The 16th samskara. Translates the deceased from preta (unsettled ghost) to pitru (ancestor) via 13 days of disciplined kriya - pinda, tarpana, brahmana-bhojana, sapindikarana. 9 pre-cremation steps + 13 days of shraddha + 5 recurring annual variants. Reference compiled from Garuda Purana (Preta-kanda), Yajnavalkya Smriti, and regional grihya-sutras.
№ 1
Last moments - Antarjali snana · अन्तर्जलि स्नान
Place the dying person on the ground near the Tulasi plant. Drop Ganga jal into the mouth. Place a Tulasi leaf on the head. Read or whisper the Vishnu Sahasranama / Garuda Purana into the ear.
№ 2
Body preparation · मरण-संस्कार
Bathe the body. Anoint with sandalwood paste. Dress in fresh white cotton (some traditions: yellow for unmarried + saffron for sannyasis). Apply tilak - vibhuti for Shaivas, urdhva-pundra for Vaishnavas.
№ 3
Pranayam · प्राणायाम
The eldest son or chief mourner performs three pranayamas + sankalpa to undertake the antyeshti.
№ 4
Procession (yatra) to shmashana · यात्रा
Bier (arthi) carried by four family members - head pointing south (towards Yama). Chief mourner walks ahead carrying the kapala-kunda (clay pot of fire from the home).
№ 5
Apasavya circumambulation · अपसव्य
Pradakshina around the pyre - counter-clockwise (apasavya) instead of the usual clockwise. The cosmic direction is reversed for death.
№ 6
Mukhagni · मुखाग्नि
Chief mourner lights the pyre at the mouth (mukha) - final samskara of agni. The kapala-kunda flame from home is the source. The Sanskrit mantra "kṛtavāṃs tat sukṛtaṃ pretam" is recited.
№ 7
Kapala-kriya · कपाल क्रिया
About 1.5 hours into the cremation, the chief mourner cracks the skull with a bamboo staff. Releases the prana that has been retained in the brahma-randhra.
№ 8
Asthi sanchayana · अस्थि सञ्चयन
After cremation, the bones (asthi) are collected - typically 3 days after, before the bones are dispersed. Stored in a clay pot.
№ 9
Asthi-visarjana · अस्थि विसर्जन
The bones are immersed in a sacred river - preferably Ganga at Kashi (Manikarnika) or Prayagraj (Triveni Sangam) or Haridwar (Har-ki-Pauri). For South India: Rameshwaram, Tirthayatra Kanyakumari, or any major tirtha.
DAY 1
Cremation day · Snana + sutaka · दाह संस्कार
After cremation, all family members bathe (snana) outside the home. The household enters ashaucha (ritual impurity, sutaka); how long it is observed, and by whom, varies by relationship, tradition and family practice - ask your family priest. No worship of household deities; the diyas at the puja-griha are extinguished.
Key mantra: aśiraskāya namo namaḥ - to the headless form
Practical note: The chief mourner shaves his head (mundana) on the cremation day or the next morning. White cotton clothing, no leather, no oil-bath, no perfume while the observance lasts - how long that is varies by tradition and family practice.
DAY 2
Asthi-sanchayana · अस्थि सञ्चयन
Visit cremation ground at dawn. Collect the asthi (bones). Pour water + milk over the ashes. Wrap the asthi in fresh red cotton. Place in a clay pot (asthi-kalasha). Store in a clean room till asthi-visarjana.
Practical note: In modern crematoria, the bones are returned in an urn - the family proceeds with the same care.
DAY 3
Asthi-visarjana (often combined with day 2) · अस्थि विसर्जन
Carry the asthi to a sacred river. Recite the Garuda Purana antyeshti mantras. Immerse the bones with chanting of "om gangāya namaḥ" and the deceased's name + gotra + nakshatra.
Practical note: Commonly done between days 3 and 10. Some lineages avoid particular days on ashaucha grounds, and which days those are varies by tradition - ask your family priest. Kashi + Prayagraj + Haridwar + Rameshwaram are the most-blessed sites.
DAY 4
Pinda-dana - daily begins · पिण्डदान आरम्भ
Daily till day 10. Cooked rice balls (pinda) with sesame seeds + ghee + honey offered to the preta. Performed near a river/lake/well. The chief mourner offers 3 pindas daily - to the deceased's preta, to the lineage pitrus (Brahma-loka), and to Dharmaraja (Yama).
Key mantra: preta-rūpāya namaḥ - to the preta form
Practical note: In simplified modern practice, families often consolidate the daily offerings into a single 10th-day kriya by the purohita.
DAY 5
Pinda-dana day 2 · पिण्डदान २
Same as day 4. The preta's subtle body grows one limb each day from the daily offerings - head → neck → shoulder → arms → torso → waist → thighs → knees → calves → feet by day 10.
Practical note: No oil-massage. No haircut. Family meals are sattvic - no onion, no garlic, no asafoetida, no sour foods.
DAY 6
Pinda-dana day 3 · पिण्डदान ३
Same.
Practical note: Garuda Purana parayana ideally read at home in the evenings - preta-kanda first.
DAY 7
Pinda-dana day 4 · पिण्डदान ४
Same.
Practical note: Some lineages perform navagraha shanti on day 7 - Saturday-aligned in the year.
DAY 8
Pinda-dana day 5 · पिण्डदान ५
Same.
Practical note: Family begins to come out of strict sutaka - neighbours may visit briefly.
DAY 9
Pinda-dana day 6 · पिण्डदान ६
Same.
Practical note: In some traditions, day 9 = Maha-Pinda - extra pindas offered.
DAY 10
Dasha-gatra · Vrishotsarga · दशगात्र · वृषोत्सर्ग
The preta has now received its complete subtle body (10 days × 1 limb). The chief mourner releases a bull (vrishotsarga) - symbolically, since real bull-release is rare today (substituted by gau-dana = gift of a cow to a brahmana or to a goshala). The dasha-pinda is offered, completing the daily series.
Key mantra: om pretāya svadhā namaḥ
Practical note: Sutaka begins to end. Family may take a hot oil bath at dawn. Vrishotsarga in modern times = gau-dana via SevaCart / temple / goshala.
DAY 11
Ekadashaha · Vasodaka + Prashana · एकादशाहं
Eleventh-day rituals. Vasodaka (water offered with the deceased's favourite cloth as wick), shayya-dana (gift of a bed + bedding to a brahmana - symbolic furnishing of the preta's new abode), pinda offered with darbha + sesame. The preta begins its 12-day journey to Yamaloka.
Practical note: Mahabrahmana (a specific brahmana who accepts the danas of an unsettled preta) is invited. His acceptance is itself part of the deceased's transition - a difficult task, hence the high dakshina.
DAY 12
Dvadashaha · Sapindikarana · द्वादशाहं · सपिण्डीकरण
The single great Sapindikarana - the new preta-pinda is mixed with three older pindas representing the father, grandfather, and great-grandfather lineage. With one ritual, the deceased becomes a pitru and joins the three previous generations. The great-great-grandfather "drops off" into the deeper lineage.
Key mantra: om pitṛbhyaḥ svadhā namaḥ - to the ancestors, offering svadha
Practical note: This is the most important kriya. After Sapindikarana, the deceased is no longer a preta - he/she is a pitru. The household begins eating regular food again. The deity diyas at the puja-griha are re-lit.
DAY 13
Trayodashaha · Shantikarana + brahmana-bhojana · त्रयोदशाह
Shanti-karma (peace ritual) - yagna with mantras for the household. Brahmana-bhojana - invite an odd number of brahmanas (5, 7, 11, 13). Feed them till satiation. Each is then offered dakshina. Family members eat after. With this, the antyeshti is formally complete.
Practical note: Some lineages compress days 11-13 into a single day of work (with the purohita's sanction) for practical reasons.
Masika shraddha · मासिक श्राद्ध
When: Once a month for the first year on the death-tithi.
Pinda + tarpana + brahmana-bhojana. Marks the first year of pitru-status.
Pratyabdika shraddha · प्रत्याब्दिक श्राद्ध
When: Annually on the death-tithi forever.
The main annual remembrance. Pinda offered on the death-day each year. Family fasts till the kriya completes.
Mahalaya Paksha · महालय पक्ष
When: Krishna paksha of Bhadrapada (Sep) - 15 days till Mahalaya Amavasya.
The fortnight when all ancestors descend to receive offerings. Tarpana every day with the deceased's tithi as the strongest day. Mahalaya Amavasya = supreme pitru-day of the year.
Pitru-paksha tarpana · पितृपक्ष तर्पण
When: Same fortnight (variant naming).
Each day reserved for a different relation - e.g. Chaturthi for maternal uncle, Panchami for father-in-law, etc. Caste-specific calendar varies.
Hiranya shraddha · हिरण्य श्राद्ध
When: Substitute when full shraddha is not feasible (travel, illness).
Money + dakshina + cooked food offered to the family purohita who performs the kriya on behalf of the host.
