Legends of Shraddh Paksha: Karna, Yama and Indra Legend about Pitru Paksha!

In Hinduism, the souls of three generations of one's ancestors live in Pitriloka, a place between heaven and earth. Yama, the deity of death, governs this world and transports a dead man's soul from Earth to Pitriloka. Only those three generations get Shraddha ceremonies, in which Yama plays an important role. In Pitru Paksha, prayers are performed to bring about moksha for both the ancestors and those conducting the rituals.

According to our Purans, Pitru Paksha enhances the enjoyment of souls remaining in heaven before undergoing samsara or rebirth, or lessens the suffering of those in other worlds; if those souls took another birth immediately after their deaths, Shraddha enhances their happiness in their new birth.

 

Karna and Indra Legend about Pitru Paksha:

When the renowned donor Karna died in the epic Mahabharata conflict and his soul went to heaven, he got extremely hungry, but any meal he touched turned into gold instantaneously. Karna and Surya went to Indra and inquired about the origin of the problem. Indra told Karna that he had donated gold all his life but had never given food to his ancestors in Shraddha. As a result, the Kuru ancestors who were trapped in limbo cursed him.

Karna stated that because he was unaware of his ancestry, he never gave anything in their remembrance. To make apologies, Karna was allowed to return to Earth for 15 days to do shraddha and donate food and water in their remembrance. This era is currently referred to as Pitru Paksha.

Karna and Yama Legend about Pitru Paksha:

Once upon a time, Karna, a famous warrior, was killed in combat. During his tenure on Earth, he was incredibly generous and bestowed costly gems, gold, and silver on the brahmins. His soul rose to heaven when he died. Karna's spirit was continuously served precious diamonds, gold, and immaculate silver, perplexing it. Tired and annoyed by hunger and thirst, Karna's soul went to Yama and asked him why he wasn't provided food and water. This is when Lord Yama informed Karna's soul that during his time on Earth, he only offered gems and rare metals, never food or water.

Karna's spirit was saddened at hearing this. Yama then briefed him on the Shradh method and gave him fifteen days to remedy his mistake by bringing food and drink to his deceased ancestors and asking for forgiveness with pure determination; only then would his soul be released and earn moksha. Karna's soul did exactly as Yama requested, and the process of finishing Shradh has been followed ever since.