Mahalaya Today: Devotees Perform Pinda Daan to Honour Ancestors

Bureau: The sacred occasion of Mahalaya is being observed today, with devotees performing Pinda Daan rituals to pay homage to their ancestors. Devotees will offer pindas at various holy ponds and pilgrimage sites. In Puri, rituals will be performed along the Mahodadhi (Bay of Bengal) and at several sacred water bodies.

According to traditional customs, devotees prepare pindas using flour and offer them to their ancestors. It is also customary to serve Mahaprasad to Brahmins on this occasion. There is a religious belief that these rituals help ancestors attain salvation.

Mahalaya also provides an opportunity for those who are unable to perform Pinda Daan on the prescribed death anniversary of their ancestors to carry out the rituals and pay their respects on this auspicious day.