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Indian Wedding Customs

A Guide to Indian Wedding Traditions


By Saher Nasir


Indian Wedding customs include Hindu weddings, in which the bride and groom fulfill obligations to society and family (dharma), have children (prajana), and perform wedding rituals (shradh).



Misri - The Sugar Ceremony
The sugar ceremony is an engagement ceremony. People pray for the blessings of Lord Ganesha. Seven married women represent the seven forms of God. These women create the Ganesha symbol on a pot of sugar.

The bride and groom and their parents do a prayer called  "puja"  to complete the request for blessings.The bride's and groom's families exchange flower garlands, fruit, rings, and gifts. A ring goes on the bride's fourth finger of her left hand of the bride and on the groom's fourth finger of the right hand. The forth finger represents a direct link to the heart.



Sangeet -- Pre-Wedding Party
The bride and groom may have individual pre-wedding parties or one large celebration.

Nav Graha Puja

Days before the wedding, people pray to ask for blessings from the Gods that govern the planets. 


Wedding Sagri
The groom's females relatives visit the bride and gring gifts.



Mehndi -- Henna Party
The bride and some of guests have their henna paste painted on their hands and feet. The  patterns are thought to be lucky and they represent the love between the couple in the upcomming marriage.



Ghari Puja -- Pre-Wedding Ceremony
The Ghari Puja religious ceremony is performed the night before the wedding in the home of the bride and groom. It represents the journy the couple is taking in beginning a life together.
The Pithi -- a beautification ritual is performed in which the bride and groom are washed with a tumeric paste.



Wedding Bharaat
On the morning of the wedding, the groom traditionally rides from his home on a white horse with family and friends around him. When they arrive, the bride's family showers them with rose water and petals.



Wedding Swagatum
The bride's mother places a red dot (tikka) on the groom's  forehead to welcome him. To close the ceremony, the groom steps on a pot of yogurt, honey, seeds and ghee.

The actual wedding ceremony takes place in a canopy (mandap) with a sacred fire burning inside. The wedding ceremony ends with a series of rituals to signify the couple's union.




Madhuparka





Hindu brides customarily wear elaborately embroidered red and white saris. The red symbolizes fertility and the white symbolizes the bride's innocence and purity. It is common for the bride to change during the wedding from a modest sari from her family to a more heavy sari from the groom’s family. The groom usually wears white or cream traditional outfit, which may have gold thread. Some north Indian Hindu grooms wear a turban with strings of flowers hiding his face to protect him from the evil eye of on-lookers.

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