Garudapurana 2.45

Garuḍa Mahāpurāṇa—Chapter 45
Śrī Viṣṇu said:
I shall tell you about the annual śrāddha in this way, O King of Birds: / Every year the son of the field and the body-born son should perform it only according to the Pārvaṇa rite.

By the other sons [it should be performed] according to the rule of a single deceased ancestor, not the Pārvaṇa rite.

If both sons of one who does not maintain the sacred fire are themselves without the sacred fire—whether son of the field or body-born— / they should not perform the rite for a single deceased ancestor, but the Pārvaṇa rite every year.

When, however, either the son or the father maintains the sacred fire, / then the son of the field and the body-born son should perform the Pārvaṇa rite every year.

Whether without the sacred fires or maintaining the sacred fires, whether sons or fathers, / the rite for a single deceased ancestor should be performed by the sons on the day of death—so say some.

For one who died at the new moon or during the fortnight of the ancestors,
all sons should perform an annual pārvaṇa śrāddha.

An ekoddiṣṭa śrāddha is for childless men and also for women.
In an ekoddiṣṭa, the kuśa grass taken should be rooted, for a sacrificial act;
cut at the ends and plucked once, always in a śrāddha, except in an auspicious śrāddha.

If ritual impurity occurs when a pārvaṇa śrāddha should be performed,
one should perform the śrāddha immediately upon the cessation of impurity.

If an obstacle arises when the time for an ekoddiṣṭa has arrived,
one should perform the śrāddha only on that same lunar day in the next month.

A silent śrāddha should be performed for a Śūdra, for a wife, for her son,
for a maiden of the twice-born, and for an uninitiated twice-born man.

When many or two have died at the same time,
one should perform the cooking of the offerings jointly, but perform the śrāddha separately.

One should offer first for the one who died first, then for the second,
and then for the third; this is the rule when they coincide.

He who performs it thus each year, correctly and unwearied,
delivers all his ancestors and attains the supreme destination.

If the day of death is unknown, as well as the day of departure,
but the month is known, the death-anniversary should be on the new moon of that month.

When the month is unknown, but the day is known,
then that day should be observed in the month of Mārgaśīrṣa or Māgha.

When both the day and month of death are unknown,
the day and month of departure are to be taken for the śrāddha, as told by me.

When even the day and month of departure are unknown,
the day and month when news of the death was heard should be taken, according to the aforesaid sequence.

Even when there was no travel abroad and the two have been forgotten,
then too both are to be taken as before for the death-anniversary.

When the householder is abroad and someone dies at home,
and the rites of the śrāddha are begun after the impurity has ended,

if the householder returns and learns of the event that took place,
impurity attaches to the householder and to them, but not to the materials [already gathered].

The entire śrāddha commenced by a son or another relative should properly
be completed right there, but the householder should keep away.

If neither the giver nor the eater knew of the impurity of birth or death,
it does not bring fault upon either of them at any time.

If, however, one of the two knew of the impurity of birth or death,
then the fault belongs only to the eater; the other, the giver, is not defiled.

He who observes the death-day in the manner described,
for one whose death-day is unknown, constantly delivers him.

In a daily śrāddha, having worshipped the Brahmins with perfumes and other offerings with devotion,
one should designate all the classes of ancestors together and present [the offering].

The invocation, the svadhā-utterance, the rice-balls, the offering into the fire, and so forth,
the observances such as celibacy, and likewise the Viśvedevas—

one should omit these in a daily śrāddha, and provide edible food;
having given a gift to the priests according to one's ability, one should dismiss them with salutations.

The feeding of Brahmins that one provides intended for the gods beginning with the Viśvedevas
should be done like a daily śrāddha; that is called a divine śrāddha.

The maternal ancestors' śrāddha should be performed first, at the start of the rites; likewise that for paternal ancestors
on the subsequent day in an auspicious rite, and then for the group of maternal grandfathers.

One should perform the threefold śrāddha, and the ritual offering to all the gods.

One should offer first to the mothers, next to the fathers,
and likewise to the maternal grandfathers; thus in this sequence.

In the absence of Brahmins for a maternal śrāddha,
one should honour eight virtuous women of noble birth who have husbands and sons.

At sacrifices, charitable works, and similar rites, one should perform an auspicious śrāddha;
in events of portents and the like, [one should perform it] just like a daily śrāddha.

Performing the daily, divine, auspicious, desire-prompted, and occasional
śrāddhas in the manner described, one attains success.
Thus this has been told to you, Tārkṣya; what else do you ask?

Thus ends the forty-fifth chapter, entitled 'Determination of the Annual and Other Śrāddhas', in the Pretakalpa of the Dharmakāṇḍa, in the second part of the Uttarakhaṇḍa in the glorious Garuḍa Mahāpurāṇa, in the dialogue between Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Garuḍa.