Pitra dosh

Pitra dosh during pitru paksha: the 2027 dates and an astrologer for your shraddha day

Pitru paksha is the dark fortnight after Bhadrapada purnima, and families with a pitra dosh reading often time their shraddha and tarpan within it.

On an iPhone, log in on kismo.app in your browser.

18,000+ verified astrologers
From ₹15 a minute
5 free minutes on your first session
Chat or call, in 16+ languages
Updated 2026-11-03

Your astrologer

Online · chat

00:42

I was told I have pitra dosh. My grandfather died on an ashtami, but I do not know which paksha. Which day of pitru paksha should we do his shraddha?

If you know the death date, I can find the tithi from the panchang of that day. In pitru paksha his shraddha falls on krishna ashtami; if we cannot confirm it, families use Sarva Pitru Amavasya.

Type your question

Example of a consultation about pitra dosh on Kismo

Short answer

Pitru paksha 2027 runs from Bhadrapada purnima on 15 September, or pratipada on 16 September, to the amavasya of 29 to 30 September, calculated from astronomical data ¹. Each ancestor's shraddha falls on the tithi of their death, and Sarva Pitru Amavasya covers anyone whose tithi is unknown ². On Kismo, verified Vedic astrologers help you find the tithi by chat or call, online from anywhere.

Key facts

What are the key facts about pitra dosh?

	Answer
Pitru paksha 2027	Purnima shraddha Wed 15 Sep, pratipada Thu 16 Sep, amavasya tithi Wed 29 Sep 10:56 am to Thu 30 Sep 8:06 am IST (calculated) ¹
Pitru paksha 2026 (past)	26 September to Sarva Pitru Amavasya on 10 October 2026 ²³
Which day for whom	The tithi on which the ancestor died; Sarva Pitru Amavasya when it is not known ²
What is offered	Water with sesame, food, and pindas (rice or flour balls) ⁴⁵
Who can do it	A son, or the wife, a brother, a kinsman, a friend or the family priest ⁷
Session on Kismo	From ₹15 a minute, 5 free minutes in the first session, online from anywhere in India and abroad

Your situation

What decides which day of pitru paksha is right for my family?

The tithi of the death, not the calendar date. An ancestor who died on a krishna ashtami gets the ashtami of pitru paksha ².
Whether the tithi is known at all. If it is not, Sarva Pitru Amavasya is the day for everyone ².
Where you live. Tithi times shift with time zone, so a family in London or Toronto should use a panchang for its own city.
Your tradition's first day. Some families count from the purnima shraddha, others from pratipada, a day later ¹.

By the numbers

When is pitru paksha in 2027 and 2028?

Pitru paksha 2027 falls in mid to late September, eleven days earlier than in 2026. The dates below were calculated from public astronomical data with the open-source astronomia library, as the dark fortnight after Bhadrapada purnima, in Indian time ¹.

Year	Bhadrapada purnima tithi	Amavasya tithi
2026 (past)	25 Sep 11:07 pm to 26 Sep 10:19 pm	9 Oct 9:36 pm to 10 Oct 9:20 pm
2027	15 Sep 2:49 am to 16 Sep 4:34 am	29 Sep 10:56 am to 30 Sep 8:06 am
2028	3 Sep 2:53 am to 4 Sep 5:18 am	18 Sep 3:47 am to 11:54 pm

The 2026 amavasya matches the times a newspaper panchang printed, 9:35 pm to 9:19 pm, within a minute ³. Method: a lunar month is named from the Sun's sidereal sign at the new moon that opens it, Simha for Bhadrapada, and tithis are 12-degree steps of the Moon from the Sun ¹.

What the texts say

What do the grihya sutras and the Garuda Purana say about shraddha in the dark fortnight?

The grihya sutras place the main shraddha on the new-moon day, the day pitru paksha ends. The Ashvalayana Grihya Sutra names three kinds: the parvana shraddha, which its translator places on the new-moon day, one for good fortune, and one for a single dead person ⁴.

The Sankhayana Grihya Sutra says the offering to the fathers is made every month ⁵. It asks for an uneven number of learned guests, at least three, sesame strewn into water pots, and lumps of flour offered after the meal ⁵.

The Garuda Purana sets the yearly rite and the lunar day. After the first year, three rice balls are offered every year, and verses 97 to 99 give rules for those who died on particular lunar days ⁶. Verses 111 to 115 describe the forefathers hoping for a descendant who offers pindas at Gaya ⁶.

Text	What it sets	Pitru paksha named?
Ashvalayana Grihya Sutra IV.7 ⁴	Three kinds of shraddha; sesame water with the word svadha	No
Sankhayana Grihya Sutra IV.1 ⁵	A monthly offering, at least three guests, flour pindas	No
Garuda Purana XIII ⁶	Yearly shraddha, rules by lunar day, Gaya	No
Free Press Journal, 2026 ²	The ancestor's death tithi within pitru paksha; Sarva Pitru Amavasya for the rest	Yes

None of the three texts opened here names pitru paksha as such. The fortnight is the practice families follow today, built on the new-moon and lunar-day rules these texts set ².

Day by day

Which tithi falls on which day of pitru paksha 2027?

Each day of pitru paksha 2027 carries one or two tithis, shown here at 6:15 am and 2 pm Indian time ¹. Panchangs fix a shraddha day by their own rule, so check yours for a day where the two differ.

Wed 15 Sep
Purnima all day: purnima shraddha ¹.
Thu 16 Sep
Krishna pratipada at 6:15 am and 2 pm ¹.
Fri 17 to Sat 18 Sep
Dwitiya on Friday; Saturday starts in dwitiya and turns to tritiya by 2 pm ¹.
Sun 19 to Tue 21 Sep
Tritiya, chaturthi and panchami at sunrise; shashthi is in force by 2 pm on Tuesday ¹.
Wed 22 to Mon 27 Sep
Saptami, ashtami, navami, dashami, ekadashi and dwadashi, one a day ¹.
Tue 28 Sep
Trayodashi at sunrise, chaturdashi by 2 pm ¹.
Wed 29 Sep
Chaturdashi at sunrise; amavasya from 10:56 am ¹.
Thu 30 Sep
Amavasya at sunrise, ending 8:06 am ¹.

Myths and facts

What do people get wrong about this?

Belief: Shraddha for pitra dosh can only be done during pitru paksha.

The Sankhayana Grihya Sutra describes an offering to the fathers every month ⁵, and the Garuda Purana a yearly one ⁶.

Belief: If you do not know when an ancestor died, you cannot do their shraddha.

Sarva Pitru Amavasya, the last day of the fortnight, is used for ancestors whose death tithi is unknown ².

Before you pay anyone

How do you know an astrologer is genuine?

Every Kismo astrologer passes four steps: qualification review, panel interview, live audits of real sessions, 30-day probation.
Nobody can guarantee an outcome. Treat any promise of a fixed result as a red flag.
Never pay for an expensive puja or ritual under pressure. Get a second opinion first.
On Kismo you only pay for the minutes you use; misconduct, pressure or a request for money outside the app is handled by a person.

How we verify astrologers · How these pages are written

Astrologers for this

Which astrologers can I talk to about pitra dosh?

Mariyammal k
Vedic Astrology, Prashna Astrology · 4 yrs
Tamil
★ 5.0 · 5,999 orders · ₹25/min
Shri nath guru ji
Vedic Astrology, Prashna Astrology · 8 yrs
Hindi
★ 4.9 · 5,992 orders · ₹20/min
Rishabh Pharswan
Vedic Astrology, Life Coach · 5 yrs
English, Hindi
★ 4.5 · 5,991 orders · ₹25/min
Chhaya yadav
Vedic Astrology · 3 yrs
Hindi
★ 4.5 · 5,989 orders · ₹25/min
Shubham Bhandari
Vedic Astrology · 2 yrs
English, Hindi, Punjabi
★ 4.5 · 5,989 orders · ₹30/min

Talk to Mariyammal Get it on Google Play

How it works

How does a consultation on Kismo work?

Log in on kismo.app or get the app from Google Play.
Pick an astrologer who speaks your language and works with your question.
Share your date, time and place of birth.
Ask by chat or call. The first session carries 5 free minutes, then each minute is billed from your wallet.

Questions worth asking in the session

On which tithi did my father or grandparent die, from the date I have?
Which day of pitru paksha 2027 is that tithi in my city?
Does anything in my chart call for Gaya shraddha, or is home shraddha enough?
Which of us in the family should do the tarpan?
What can we do each month on amavasya after pitru paksha ends?

Before you book

What should I know before booking a session about pitra dosh?

Question	Answer
What does a session cost?	Each astrologer sets one rate for chat and call, from ₹15 a minute. A 10-minute session at ₹15 a minute costs ₹150 (October 2026).
Is the first session free?	5 free minutes on the first session, no card.
Chat or call?	Both. You choose when you start the session.
Do I need an exact birth time?	It helps. Without one an astrologer can still read your Moon sign and planets by sign, or work out the time with you.
Is my chat private?	Your chat is not shown to other clients. How Kismo handles your data is set out in its privacy policy at kismo.app/privacy.
What if I am not happy?	There is no refund for a reading you did not like. Misconduct, pressure or a request for money outside Kismo is handled by a person.
Where does it work?	Online, from anywhere in India and abroad. People use Kismo from 80+ countries.

What else do people ask an astrologer about?

Compare

How does Kismo compare with other apps?

FAQ

Questions people ask

When is pitru paksha in 2027?

Pitru paksha 2027 runs from the purnima shraddha on Wednesday 15 September, or pratipada on Thursday 16 September, to the amavasya of 29 to 30 September. The amavasya tithi lasts from 10:56 am on 29 September to 8:06 am on 30 September, Indian time, as calculated from public astronomical data. Check your local panchang for the exact Sarva Pitru Amavasya day.

Which day of pitru paksha should I do shraddha for my father?

Do it on the tithi of pitru paksha that matches the tithi on which your father died. Find his death tithi in a panchang for the day he passed, then the same krishna paksha tithi in the fortnight. If the tithi cannot be found, families use Sarva Pitru Amavasya, the last day.

I don't know the tithi on which my grandparent died. What do we do?

Use Sarva Pitru Amavasya, also called Mahalaya Amavasya, which is kept for ancestors whose tithi is unknown. In 2027 the amavasya tithi runs from the late morning of 29 September to early on 30 September. An astrologer can also work out the tithi if you know the calendar date of death.

Can I do tarpan at home during pitru paksha without a pandit?

Yes, many families offer water with sesame at home, the core of tarpan in the grihya sutras. The Garuda Purana also lets the wife, a brother, a kinsman or a friend do the rites when there is no son. A priest helps with the full ritual, but water, sesame and food cost almost nothing.

Is it bad if a baby is born during pitru paksha?

No, none of the texts read for this page treats a birth in pitru paksha as a problem. A child born in the fortnight has a birth chart read the same way as any other. If someone links the birth date to a dosha and asks for money, get a second opinion first.

Can we buy new things or fix a wedding date during pitru paksha?

Many families avoid weddings and big purchases in pitru paksha, but none of the texts opened for this page sets that rule. It is a family custom more than a chart question. Ask your family priest what your tradition follows, and choose a wedding muhurat after the fortnight if your elders prefer it.

Can a Kismo astrologer tell me my ancestor's shraddha tithi?

Yes, a Kismo astrologer can find the death tithi from the date and place of death and match it to pitru paksha. Kismo is an app where you talk to verified Vedic astrologers by chat or call, in 16 languages. Rates start at ₹15 a minute, and the first session carries 5 free minutes.

Someone says pitru paksha is my only chance to clear pitra dosh and quotes a big fee. Is that true?

No, pitru paksha is not the only time: the grihya sutras describe a monthly offering, and the Garuda Purana a yearly one. Pressure to pay before a deadline is a warning sign. Get a second opinion first; on Kismo, after a session you are suggested up to three other astrologers.