (SB 7.10.24).

10. Can I make the offering for a friend or for someone with no family left to remember them?

Yes. Take the sankalpa in their name, just as you would for a family member: "May this offering to Sri Krishna be for the benefit of [name]." The Bhagavatam names relatives and friends among those with whom the Lord's prasadam is to be shared (SB 7.15.6). For those whom no one else remembers, Mahalaya Amavasya on 10 October is an especially fitting day.