Category: Wedding

Every civilization has its legends regarding the rejuvenating properties of water, which is why, perhaps, all major religions in the country have rituals with water for all ceremonies and sanskars or purificatory rites as they are so called ; beginning with the Nama Karna , (the name giving ceremony ), to Kshaura (shaving ),which represents a persons growth into puberty , and finally vivah , the most important sanskar from societys point of view.

The significance of water at these ceremonies could be associated to the purity of water in spiritual terms , or it could have evolved from that all enduring belief in the fountain of eternal youth , endowing water with properties of miraculous powers to rejuvenate .While there is nothing such as snan water that distinguishes it from ordinary water , except , perhaps , the magical effect of the mantras or prayers chanted by the priest ,elaborate ceremony rites associated with the ritual of the bath, continue to be performed to this day at almost all ceremonies , particularly weddings .

Much significance has been accorded to the bathing ritual or mangalsnan for both the groom and the bride-to-be, prior to the wedding ceremony . Apart from spiritual reasons , the belief goes ,that this tradition perhaps takes root in the royal baths , where the queens were anointed with aromatic oils and bathed in fragrant water baths filled with attars or rose petals, to make them look more beautiful for their kings .Since then ,through the ages , every bride for every prince charming has been following the same ritual for enhancement of her looks , with slight modification and variation in the actual ceremony form associated with each ceremony and religion .

For instance , it was customary, at one time , amongst Punjabis , for the girls , to remain in her old clothes for one or two days (or even more ) , before the wedding . This so called Mayean pe gayen, where the girl remained in her old clothes for a period of time , sitting in front of four diyas lit before her was considered essential , as it was believed that the light of the diyas would be reflected on her face , thereby making her glow and look more beautiful on the wedding eve !

The Punjabi ritual of the bath is still a rather elaborate one , beginning with the first step of getting suitable holy water for the bath . For ghara ghardoli, as this ceremony is so called , the ladies of the house , usually the bride/grooms sisters , cousins , and bhabhis(sister-in-laws), led by a married sister who carries the ghara on her head ,placed over a pink chunni ,go to a nearby temple , to fetch the water for the bride/grooms bath, to the accompaniment of songs , jokes and laughter . As she enters the house , she is welcomed by the mother of the bide or the groom as the case may be with sweets and an auspicious token of money and gifts for this occasion.

The boy /girl is then anointed with vatna, a paste of haldi and oil , after which they are expected to bathe with holy water brought from the temple and presented with new clothes by the mama, or maternal uncle, while the old ones are given usually to the sweeper.
In Gujaratis too , the bathing ritual for the boy is performed in much the same way as the girls to the singing of traditional songs. The snaan ceremony is conducted on the day of the wedding , with 8-10 married women of the family applying turmeric and oil on their bodies and hair. While in Maharashtra , this tel halad ceremony is usually performed a day before the wedding , by the young unmarried girls from the brides side along with perhaps one married woman as chaperone , applying the uptan paste on to the boy. Beginning with the feet upwards till the head , the oil and turmeric is rubbed on to his body with a naagveli or the leaf of a betel.

In Bengalis too, the snan or bathing ritual takes place on the wedding day , in the evening or late afternoon, depending on the time of the lagan or wedding ceremony.
It is conducted in the same manner for both the boy and the girl , here again the married women , about 8-10 in number , apply turmeric and oil on the on the hair and body of the boy and the girl as the case may be . During snan both of them wear new clothes sent in by each others families , after the ceremony , these are gifted to the napit or barber.

Although called by different names in different communities , the significance of snaan ritual remains consistent , the customs , ofcourse ,vary from religion to religion . In Muslims , for instance, at the manjha ceremony , the haldi lapetan is only performed by the unmarried girls on the bride-to-be. The haldi and fragrant chameli oil are sent by the boys family. The girl restricts herself to wearing yellow clothes in keeping with the colour of the haldi ,and does not wear any jewellery. After this ceremony , she does not move out of her house or change her clothes until the wedding.

In the brahmin Iyer community from TamilNadu, uday shanti , as this ceremony is called , takes place in the morning of the wedding. The girl is made to sit on a low stool or palaha, around which kolam, or decorative rangoli is done. To the singing of traditional songs , the ladies of the house first apply chandan and kumkum on her forehead , the mother then puts oil in her hair, this is followed by anointing the body with haldi paste and a bath , after which the girl is gifted a new sari.

The same ceremony for the groom , is , however, carried out by the ladies from the girls side who visit the boys place or the place where the baraat is lodged, to the accompaniment of nada swaram , a shehnai like musical instrument, carrying with them ingredients for the boys bath , such as til oil, shikakhai and fragrant sandalwood powder. Gifts also include sweets and tambul in the form of coconut, paan supari , fruits and flowers (mainly venis and mogra flowers for the ladies from the boys family)

Mangalsnaan , as the name implies , has since times immemorial , been considered an auspicious occasion , the rituals , however , were more elaborate than they are now. Gone are the days when oil and chandan , the turmeric , sandal , besan , were ground to perfection for that special day , by the ladies of the household day , when they anointed the bodies of the groom and bride-to-be and even gave them a complete bath . Todays grooms and brides , being older and modern prefer to take their own baths , and hence only a token ceremony is performed.
So even though this ritual is still considered obligatory by almost all communities for spiritual purposes , the actual snaan, has been replaced ,perhaps to a mere scientific process , with the emergence of beauty specialists and therapists offering a varied choice of baths, as in Turkish , sauna , mud or whirlpool !

Bihar is one of the extremely backward regions in India. Though these days Biharis have turned quite liberal, they still stick to their modest traditions in every aspect. They dont exhibit any artificial pomp and are very proud of the rural touch of their roots. Usually a traditional Bihari wedding lasts for a month, but these days it has been reduced to a five days affair.
A Hindu Bihari matrimonial rite begins with Satyanarayan Katha, a prayer that is performed by the groom and his family, under the supervision of a Pundit or priest. All the attending family members are supposed to fast. The havan is performed on the last day to conclude all the wedding rituals.
Then the ritual Haldi Kutai takes place, in this grooms mother and other suhagins(married ladies) grind the turmeric to a paste that is sent to the bride for the ritual ubtan.
After that, an auspicious day is fixed for Cheka, which is the engagement ceremony. In this ceremony, 5, 7, 9, or 11 members from the grooms family along with the groom visit the brides house along with gifts, known as Chekas and the bride and groom exchange rings. The next day, the same ritual is repeated by the brides family and they visit the grooms house.
The Shagun is performed in which the brides priest, accompanied by her brother, the barber, and four other members, take auspicious gifts to the grooms family. The brides brother applies tilak/teeka on the grooms forehead that signifies that familys acceptance of the wedding. The brother gets along a lot of gifts like vessels, clothes, jewelry etc.
Shagun is followed by Tilak. IN this ceremony, Haldi paste, specially made by the brides mother, is brought in a silver bowl that is applied on the groom. Tilak is the one of the biggest ceremonies held by the grooms party, this is equivalent to a wedding reception.
On the wedding morning, once again the haldi/turmeric paste ceremony is performed so that the bride and the groom beautify and purify their bodies after which they are dressed up the Jaimala ceremony.
Silpoha a ladies ritual, is held early in the wedding morning wherein the grooms mother in her Chunri/shawl, along with her mother-in-law or her husbands elder brothers wife grinds akshat or rice on a flat grinding stone. While grinding they seek blessings of gods and ancestors. After that, a ritual Imli-Ghutai is performed by the grooms maternal uncle and aunt just before the paricchavan. It is to drive away evil omens and to warn the groom not to indulge in any form of vices. In this ritual, the uncle feeds a betel leaf to the groom, but the groom keeps it between his teeth while his mother takes it from him and eats it herself. This act signifies that the mother will accept all the evil omens falling on him upon her.
Now the wedding function begins. The bride is brought to the wedding ground where she performs an Aarti of the groom and then the couple exchange garlands. Before the commencement of wedding rites, the brides mother and other married women hold the Galsedi ceremony. During this ritual, the mother carries a plate that contains a small lighted lamp, betel leaves and small lumps of cow dung. All the women, one by one, heat the betel leaves on the lamp and foment the grooms face, forehead and eyes at least five times each from their left hand.
After that, the brides brother or brother-in-law escorts the groom to the mandap for Kangna Bandhana ceremony for which the bride adorns a yellow silk sari with zari/gold borders without absolutely no jewelry on her body. The pundit/priest ties the bracelets made of mango leaves, raw cotton thread, colored rice, turmeric and money, on the right hand of the couple and for the next four days they have to wear this symbolic bracelet. Then the barber, present in the mandap, cuts the fingernails and toenails of the both the bride and the groom.
Then the kanyadaan takes place. In this ceremony, the brides father stretches out his right hand to the brides mother who places her right hand on it, signifying the giving away daughter. All this time, the priests chant the mantras. The groom then retires to his room and once again the bride changes her dress for theKanya nirakshan which means an introduction to the grooms family and relatives.

All couples who are planning to get married obviously have their own preference in terms of the theme, the color to use, the venue, and a lot more. While some wants a lavish wedding at the beach or at the biggest church somewhere in the world, some would prefer being wedded in a garden which is a more casual theme. This kind of wedding, however, needs the expertise of any Chicago botanic garden wedding organizer to make sure that everything is going to turn out perfect during the very special day.

This type of wedding brings a lot of advantages to the couples who wish to pursue this wedding theme. It can save you cash all throughout the whole cost of the wedding. This saves a lots of cash in contrast to having a religion wedding and then leasing a reception hall, along with working with an event caterer for the dinner. The savings on the florals can be substantial as the garden should be fulled of flowers. The only florals required would be the bouquet for the bride-to-be and brides maids and the boutonnieres for the bridegroom event.

A garden is an attractive setup for a wedding. Having mother nature all around is optimal for a wedding and party. Leasing outdoors tents as well as chairs and tables is much less costly compared to renting a hall. This savings can help you decide on a much more comprehensive supper menu if you have a budget plan and if you are saving money on various other areas of a wedding. A picnic kind supper food selection with grilled meats is consistently an alternative for this type of wedding ceremony. The visitors may be a lot more convenient in a much more laid-back outdoor site, and provides any type of young visitors the capability to run and play without ending up being a hassle to various other guests.

Your wedding music is another area you could reduce given that instead of employing a disc jockey, you could possibly use a stereo system for the songs and ask a good friend to take charge with it. Renting out a venue is usually not an option for this sort of wedding. The bride-to-be will get just what she really wants at a considerably lessened price. Having more input into the decors and food selection, and the casualty of the occasion can create memories that stay for a life time.

There are only 2 problems that can take place to destroy the wedding day. Weather condition is a large problem. To get rid of worrying on this one, hold the wedding during the summer months when there is a minimal chance of rainfall. Bugs can be an issue also; so understanding when bugs will be about on the big day and taking care of those concerns, such as spraying the garden and positioning torches around the area to ward off the bugs would likewise be a wonderful concept.

With all these advantages and disadvantages, you can now decide whether or not you will go for a wedding held in a beautiful garden of your choice or go for something traditional. If you go for the first, always remember to consult a Chicago botanic garden wedding specialist to help you with your needs. But if you will go for the latter, still contact a desirable organizer to assist you from the wedding venue up to the reception. And of course, be prepared with all the expenses.

Weddings are great and joyful times; nonetheless, relating to taking pictures of the wedding and after, an expert photographer can make the distinction between average looking photographs to pictures which can be clear and fantastic to look at for an entire a lifetime. Preserving the day of your wedding. This should be a high priority. It’s professionalism of a marriage photographer that can make a difference. Weddings are costly and that’s the reason some engaged people depend on someone within the household to take images of the wedding; nonetheless, though this will save a little money and be handy, the results of the pictures could also be disappointing. One other advantage of hiring knowledgeable photographer is the experience that he or she has. Most photographers have an excellent deal of experience in producing quality images and lots of them can provide you references of those who employed them for his or her wedding. Such testimonials could be quite useful when choosing a photographer for a wedding ceremony. On the other hand, if you are gettingmarried in Manhattan New York then you have got to find Manhattan Wedding Photographers for this reason. Photographers in New York City know the region better than the majority of mainland photographers and can make the distinction between a nice picture and a good image. Keep in mind, The most important facet of hiring a wedding photographer is to decide on knowledgeable wedding ceremony photographer in order that the images taken will result in beautiful recollections that will last and live a lifetime. In addition, most marriage ceremony pictures provides a nice selection of digital format types for displaying and storing the big day day photographs. Also, An additional advantage relating to getting knowledgeable personnel for your wedding photography is the reputation of the business which could be proven and verified by past jobs he or she have worked taking pictures. Many photographers can supply as proof of their experience by displaying you their past wedding pictures both in individual or on the internet. In addition to a wedding photographer’s portfolio are the various testimonials they’ll provide. Such testimonials will help a pair select which wedding ceremony photographer can provide the best results of their particularly special day. Should you run throughout a wedding photographer that can’t absolutely show you the outcomes of past wedding ceremony images, it’s essential to move on to another wedding ceremony photographer. You wish to be sure that the choice you make is an efficient one because there will solely be one opportunity to take photos of your special occasion with your loved ones and friends. Such recollections cannot be reproduced. Oh, Also, skilled marriage ceremony photographers often provide a number of choices on how a couple can protect the memories of their marriage ceremony such as normal photo albums, pictures on CDs or DVDs, slide shows and marriage ceremony picture galleries. also, there are various great wedding ceremony pictures packages to fit your money and financial needs.

Wedding rings are an important part of a couples planned event. These rings symbolize the union of two people in marriage and vows. These ring symbols are very popular and can be found anywhere.

Traditionally, wedding bands were simply plain metal circles. These rings are sold by a local jeweler or a local jewelry store. Before recent times, a blacksmith made the Wedding rings for a couple.

Today, wedding bands can be found and purchased almost anywhere. Rings are offered at local stores and even online via the Internet. Some individuals even sell rings themselves through consignment.

Jewelry stores are perhaps the most logical place to buy rings. These stores have a wide selection and knowledge about wedding rings. A jewelry store obtains rings to sell to couples in two main ways.

The primary way a jewelry store gets the rings is by a designer. Some stores have an in house designer who makes all the jewelry. A designer has knowledge and experience in jewelry designing.

This dedicated person may have studied precious metals or gemstones. A designer knows the best materials to use in designing jewelry. A designer can adapt materials to fit within particular pieces.

A benefit to using a designer is that wedding bands can be custom. This designer can meet and talk with couples to get their ideas. Then for an additional charge can create custom made rings for them.

Other jewelry stores obtain wedding bands through suppliers. These jeweler suppliers have their own selection of jewelry pieces. A jewelry store reviews the selections and purchases them to display.

It is the hope of the store that the pieces selected are well liked. Buying from a supplier gives a lot more variety of ring design. However, this takes away the ability for custom design of rings.

Online stores also sell wedding bands for a couples big day. These online stores typically have much less overhead and cost. Thus, these stores obtain wedding bands by a designer and supplier.

This means online stores have a much greater variety in ring choices. Wedding rings can be found online in all designs, styles, and sizes. One can search for bands of certain metals or gemstones in the design.

These online stores offer much better pricing than local jewelers. Wedding bands sold online are cheaper and save a couple money. This is one reason to explore the selection of wedding rings online.