| The
bridal attire : |
|
Donning
the traditional wedding attire is a ritual in itself.
Their relatives assist the bride and the groom as they
dress for the occasion in elaborate wedding gear. The
groom's paternal uncle helps him to tie the gordastar
(turban). A gold thread is used to tie a peacock feather
to the gordastar. |
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| Ceremony
at the groom's house : |
|
Before
leaving for the bride's house, the groom must stand on a
vyog (a decorative pattern made of rice flour and colours).
He is given nabad (sugar lumps) to eat, a conch shell is
sounded to announce his departure, and two rice pots
containing some money are given away as alms to the poor.
The groom leaves with the marriage procession for the
bride's house. |
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| Receiving
the marriage procession : |
|
The
arrival of the marriage procession is announced by blowing
a conch shell. All the relatives of the bride greet the
procession warmly. The groom stands on the vyog that has
been specially created for the occasion. The bride's
maternal uncle carries her out and she joins the groom on
the vyog. The eldest female member of the family feeds
nabad to the bride and the groom and kisses them on the
forehead. Two rice pots are given away to the poor. The
couple is led by the family purohit to the door. He
performs a small ceremony here called dwar pooja before
leading them to the lagan mandap (the place where the
marriage rites are performed). |
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| The
wedding ceremony : |
|
The
purohit performs the rituals in front of a sacred fire.
One of the rituals, aathwas, requires the couple to cross
their arms and hold hands in this position. Their hands
are covered with a cloth. According to Kashmiri folklore,
the first to be able to pull out the engagement ring of
the other will be the one to play a dominating role in the
relationship. A mananmal, golden thread, is tied to their
foreheads. The left foot of the bride and groom are placed
on a kajwat or grinding stone. The first phera or round
around the sacred fire is made by stepping on seven
one-rupee coins. There are a total of seven pheras. The
bride and groom feed each other some rice at the end of
the ceremony. |
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| Vidai
: |
|
The
newly-weds must stand on the vyog while the eldest female
member of the bride's family offers them nabad thrice and
kisses them on the forehead. The bride is seated in a doli
or palanquin. Her relatives and friends bid her good-bye
as she sets off for her new home. |
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| Welcoming
the newly-weds : |
|
The
groom's eldest aunt refuses the newly-weds entry into
their home until she is given cash or jewellery. The
couple must stand on a specially created vyog and have
nabad, offered by the groom's eldest aunt. She kisses them
on the forehead. A pair of pigeons is set free to
celebrate the arrival of the newly-weds. The mananmal tied
on the forehead of the couple are exchanged. The aunt
leads them to the kitchen where they must sit on the mud
stove. The waza serves them food and the aunt feeds them.
After the meal, the bride changes into the new set of
clothes and jewellery, presented to her by her in-laws. |
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