Hindu Weddings signify
customs, rituals
and elaborate celebrations. Traditional
Hindu wedding ceremonies
mostly lasts for four to five days. And
the function is divided into three parts
pre wedding ceremony,
main day ceremony and
post wedding ceremony.
Each day has its own significance and
meaning. The pre wedding celebrations
mainly includes engagement, sangeet, mehendi,
haldi and tilak. Each of the custom has
an importance. The main day function is
the wedding day and the
post day rituals include vidaai and reception.
These are some of the important rituals
and customs that sum
up the Indian marriage
ceremony. A wedding is
an important religious ceremony in the
Hindu religion and one
of the most important of the sixteen Hindu
sanskars or sacraments. It is not only
establishing the bond between two people,
but also the bond between two families.
Hindu weddings usually
take place at bride's place or at a common
place decided by the bride and groom's
family. The marriage ceremonies are supposed
to take place at an open space under a
decorated canopy usually called mandap.
The main day of the wedding
involves different traditional rituals.
And each of the rituals
has its own meaning and role. One of the
most important ritual
of Hindu wedding is the
seven step or sapta padi taken together
by the bride and the groom while the seven
vows or promise led by a priest or Brahmin.
They take the vows before god symbolized
by fire and light. These seven promises
taken together by the bride and groom
build's the foundation of their relationship
and marriage. It speaks of the loyalty,
love, and commitment they will share in
their married life.
Today the wedding ceremony
is celebrated in an elaborate and lavish
manner. With commercialization of everything
wedding too has become
a commercial affair. But still today also
the actual essence and reason behind marriage
function remains intact. The bride and
the groom are dressed in traditional Indian
wear. Where the bride wears ethnic Indian
sari and jewelry and the groom wears traditional
sherwani and pagri or turban on his head.
The wedding place or mandap is beautifully
decorated where family members, relatives
and friends gathers to enjoy dinning and
lunch for four to five days of the wedding
celebration. People from different strata
of the society celebrate according to
their status but the real significance
behind the marriage remains same in every
society. And that is coming together of
two souls for eternity. This is what Hindu
wedding is all about. About tradition,
culture and enjoyment.