The portion of food — usually rice with sesame and ghee — offered to crows for the ancestors, traditionally before the family eats.

What if no crow comes?

The offering is made with the names regardless; if food remains, it is shared with other birds and animals, never wasted.

Kaka Bali Online — Crow Feeding (Kakkaikku Sadam, Kaki Annam)

Kaka Bali — food for the crows, the messengers of the ancestors

Rice with black sesame and ghee, set out on a leaf at dawn in India and offered to the crows as the first portion for your Pitrs — with their names spoken aloud.

Also known as: Kakkaikku Sadam (Tamil), Kaki Annam (Telugu), Kaage Anna (Kannada), Kag Bhog or Kauwa Bhojan (Hindi)

What is included

Sankalpa with your ancestors' names and gotra
Freshly cooked rice with sesame and ghee on a banana leaf
Offered to crows at dawn in India
Photographs and video, or join live

When families offer it

During Pitru Paksha, especially on your ancestor's tithi
Mahalaya Amavasya and every Amavasya
A parent's annual shraddha day
Whenever you wish to remember someone

Why the crow?

In Hindu tradition the crow is regarded as a messenger between the living and the ancestors. A portion of the Shradh meal — Kaka Bali — is always offered to crows first, and when a crow accepts it, families take it as a sign that the ancestors are content.

In many homes this was a daily habit. If you grew up with it and now live somewhere crows are rare, this is a way to keep the practice alive. Read more: Why do Hindus feed crows during Shradh?

How it works

Tell us their names — the departed, your gotra if known, and the day to observe.
A priest takes the sankalpa at dawn in India and the offering is made.
Join live or receive the recording — photographs and video, the same day.