Hindu wedding
A Hindu wedding, also known as vivaha in Hindi, lagna in Marathi, biyah in Bhojpuri, Bengali Hindu wedding in Bengali, bahaghara or bibaha in Odia, tirumanam in Tamil, Telugu wedding ceremony in Telugu, maduve in Kannada, and kalyanam in Malayalam and other languages, is the traditional marriage ceremony for Hindus.
The weddings are very colourful, and celebrations may extend for several days and usually a large number of people attend the wedding functions. The bride's and groom's homes—entrance, doors, walls, floor, roof—are sometimes decorated with colors, flowers, lights and other decorations.
The word vivāha originated as a sacred union of two people as per Vedic traditions, i.e. what many call marriage, but based on cosmic laws and advanced ancient practices. Under Vedic Hindu traditions, marriage is viewed as one of the saṁskāras performed during the life of a human being, which are lifelong commitments of one wife and one husband. In India, marriage has been looked upon as having been designed by the cosmos and considered as a "sacred oneness witnessed by fire itself." Hindu families have traditionally been patrilocal.
The Arya Samaj movement popularized the term Vedic wedding among the Hindu expatriates in north during the colonial era, it was however prevalent in south India even before. The roots of this tradition are found in hymn 10.85 of the Rigveda Shakala samhita, which is also called the "Rigvedic wedding hymn".
At each step, promises are made by each to the other. The primary witness of a Hindu marriage is the fire-deity Agni, in the presence of family and friends. The ceremony is traditionally conducted entirely or at least partially in Sanskrit, considered by Hindus as the language of holy ceremonies. The local language of the bride and groom may also be used. The rituals are prescribed in the Gruhya sutra composed by various rishis such as Apastamba, Baudhayana and Ashvalayana.
The pre-wedding and post-wedding rituals and celebrations vary by region, preference and the resources of the groom, bride and their families. They can range from one day to multi-day events. Pre-wedding rituals include engagement, which involves vagdana and Lagna-patra, and Varyatra— the arrival of the groom's party at the bride's residence, often as a formal procession with dancing and music. The post-wedding ceremonies may include Abhisheka, Anna Prashashana, Aashirvadah, and Grihapravesa – the welcoming of the bride to her new home. The wedding marks the start of the Grhastha stage of life for the new couple. In India, by law and tradition, no Hindu marriage is binding or complete unless the ritual of seven steps and vows in presence of fire is completed by the bride and the groom together. This requirement is under debate, given that several Hindu communities do not observe these rites. Approximately 90% of marriages in India are still arranged. Despite the rising popularity of love marriages, especially among younger generations, arranged marriages continue to be the predominant method for finding a marriage partner in India.
Institution of marriage
According to the Veda, marriage is a union between a masculine and feminine entity with commitments to pursue Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha in unison. Scripturally, it is viewed as a celebration of sensual pleasure, progress, prosperity and joy as it is also a pyramid of elevation to the next level of one's Karmic experience. Society recognizes this and puts in place quality controls since it influences the social and cultural growth of society. According to Manusmriti, or Manu's text, there are eight different types of marriages. Not all eight are approved by Scriptures. The last four were not advocated and the last one was condemned. These are: Brahma marriage, Daiva marriage, Arsha marriage, Prajapatya marriage, Gandharva marriage, Asura marriage, Paishacha marriage.Samskara
Cosmic rituals constitute an important part of Vedic practices/the Hindu religion. Rituals were designed to build a solid foundation for Dharmic living. They are known as Samskaras. Their purpose is to spread awareness and uplift social consciousness. The Veda has instituted sixteen different Samskara meant for different phases of life from conception to marriage to old age and death. The word samskara in Sanskrit means 'to cause indelible impressions on consciousness and to develop every aspect of oneself.' Out of the sixteen Samskaras in The Scripture, and consequently in Hinduism, the sacred practice of marriage or Vivaha Samskara is the most important and marks a milestone in journey of life. Vivaha Samskara influences the life of a couple as partners by enabling them to take their rightful place as creators in society.Key rituals
There is no single standard Hindu marriage ceremony. Regional variation is prevalent in the sequence of rituals comprising the ceremony. There is also considerable flexibility within each ritual. Variation reflects family traditions, local traditions, resources of the families and other factors. Three key rituals predominate, as follows. Two are yajna.- Kanyadana – the giving away of his daughter by the father.
- Panigrahana – a ritual in presence of fire, where the groom takes the bride's hand as a sign of their union and a vow to care and protect her.
- Saptapadi – the crucial ritual. The term means 'seven steps', with each step corresponding to a pair of vows: groom to the bride, and bride to groom. The vows are pronounced in Sanskrit; sometimes also in the native or regional language of the couple. Like Panigrahana, Saptapadi is performed in presence of fire, and in many weddings, after each of their seven oaths to each other, the groom and bride perform the ritual of agnipradakshinam: walking around the fire, with hands linked or with the ends of their garments tied together. The groom usually leads the bride in the walk for first few Pheras —circumambulatem around the consecrated fire, then the bride leads the groom in the rest. Fire is the divine witness, and after Saptapadi the couple are considered husband and wife.
Kanyadana
Who offered this maiden? to whom is she offered?
Kama gave her to me, that I may love her
Love is the giver, love is the acceptor
Enter thou, the bride, the ocean of love
With love then, I receive thee
May she remain thine, thine own, O God of love
Verily, thou art, prosperity itself
May the heaven bestow thee, may the earth receive thee
After this ritual recital, the father asks the groom to not fail the bride in his pursuit of dharma, artha and kama. The groom promises to the bride's father that he shall never fail her in his pursuit of dharma, artha and kama. The groom repeats the promise three times. As per several stone inscriptions that have been found from 15th century in the Vijayanagara empire, to fight the epidemic of bride price, a community group of Brahmins created a social legislation to adopt the marriage system of kanyadana for their community. It was mandated that no money should be paid or received during marriage and those who do not follow are liable for punishment by the King. The above inscriptions also reinforce that system of social legislations within community groups was widely in practice as against personal laws based on religious scriptures.
This repeated promise by the groom marks the end of the kanyadaan ritual in the Hindu wedding.
Panigrahana
The ritual of Panigrahana comes after Kanyadana. It is sometimes preceded by the vivaha-homa rite, wherein a symbolic fire is lit by the groom to mark the start of a new household.Panigrahana is the 'holding the hand' ritual as a symbol of the bride and groom's impending marital union, with the groom acknowledging a responsibility to four deities: Bhaga signifying wealth, Aryama signifying heavens/milky way, Savita signifying radiance/new beginning, and Purandhi signifying wisdom. The groom faces west, and while the bride sits in front of him, with her face to the east, he holds her hand while the following Rig ved
I take thy hand in mine, yearning for happiness
I ask thee, to live with me, as thy husband
Till both of us, with age, grow old
Know this, as I declare, that the Gods
Bhaga, Aryama, Savita and Purandhi, have bestowed thy person, upon me
that I may fulfill, my Dharmas of the householder, with thee
This I am, That art thou
The Sāman I, the Ŗc thou
The Heavens I, the Earth thou
In Punjabi and Gujarati weddings this step is called Hast-Milan. The whole ceremony was timed around an auspicious time for this step and a few decades ago the wedding invitation would even list the time when this event was going to take place.
Saptapadi – short form
The Saptapadi is the most important ritual of Vedic Hindu weddings, and represents the legal element of the Hindu marriage ceremony. The couple conduct seven circuits of the Holy Fire, which is considered a witness to the vows they make to each other. In some regions, a piece of clothing or sashes worn by the bride and groom are tied together for this ritual. Elsewhere, the groom holds the bride's right hand in his own right hand. Each circuit of the consecrated fire is led by either the bride or the groom, varying by community and region. Usually, the bride leads the groom in the first circuit. In North India, the first six circuits are led by the bride, and the final one by the groom. In Central India and Suriname, the bride leads the first three or four circuits. With each circuit, the couple makes a specific vow to establish some aspect of a happy relationship and household for each other.In some South Indian weddings, after each saying a mantra at each of the seven steps, the couple say these words together:
In North Indian weddings, the bride and the groom say the following words after completing the seven steps: