Learn the divine story of the Ninth Shraddha, a special observance that holds great spiritual significance, where devotees offer prayers and rituals to ensure peace and prosperity for their ancestors.
A popular mythological story related to Shraddha originates from the Mahabharata era. After the war between the Kauravas and Pandavas ended and Karna, the charitable warrior, passed away, he reached heaven. There, he was served gold, silver, and jewelry as food. Surprised, Karna asked Lord Indra the reason behind this. Lord Indra explained that during his lifetime, Karna had donated wealth, gold, and jewels, but he had never offered food to his ancestors (Anna Daan). As a result, he was being served this unusual meal. Karna admitted he had no knowledge about his ancestors, which made him unable to perform such rituals. To rectify this, Indra sent Karna back to Earth for 16 days so he could provide food offerings to his ancestors and perform Tarpan. Karna did as instructed and repaid his Pitru Rin (ancestral debt). This freed him from the debt and granted him salvation. It is believed that this marked the beginning of the Shraddha ritual, which continues on Earth to this day.
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