Tamil Nadu: Thousands throng Cauvery River banks on Mahalaya Amavasya

Thousands of devotees on Saturday thronged the Cauvery River banks on the auspicious day of Mahalaya Amavasya and offered prayers for their ancestors.

Purattasi is said to be an important day for the Hindus to remember, offer prayers and get blessings from their ancestors. From early in the morning, devotees started gathering at Amma Mandapam, Srirangam on the Cauvery River banks and offered prayers.

Mahalaya is celebrated at the end of Shradh or Pitru Paksha, a 16-day period when Hindus pay homage to their ancestors. Ammavasai falls every month but the Purattasi Mahalaya Ammavasai holds a special significance for the devotees.

The occasion is associated with different practices and rituals. Many people perform ‘tarpan’ on this day to offer prayers to the departed souls of their ancestors and give ‘bhog’ to the Brahmins, along with food and materials to the needy. The day is considered auspicious because Goddess Durga, accompanied by her children, is believed to have stepped on planet Earth on this day.

It is from this day that the Durga Puja fever begins. Durga Puja starts on the seventh day after Mahalaya and ends on the tenth day of Dashami or Dussehra.

Hindus believe that fasting and special pujas on the Amavasai day of every month will bring peace to their ancestors. It is the belief that if those who have not cherished their memory for a long time, fast and perform Pithur Karma Puja on this Mahalaya Amavasi day, their ancestors will find peace of mind and they will be happy and wish their family a good life.