Skandapurana 5.215

Ānarta said: / There are also other various times that are most meritorious, O twice-born one. / Why is śrāddha declared specifically at the waning of the moon?

Tell me all this in detail, O great sage.

Bhartṛyajña said: / This is true, O great king; there are abundant times worthy of śrāddha / that bestow satisfaction and contentment to the hosts of ancestors:

The beginnings of the Manvantaras, the beginnings of the Yugas, the other transits of the sun among them, / the Vyatīpāta, the Gajacchāyā, and the eclipses of the moon and sun.

At these, it is proper to perform a śrāddha for the satisfaction of the ancestors, / and particularly at a sacred ford, in an auspicious and holy sanctuary.

When brahmins worthy of a śrāddha are found, or items dear to the ancestors, / a śrāddha must always be performed by the wise even on a non-festival day.

Listen with single-minded attention, O king, concerning [the day of] the waning of the moon in particular. / The chief of the thousand rays of the sun stands by the name Amā.

Through its own splendor, the sun is called the illuminator of the three worlds; / because the moon dwells in that [ray], it is traditionally called the new moon (amāvasyā).

That [day] brings inexhaustible merit in righteous deeds, especially in deeds for the ancestors. / The Agniṣvāttas, Barhiṣads, Ājyapas, and Somapas,

the Raśmipas, the Upahūtas, and likewise the Āyantunas beyond, / and the other eaters of the śrāddha, known as the Nāndīmukhas, O king—

these nine hosts of ancestors are known to have originated from the gods; / as well as the Ādityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, and the two Nāsatyas, the Aśvins.

And they satisfy these [ancestors], except for the Nāndīmukha ancestors. / These ancestors were ordained by Brahmā, O best of kings.

Having satisfied them, the lotus-born [Brahmā] then carries out creation.

Other ancestors, mortals too, dwell in heaven; / they are seen to be of two kinds: some happy, others unhappy.

Those to whom their descendants in the mortal world offer śrāddhas / remain there entirely delighted, rejoicing like gods.

Those to whom their descendants offer nothing at all / are seen to be deeply distressed, afflicted with hunger and thirst.

Now, at a certain time, the ancestors worshipped by the gods, / the Agniṣvāttas and all the others, approached the lord of the gods.

Beheld with devotion, O great king, and worshipped by the thousand-eyed [Indra] / and by all the other gods, they departed for their own abode,

the world of the ancestors, O great king, hard to attain even for the gods. / Seeing them departing, O king, the ancestors of mortal origin,

who were afflicted with hunger and thirst, resorted to wretchedness and spoke to them, / having praised [them] with divine eulogies and ancestral hymns, O king,

and with other supreme Vedic verses that cause pleasure to the ancestors. / Then the delighted ancestors born of the gods said to them:

“We are all pleased with you, who have fulfilled your vows. / Therefore speak, so that we may grant what is in your hearts.”

The ancestors said: / “We are known as the ancestors of human beings who have come here; / we dwell continually in heaven with the gods on account of our own deeds,

seated in diverse aerial chariots in every direction, / and we go to desired worlds adorned with flags and banners,

frequented by swans and peacocks, served by troops of apsarases, / sung to by gandharvas, and praised by guhyakas.

Yet, even as we abide alongside the gods, / an exceedingly intense, dreadful hunger and thirst arises [in us],

from which we think in our minds that we are standing in the midst of fire: / ‘Shall we eat these various birds, / swans and the like of sweet speech, or the hosts of apsarases?’

Even if someone, overcome with hunger, secretly seizes a bird / to eat it, he is not able to kill it.

For the birds that move in heaven are free from old age and immortal, / and likewise the delightful trees in the Nandana grove and elsewhere,

which are seen to be fruitful, accessible, and delightful— / if all of us ancestors try to take their fruits,

they do not break off, even when pulled with effort. / If, tormented by thirst, we try with effort to drink this water of the river of the gods, / that water does not even touch our hands.

No one here is seen eating, nor is anyone seen drinking; / therefore our dwelling in heaven is terribly dreadful.

All these hosts of gods and others, such as the guhyakas, / are seen seated in aerial chariots, all with joyful minds,

free from hunger and thirst, enjoying various pleasures. / Sometimes all of us become like them,

free from hunger and thirst, having attained supreme contentment. / What is the reason for this, that hunger and thirst then arise?

And our sudden affliction never disappears. / Act in such a way—blessings to you—that satisfaction arises,

eternal for us, just as for other gods dwelling in heaven. / For since you are the ancestors of the gods of purified soul,

and we are [the ancestors] of human beings, we have therefore taken refuge in you.” / The ancestors said: / “Even for us this difficult condition arises

when the gods, Śakra and others, being busy, do not offer us the śrāddha. / Then we go and petition all those gods;

then we attain satisfaction, satisfied by those gods. / And those to whom your descendants offer with concentrated mind—

how do they not attain satisfaction, being fully satisfied by them? / But where they are not satisfied in any way by careless descendants,

they would then undoubtedly all be overcome by hunger and thirst. / What more can be said of those in hell, in the abode of the King of Dharma?

Indeed, this reason has somehow been stated for you / regarding the fierce arising of hunger and thirst which was mentioned by you.

Therefore, if you give a share to us, O best of beings, / from all the ancestral food that is given, we will certainly bring about your auspicious welfare,

having petitioned Brahmā after going to his presence ourselves.” / When they said, “So be it,” then, taking them along,

the divine hosts of ancestors reached the supreme abode of Brahmā, / placing at their head the Nāndīmukha ancestors whom Brahmā satisfies

when the time of creation arrives, the lord of gods desiring increase. / Then, having praised the lotus-seated one together with them, / having bowed down, all the ancestors stood humbly.

To those ancestors, full of humility, who had bowed down before him, / Brahmā spoke, O lord of kings, soothing them with a gentle voice.

Brahmā said: / “For what purpose have all you ancestors come into my presence? / You remain forever worthy of worship by the deities along with me.

Likewise, others too are seen gathered together with you, / who have human forms and possess little splendor.”

The ancestors said: / “These are indeed human ancestors who attained heaven by their own deeds; / yet, staying in the midst of the gods, they are tormented by hunger and thirst.

When through negligence their descendants do not offer ancestral food, / then they do not attain satisfaction, whereas with vehicles they move about like the gods.”

Therefore, they made a request to us for eternal satisfaction, / and we are not able to grant it; hence we have approached you.

Just as the gods might become distraught, O Lord, so for us as well / without ancestral food, this miserable state would occur, O lord of the gods.

Therefore grant us your grace together with these, O lord of the gods, / so that there may be eternal satisfaction even for those dwelling in their own realm.

They will give us the ancestral offering which was offered by their descendants; / for that reason, O god, we have arrived in your presence.

And whatever ancestral offering belongs to the gods, that is not for our satisfaction; / because it is devoid of ritual, [as] no ritual action exists for them.

The ancestral offering dedicated to the ancestors that is given to brahmins / by mortals who have bathed and washed their garments, that becomes greatly satisfying.

O lord of all gods, this is the Vedic revelation concerning the ancestors: / there is no authority [in rites] for one who has not bathed, nor for the gods as there is for the twice-born.

Even nectar given by them would therefore not lead to our satisfaction.

Therefore, arrange it together with these so that through ancestral offerings given by mortals, / supreme satisfaction will arise for us who dwell in heaven.

Bhartṛyajña said: / Hearing that and meditating for a long time, Brahmā, the grandfather of the worlds, / then spoke to all those ancestors, O best of kings.

Brahmā said: / In this Tretāyuga, the ritual designation arising from oblations to gods and ancestors / has passed on; in the pair of yugas, in the Kali [age], it will not prevail.

In whatever manner this decline of the yugas will occur, / in that very manner people will become wicked and devoted to other [gods].

They will not give the prescribed ancestral offerings in any way; / therefore an even more miserable condition will befall the ancestors.

Therefore I will make an easy means for embodied beings / by which, you being propitiated, you will attain supreme satisfaction.

When an offering is given with great devotion to brahmins / with dedication to the father, the grandfather, and beyond him to his father,

there will be supreme satisfaction for all of them up to me, O ancestors, now; / likewise, there is no doubt in this regard on the side of maternal grandfathers.

Being propitiated through three [generations], they too would be propitiated right up to me. / And what the easy means for your satisfaction will be,

listen to that, O fortunate ones, as I now explain it: / with whatever food, dedicating it to the ancestors, [they will honor] the best of twice-born,

they will satisfy [them] with that very [food] and offer rice balls with devotion; / through their names, eternal satisfaction will arise for you by that.

Therefore depart, contented, to your own realms, O forebears!

Then, together with them, they returned to their own abodes, / traveling in aerial chariots resembling the sun, O best of kings.

Then, O king, as a long time passed after that, / mortals did not offer even that śrāddha for three generations.

O ruler of men, [neglecting] to regularly dedicate the portions of ancestral food / to the ancestors here, many [failed to do so] as before, O king.

A great affliction arising from hunger and thirst was born, / both for them and for the divine ancestors, O best of kings.

Assembling once more, they all went to Brahmā for refuge, / and bowing down, utterly wretched, they spoke aloud to the great-grandfather:

"O Lord, those born in our lineage do not offer śrāddha rites regularly; / fallen into distress, therefore we are perishing, O almighty one.

O god, devise some means for this just as before, / by which even poor people may please the ancestors."

Bhartṛyajña said: / Hearing those words of theirs, the great-grandfather, / filled with compassion, then spoke to all the hosts of ancestors, O great king:

"This is true, O fortunate ones: people fall into distress day by day / as the foremost yuga recedes into the past.

Nevertheless, I will undoubtedly devise for your sake / an easy means by which there will be complete satisfaction for you here.

There is a chief among the thousand rays of the sun named Amā; / because the moon dwells in it, it is known as Amāvāsyā.

On that day, those men who perform a śrāddha with devotion, / dedicating it to their own ancestors, will become prosperous,

endowed with wealth and grain, freed from all enemies, / and spared from untimely death, without doubt, by my word."

Bhartṛyajña said: / Having heard those words of his, with glad hearts / and rejoicing in their inner selves after receiving ancestral food, the ancestors

went to their own abodes, dismissed by the lotus-born [Brahmā]. / When the day of Amāvāsyā arrived, the śrāddha was offered by the descendants of their lineages.

Satisfied for only a month, they remained with contented minds. / But as time passed, men on earth fell into misery, / and generally hardly anyone performed the śrāddha even on this new moon day.

Then all the hosts of ancestors, both the divine and the human, / agitated by hunger and thirst, once again went to Brahmā for refuge.

Assembled together, bowing down, they spoke aloud to the grandfather, / having assumed extreme distress, with voices choked with tears:

"O Lord, a monthly śrāddha on the waning of the moon was proclaimed by you, O almighty one, / which mortals were to perform for our satisfaction.

Because of poverty, they generally do not perform even that, O grandfather; / because of that, supreme suffering born of hunger and thirst belongs to us.

Therefore grant us your grace as before, O lord of the gods, / so that even those beset by poverty will propitiate us now."

Bhartṛyajña said: / Then, having reflected, Brahmā also, filled with compassion, said to them: / "An easy means has been devised by me for your sake, O ancestors,

by which you will attain supreme satisfaction, O lords of the ancestors, / even without receiving a śrāddha arising on Amāvāsyā for a year.

Listen with focused minds to how, by my grace, [this shall be]: / In the fifth fortnight from the full moon of Āṣāḍha, when the sun is in Virgo,

whatever man shall perform a śrāddha on the anniversary of death, / his ancestors shall surely be satisfied for an entire year.

Knowing this, men on earth will perform śrāddha / during the fortnight of the departed spirits; there is no doubt that you will be well satisfied.

O best of beings, even by a single [offering] for a whole year. / But whoever does not offer a śrāddha to you even then, / even if with mere greens, being poor—he shall fall to the state of an outcaste. / Whoever shares a seat, bed, meal, touch, or conversation

with such people, those men too are the most sinful; / their lineage shall never prosper.

No happiness, wealth, or grain will ever belong to them. / Therefore, O ancestors, go quickly to your own abode without anxiety.

Even when the harsh Kali age arrives and people are destitute, / men will indeed perform one śrāddha at the end of the year,

by which your supreme delight will last for the entire year.”

Bhartṛyajña said: / Hearing that, the ancestors rejoiced and went each to his own dwelling; / receiving the śrāddha even [just] at the end of the year, they would not be hungry.

Now, those wicked-minded, shameless, and miserly men in this world, / deluded by Kali, did not offer śrāddha even at the end of the year.

Then their ancestors, accompanied by divine ancestors, / once again sought refuge with Brahmā, and with dejected minds they said:

“O Lord, even at the end of the year when the sun is in Virgo, / our wicked-minded descendants do not offer us śrāddha.

Afflicted by that, O god, and overcome with hunger and thirst, / we have come for refuge. Devise a remedy for that!

As before, O highly fortunate one, tell us an easy and superior means / whereby our eternal delight may arise through a single day's śrāddha, / O god, by your grace, O Lord of gods!

Indeed, if our lineage becomes extinct, our downfall would ensue.”

Bhartṛyajña said: / Hearing that speech of theirs and contemplating for a long time, the Grandfather, / filled with supreme compassion, then spoke respectfully:

Brahmā said: / “Another means has been devised by me for your satisfaction; / it is simple, whereby your satisfaction becomes exceedingly eternal.

Those here who, having approached Gayāśiras, will offer a śrāddha to you, / even a single one—by its power you will attain a divine state.

Even for a sinful man, even for an embodied being who killed a brahmin, / even for one residing in Raurava or gone to Kumbhīpāka,

even for one who has entered the state of a departed spirit—for whomever a descendant / shall offer a śrāddha at Gayāśiras, liberation will be his.

Hearing this word of mine, now men on earth, / even if destitute, will certainly perform one śrāddha there / at Gayāśiras, which clearly grants liberation to you.”

Bhartṛyajña said: / Hearing that speech of the Supreme Lord, the ancestors, / permitted by him, then departed to their own realms.

From then on, the rites of śrāddha commenced on the earth's surface, / accompanied by the offering of rice-balls, spanning three generations of men.

Having formerly considered whatever men had departed, beginning with Brahmā, / intending [offerings] for those in the next world according to their capacity, O king,

and having given desired things to that same number of foremost brahmins— / this śrāddha without deity brings happiness to the poor.

It grants great satisfaction to ancestors, deities, and mortals. / Therefore, a wise man should perform śrāddha,

desiring the satisfaction of ancestors, diligently at these times, / and especially at Gayā, if he desires both worlds.

If a man does not offer śrāddha to the ancestors at the waning of the moon, / his distressed ancestors, their bodies overcome with hunger and thirst,

await the fortnight of the departed spirits with intense longing, / day and night, unwearied, just as plowmen await a raincloud.

When the fortnight of the departed spirits has passed, as long as the sun remains in Virgo, / so long the ancestors desire a śrāddha offered by their own sons.

Even when the sun has entered Libra, O king, some [ancestors] desire / a śrāddha offered by their descendants, overcome as they are with hunger and thirst.

When even that time has passed and the sun has entered Scorpio, / the destitute ancestors, bereft of hope, depart from there to their own abode.

For two months they wait, resorting to the doorways of houses, / having become spirits of wind, afflicted by thirst and emaciated by hunger, the ancestors of men,

as long as the sun has entered Virgo and remains in Libra, O protector of the earth, / and likewise on the new-moon day, O king, according to the word of Brahmā.

Therefore, śrāddha should always be performed by one who desires the satisfaction of the ancestors, / especially [offering] water with sesame seeds, according to the word of Brahmā, O king.

Even in the absence of wealth, a śrāddha should be given on the new-moon day by a wise person; / and in its absence, when the lord of the day is in Virgo;

and in its absence, one should indeed offer a śrāddha once at Gayā, / whereby one enjoys the fruit of a śrāddha offered constantly.

All this has been related to you as I was asked, O ruler of men, / by virtue of which this śrāddha is performed by people devoted to their ancestors,

especially on the new-moon day and during the fortnight of the departed spirits, O king.

And whoever hears or recites this holy origin of the śrāddha, / freed from all faults, he shall obtain the fruit of performing a śrāddha.

Whatever man recites this origin of the śrāddha at the time of a śrāddha, / that śrāddha of his shall become inexhaustible and free from all defects.

Even if performed with improper materials, or by unworthy brahmins, / or uneaten, or lacking in desire, or even devoid of mantras.

Everything becomes complete, O best of kings, by proclaiming / and even by listening to this origin of the śrāddha.

Thus ends the two hundred and sixteenth chapter, entitled "Description of the Origin of the Śrāddha," in the rules of śrāddha within the Māhātmya of the Hāṭakeśvara Kṣetra, in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa, the sixth [part] of the eighty-one-thousand-verse collection of the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa.