Prayagraj: For those who want to perform rituals for their ancestors during Pitru Paksha but are unable to visit Prayagraj, a group of teerth purohits has come up with a ‘Pitru Package’ that combines pilgrimage arrangements with pind daan and tarpan facilities in Prayagraj, Kashi and Gaya.As per religious tradition, after Prayagraj, pind daan is performed in Kashi (Varanasi) and Gaya. The package, launched by teerth purohits associated with Jai Triveni Jai Prayag Seva Samiti, will include arrangements for purohits, travel, accommodation and food at the three pilgrimage centres.For those unable to visit Prayagraj during Pitru Paksha, the purohits will also conduct online pind daan at Sangam through WhatsApp video calls.Under the arrangement, devotees will have to join the ritual through a video call from wherever they are. The purohits will perform the rituals at Sangam using the name and gotra of the person and conduct tarpan and pind daan on their behalf. The devotees can later visit Prayagraj and have the pind daan performed again. The service is being publicised through social media.Committee president and teerth purohit Pradeep Pandey said many people wanted to perform rituals for their ancestors during Pitru Paksha but could not travel to Prayagraj because of work and other commitments. Those who do come often face difficulties in finding a purohit and arranging accommodation and food, he said.“Keeping these difficulties in mind, we decided to start the ‘Pitru Package’. We will not charge people a hefty amount. The rituals will be performed in return for a donation according to their wish,” Pandey said.Under the online arrangement, people living in other cities and abroad will perform the puja at their location while the purohits conduct tarpan and pind daan at Sangam through WhatsApp Live. The devotees will preserve the puja material used at their end and bring it to Prayagraj later for immersion.The organisers said NRIs observing Pitru Paksha will also be encouraged to follow a simple lifestyle for the 15-day period, including offering water to their ancestors every morning, avoiding meat and alcohol and having ‘satvik’ food.For those unaware of the exact death date of an ancestor, tarpan and pind daan will be performed on Amavasya based on the person’s name and gotra.According to Vishwa Purohit Parishad president Bipin Pandey, ancestors are believed to visit the earth during Pitru Paksha to receive food from their descendants and attain liberation.“This is why pind daan, tarpan, havan and food donation are considered especially significant during Pitru Paksha,” he said.
