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Saturday, December 11, 2010
Indian Wedding

INDIAN WEDDING CEREMONY.

Indian Hindu families today, traditions and customs still play an important role in life. Indian weddings, for instance, consist of many traditional customs and ceremonies which the bride and bridegroom and their families have to go through before and on the actual wedding day.


Indian weddings are very bright and colorful  events, filled with ritual and celebration, that continue for several days. They are generally not small affairs, with anywhere between 100 to 10,000 people attending the wedding ceremony. Oftentimes it is possible that many of the attendees are unknown to the bride and groom themselves. Though most Indian marriages are arranged, some couples in urban areas have what are known as "love marriages", where the partners decide to marry each other without family involvement or assistance. The traditional Indian wedding is more regarding about two families being brought together socially, with much less emphasis on the individuals involved. Many of the wedding customs are common among Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and even Muslims. They are a combination of local, religious and family traditions.


Pre-wedding Ceremony


The first significant pre-wedding ceremony is when the two families meet to confirm the proposed marriage. It is done in the presence of elders and sometimes a priest. Then, a few days before the wedding, there will be a bangle-ceremony where the family of the bridegroom went to the bride's home with bangles for the bride. It is also now that the hands of the bride are decorated by henna or mehndi.


Next is the smelting of gold for the thali, which is the one of the most revered symbol of marriage (along with the red pottu). This is performed as close to the wedding day as possible since the bride and groom traditionally cannot meet again until the actual wedding day. The smelting is performed by a goldsmith. A small nugget of gold provided by the groom is melted and used to form part of the thali. A few days later, prayers are held at the bridegroom's home with the thali. A similar henna-decorating ceremony takes place for the bridegroom.



 
picture credit(s): York Place Studios Professional Photography



Wedding Day Customs


On the actual wedding day, the groom's relatives will go to the bride's home and accompany her to the temple. Meanwhile, the groom arrives with the best man, usually the bride's brother, and followed by three matrons, each carrying a tray. One tray contains three coconuts, with their husks removed.


When the groom and best man are seated, the priest will begin the ceremony with chanting and blessings. Then he will tie a piece of cord round the groom's finger. About half an hour after the start of the ceremony, the bride arrives. The  couple sits on a bench in front which placed on the floor, are two kuthu-vilakku or "lamps", a ceremonial fire and various trays containing fruits and flowers. At one point during the ceremony, the priest will tie a piece of cord around the bride's finger to bring her into the ceremony and to unite her with the groom. The sari and thali which are given to the bride by the groom are blessed. The bride then leaves the hall to change. Dates, rock sugar and saffron rice are handed round to all the guests during the bride's went to change. The garlands that the couple will wear afterwards are also sent around to be blessed by the guests.


When the bride returns in her new sari dresses, the groom ties the thali around her neck. The musical instruments started to play and the saffron rice is thrown at the couple as blessings. The married couple then exchange garlands. The couple now walks round the ceremonial fire three times, throwing a handful of grains into the fire at each circling. This keeps the fire burning and is symbolic of the eternal flame of love. During the circling of the fire, the groom will place the bride's foot on a stone and slip toe-rings onto his bride's toes. The priest then asks the bride to honour, love and obey her husband.

picture credit(s): wedding and songs