A beautiful Indian Wedding Ceremony in progress – Photo Courtesy: m-bot
Traditional Indian Weddings happen within a span of days! It can be a span of 6 days or a span of 7 days and during these days there are over 40 different traditions that are observed. It is indeed a beautiful and culturally rich wedding which deserves all the photo and video coverage (and the best one at that) that it can get.
The different traditions can also differ from regions, families and castes. For the Hindus, marriage is very, very important as it also celebrates not only the joining of two individuals but two families as well.
The wedding has different parts; the pre-wedding ceremonies include an engagement which has an oral agreement as well as a written declaration, the next part would be the arrival of the groom and his party to the bride’s residence. The celebrations continue with the bride and groom entering their new home.
Here are more details on the ceremonies and traditions that are observed:
The Misri – the Ring Ceremony
The Misri – the ring ceremony needs seven married women who will draw the sign of Lord Ganesha in red powder which is spread above a bowl of rock sugar. Then prayers are said by the engaged couple and their parents; the couple will then exchange flowered garlands and gold rings. All of these is done in front of your priest. The groom’s parents then place a basket of fruit on the future bride’s lap to welcome her to the family and the bride’s family is then fed misri (rock sugar) which confirms the engagement and promises a life of sweetness.
The ‘Mehendi’ – Henna
Another ceremony is known as the ‘Mehendi’ which takes place before the wedding and is a ‘ladies only affair’. During the Mehendi, intricate and detailed henna patterns are applied to the hands and feet of the ladies which symbolize the deepening bonds with the future husband. The Mehendi is often celebrated together with the Sagri which could also be considered as an acquaintance party where the groom’s female relatives visit the bride giving gifts and flowers.
‘Shaadi’ – The Wedding
During the wedding day, the priest will perform a tradition known as Nav-Graha Puja which will be done in both the houses of the bride and the groom; here the priest says prayers to the Gods of the nine planets. Afterwards, the priest will perform the Ghari Puja which is a series of prayers that is done with offerings of betel nuts, wheat, coconut as well as rice and spices.
The mothers of the bride and groom will wear their wedding clothes and have earthenware pots with water on their heads; they will walk to their respective doorways. The water will be cut with a knife – this is to ward off evil spirits; relatives and friends will then give the parents flowers and money. The next part of the tradition is a fun one, where the the celebrations begin with dancing and feasting.
There are definitely more traditions during Hindu weddings, so make sure you prepare for it and have a great wedding videographer to catch all of the rich culture.
This article is by Tom Hewett from Octavo Pictures who produce Affordable Wedding Videography for capture your special day.
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