Brahm Bhoj (Feast for the Brahmins)

Brahm-bhoj is also called Pithaar, The feast for the Brahmins, is a unique ritual of feeding Brahmins. It is considered auspicious and is practiced on occasions as diverse as a child’s birth, Upanayana (the sacred thread ceremony for a young boy), marriage , Anushthan (worship of Saturn), various poojas and even Death. When a person in the family is deceased, the Brahmins are feed and it is considered that the food they have partaken in goes directly to the deceased individual.

In the caste system, Brahmins are supposed to be the uppermost caste and associated with the performance of all the Vedic rituals. The basic idea behind Brahm-bhoj is to get their blessings. The family members usually participate in serving the Brahmins.

Guru Granth Sahib Ji says we should honour our ancestors while they are alive, because in the end nothing will reach the dead. 

He does not honor his ancestors while they are alive, but he holds feasts in their honor after they have died. Tell me, how can his poor ancestors receive what the crows and the dogs have eaten up? 

If only someone would tell me what real happiness is! Speaking of happiness and joy, the world is perishing. How can happiness be found? 

Making gods and goddesses out of clay, people sacrifice living beings to them. Such are your dead ancestors, who cannot ask for what they want.

You murder living beings and worship lifeless things; at your very last moment, you shall suffer in terrible pain. You do not know the value of the Lord’s Name; you shall drown in the terrifying world-ocean. 

You worship gods and goddesses, but you do not know the Supreme Lord God. Says Kabeer, you have not remembered the Lord who has no ancestors; you are clinging to your corrupt ways.

Guru Granth Sahib Ji, page 332

The thief robs a house, and offers the stolen goods to his ancestors. In the world hereafter, this is recognized, and his ancestors are considered thieves as well. The hands of the go-between are cut off; this is the Lord's justice. O Nanak, in the world hereafter, that alone is received, which one gives to the needy from his own earnings and labor. 

Guru Granth Sahib Ji, page 472