Hindu Law and Custom (Recht und Sitte) c11.35

c11.35

Evolution of Śrāddha from older institutions. Caland seems to have found the thread of Ariadne in this labyrinth¹. Thus the Śrāddha in which three invited Brahmans, considered to be the representatives of father, grandfather and great-grandfather, are entertained, is originated from the Pinḍapitryajña appearing in older sources, in which the same ceremonies take place but are directed towards the fathers supposed to be present there in spirit. The latter sacrifice seems on its side to go back to the Pitryajña mentioned already in the Vedic Saṁhitās in which yet no Pinḍas were offered and the "fathers" collectively, without the restriction to the three male ascendants of the sacrificer, were invoked. That the motive of the sacrifice to the dead is merely the fear of the spirits of the dead (*preta*), is indicated, for instance, by the belief that they would return to the earth and annoy their relatives if no sacrifices are performed for them (Vi. 20, 32).