The ancestors & Devi Durga
Mahalaya
The hinge of the year: ancestors honoured at dawn, and the Mother invited by the same breath.
Tithi: Sarva Pitru Amavasya, Ashwin Amavasya (north) · Sarva Pitru Amavasya, Bhadrapada Amavasya (west & south) — the same night
Which calendar do you follow?
The bright fortnight is named the same everywhere. A dark fortnight belongs to one month in the north and to the month before it in Maharashtra, Gujarat and the south: the same night, two true names. Saved only on this device.
In the simplest words
The morning Durga sets out for earth: Bengal wakes before dawn to hear Mahishasura Mardini on the radio, and pitru paksha ends.
The story & purpose
Mahalaya closes Pitru Paksha with Sarva Pitru Amavasya, the amavasya on which tarpan reaches every ancestor, named and unnamed, remembered and forgotten. Millions stand in rivers at dawn with til and water; whatever was left undone toward the dead is set right today.
The rest of the story
The same day, Devi Paksha opens. In Bengal, Mahalaya IS the 4 a.m. radio: Birendra Krishna Bhadra's Mahishasura-mardini chanted since 1931, at which the goddess is said to set out for her earthly home. Sculptors paint Durga's eyes today, the chokkhu daan, and the pandals hold their breath.
What is done
Tarpan
Water and black til offered at dawn facing south, with the ancestors' names, or for all ancestors together.
Anna-daan
Food for the day's guests, brahmins and the poor, and the five bali portions set out for the cow, the dog, the crow, the ants and the devas.
Chandi-path
Mahishasura-mardini or Durga Saptashati heard at dawn, the Devi Paksha begun with her own hymn.
Best timings
Tarpan in the morning; shraddha in the afternoon (aparahna), as the shastra prefers; the Chandi path at brahma-muhurta.
Exact muhurat varies by city and tradition; for the precise hour, consult a local panchang for your location.
Worth knowing
The radio broadcast, now past ninety years old, still tops Bengal's listening charts once a year.
Tarpan at Kolkata's ghats and Prayag's sangam runs shoulder to shoulder for kilometres.
In Karnataka and Andhra this amavasya is Mahalaya Amavasye, kept with tarpana; in Telangana, Bathukamma opens on it the same evening.
Mantras of this festival
ॐ पितृभ्यो नमः
Pitru nama-mantra
Begin jaap →ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः
Shanti mantra — threefold peace
Begin jaap →या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शक्तिरूपेण संस्थिता । नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥
Ya Devi Sarva Bhuteshu
Begin jaap →ॐ ऐं ह्रीं क्लीं चामुण्डायै विच्चे
Navarna mantra
Begin jaap →ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वः तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यं भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात्
Gayatri mantra
Begin jaap →Note: 2027: Drik Panchang and most lists give 29 Sep; the amavasya tithi runs into 30 Sep and a few lists use that day. Local panchang decides.