India-South Indian Vedic Wedding – Brides – Traditional Roles
Author: Womens UN Report Network
Date: February 12, 2006
of the Status of Women and Freedom of Religion or Belief and Traditions, refers
to the multiple intersectionalities of marriage, religion, women’s roles,
traditions, status in the family.
performed separately by the bride and the groom. For the bride, it means the
tying of the kappu,
the holy thread on her wrists, which is meant to ward off all evil sprits. It
symbolizes a kind of protective armor for the bride.
bride on a long chain around the neck. Mangal Sutra literally means Auspicious
Bond. The Mangal Sutra in South India is akin to the wedding ring of the west.
It is also called Thali.
entering the house. A ritual whereby the bride goes to her new home i.e. her
husband’s home for the first time.
“Be the queen of your husband’s home. May your husband glorify your virtues!
Conduct yourself in such a way that you win your mother-in-law’s love. And be in
the good books of your sister-in-law.”
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A South Indian Wedding – The Rituals and the Rationale
The Vedic Ceremony of the Tamil Shaivite Brahmin community
by Padma Vaidyanath
Email: deepa_vaidyanath@hotmail.com
A slightly different version of this article was posted at
Indian Women Online. The
photographs and article are reproduced with permission
Welcome |
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The gates of the wedding hall are adorned with full-grown plantain Overhead festoons of mango leaves signify the never fading Kolam At the threshold of the hall, sprinkling of rose water perfumes the
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The Evening Before The WeddingThe evening prior to the wedding day, the bridegroom is brought in a After reaching the marriage hall, there is a formal bethoral ceremony
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The Day Of The WeddingThe Preliminary Invocations During a marriage, Ganapathi, the God, the remover of obstacles is Navagraha |
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Vratham The marriage ceremonies begin with vratham For the groom vratham begins with invocations involving the Gods Indra, |
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This is a very important part of the ceremony. Immediately after his |
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The bride and groom are lifted to the shoulders of their respective |
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The marrying couple is seated on a swing. They rock forth and back, The chains of the swing signify the eternal karmic |
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Pallikai Seeds Sowing This is a fertility rite. Pallikais |
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The Main WeddingThe feet of the bridegroom are washed in milk and wiped off with |
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The Design of the Mangal The design of the mangal sutra varies from family to family as per |
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The bride is made to sit on her father’s lap and is given away as a On the bride’s head, a ring made of Darbha “Let this gold multiply your wealth, Let this water purify your The symbolism of the yoke is drawn out of ancient rural life where |
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The bride is then given an auspicious ablution. A new sari,
Thanksgiving vedic hymns follow, to the celestial caretakers of her The vedic concept underlying this ritual is figuratively that in her The father of the bride while offering his daughter chants: “I offer ye my daughter: A maiden virtuous, good natured, very wise, The bridegroom returns his assurance to the bride’s father saying The bride ties a string fastened to a piece of turmeric around the |
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The tying of the Mangal Sutra or Thali takes place at exactly the
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Paani Graharam This means holding hands. The groom holds the hand of the bride. The
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Holding the bride’s hand the bridegroom walks seven steps around the
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Gifts are exchanged between the families of the bride and groom. Any A crucial part of the wedding is the homage paid by the couple to Treading on the Grindstone Holding the bride’s left toe the bridegroom helps her to tread on a “Mount on this stone, and let thy mind be rock firm, unperturbed by This ritual is symbolic of the solid rock foundation for the Arundhati and Dhruva Star Next the groom shows the bride the star Arundhati (from the Saptha Laaja Homam This comprises the bride’s own offering into the sacrificial fire. As Showering of Akshadai Akshadai Taking with her fire from the Laaja Homam, the bride takes leave of
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