Pitri

Feeding birds, dogs, cows and those in need symbolizing that our present well-being is built upon the sacrifices of those who came before us.

During Pitrapaksha, the focus shifts entirely towards honoring ancestors who are otherwise called as Pitrus, expressing gratitude and maintaining a reflective, humble lifestyle.

certain do's and don'ts during Pitra Bhaksha.

Perform dharpan and shraddha of water mixed with black sesame seeds or til seeds and kushagras daily or on specific titis for your ancestors who have passed away.

You would have seen that even the lighting of that fire is done in the most traditional way by rubbing two pieces of wood together.

In the 1960s, when Swami went to Badrina, there was this one particular place called Brahma Kapal, still is there, to offer worship to Pitrus, that is your ancestors who have moved on.

That place is very sacred for that.

And when Swami stopped at that place, Swami made the entire group do Pitru Puja there.

It is growth and decay, life and death.

When the Mahapralaya arrives, the inhabitants of Svarloka, the upper sphere, disturbed by the conflagration, seek refuge, quote, with the Pitris, their progenitors, the Manus, the seven Rishis, the various orders of celestial spirits and the gods in Maharloka, end quote.

When the latter is reached also, the whole of the above enumerated beings migrate in their turn from Maharloka and repair to Janaloka, quote, in their subtle forms, destined to become re-embodied in similar capacities as their former, when the world is renewed at the beginning of the succeeding Kalpa, end quote.

Quote, clouds, mighty in size and loud in thunder, fill up all space, Napas tala.

Eastern esotericism has never degraded the one infinite deity, the container of all things, to such uses, and this is shown by the absence of Brahma from the Rig Veda and the modest positions occupied therein by Rudra and Vishnu, who became the powerful and great gods, the infinites of the exoteric creeds ages later.

But even they, creators as they all three may be, are not the direct creators and forefathers of men.

The latter are shown occupying a still lower scale and are called the Prajapatis, the Pitris, our lunar ancestors, etc., but never the one infinite god.

Esoteric philosophy shows only physical man as created in the image of the deity, which deity, however, is only the minor gods.

This is called Brahmayagya.

And then swadha, of listening to the four fathers, pitri, pitri yajna.

And swaha, doing yajna for the devatas, this is deva yajna.

And bali, offering to the other living beings, this is called bhuta yajna.

After explaining the duties in case of emergency, again Krishna is describing the essential activities or duties of a grihastha.

Veda dhyane in a rishin, by doing study of the Vedas, Satisfy the sages.

By doing oblations for the pitris, by chanting swadha, one pleases the forefathers.

By doing yajna in which swaha is chanted, devas are pleased.

This comes from Vedic astrology specifically.

Why? Because Magha's ancestry is Pitrus, the ancestors.

So they have a great, they're very traditional as they come.

They're great traditionalists.

They value their family's legacy and may seek partners who also prioritize family values.

Right? So, everything is about family for Magha Nakshatra.

Why? Because it is deity is ruled by Pitrus.

See? Pitru means everything about ancestry, everything about your family lineage, everything about your family tradition.

Right? So he is Daksha.

And among the Pitris, Pitris are called what? Forefathers.

I am Aryama.

In Gita also he says Aryama, Pitrinam Aryama, Jasmin.

So after you have all of that, it's not just crops and cattle.

It's also like experiences of celestial musicians, experiences of drinking beer with Leonidas in like Pitriloka.

Like until you have all of these things, it's hard to conceive of like another goal.

So in the tantric world, we argue like most people aren't interested in the thing that they say they're interested in, they're only interested in that because of a lack of imagination.

For the Deva world flames up, as it were.

By those which, when offered, make an excessive noise, he gains the Pitri, Father world.

For the Pitri world is excessively noisy.

By those which, when offered, sink down, he gains the Manushya, Man world.

For the Manushya world is, as it were, down below." "Yajnavalkya," he said, "with how many deities does the Brahman priest on the right protect today this sacrifice?" "By one," replied Yajnavalkya.