Part 4 - Atithi in Śrāddha

Śrāddha is a sacrifice offered to the departed souls. Manu who enjoins śrāddha also says that the pitṛs should be honoured by offering food, rice, water, milk, fruit or by feeding one Brahmin.^[1] Thus tarppaṇa and śrāddha would appear to be two modes of worshipping the forefathers. Normally śrāddha is offered to a dead person; but the Purāṇa has made provision of performing a śrāddha even when a person is alive. It is known as Jīvacchrādhavidhi. It is as good as offering śrāddha to oneself while he is alive. This type is highly spoken of and glorified by the Purāṇas.

Atithi-saparyā is a part of śrāddha. A reference of atithi-saparyā at the time of śrāddha can be seen in Viṣṇumahāpurāṇa. The guests are to be reverentially received with water for their feet and the like; and the entertainer, holding holy grass in his hand, is to place them, after they have rinsed their mouths, up on seats.^[2]

Manusmṛti says that, give food to the brāhmaṇātithi and a brāhmaṇabhikṣu at the time of śrāddha with the permission of śrāddhabrāhmaṇas.^[3] Kātyāyanasmṛti says that one should feed at least one Brahmin for accomplishing the pitṛyajña.^[4]