Indian Wedding

Indian Marriage Tradition

Marriages in India are filled with ritual and celebration that continue for several days. Usually around 100 to 10,000 people attend. Attendees are frequently not known directly by the bride and groom. Though most Indian Marriages are Arranged, some couples in urban areas consummate "love marriages", in which the partners decide to marry each other without family involvement or assistance. The traditional Indian wedding is about two families being brought together socially, with as much emphasis placed on the families coming closer as the married couple.

Many wedding customs are common among Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and Muslims. They combine local, religious and family traditions. The period of Hindu marriage ceremonies dates from the application of tilak.

Marriages in India are a mainstay in the social calendar of the whole community. Many wedding traditions originated in India. Increasingly, Western features are incorporated, such as speeches, the first dance and the traditional wedding cake.

Forms of Marriage:

The Vedic system recognizes the validity of several forms of marriage:

• Brahmana, in which the father of the bride sends an invitation to a properly qualified man and entrusts the girl to him; the purpose of the marriage is the joint performance of the traditional religious duties
• Daiva, in which the girl is married to a properly qualified brahmana who was invited to perform a sacred ritual; the purpose of the marriage is to perpetuate the good results of the sacrifice and to protect society in general
• Arsha (of the Rishi), in which the married couple offer a symbolic gift of a bull and a cow (sacred animals considered the father and mother of human society) to the girl’s parents; the purpose of the marriage is cooperation in the study and practice of spiritual life
• Prajapatya, in which the girl chooses a suitable husband directly or indirectly (for example in Svyamvara
  tournaments); the purpose of the marriage is the birth of a qualified progeny that will continue the dynasty
• Gandharva, in which the girl and boy declare their love for each other (this is also the specific ritual for gays and lesbians, according to the 12th century commentator Jayamangala) and exchange vows and garlands; the purpose of the marriage is romantic desire and sensual pleasure – as exemplified in the story of shakuntala and dushyanta
• Rakshasa, in which the girl is abducted from her home against the will of her family; this type of marriage is also popular with kshatriyas who want to overcome the blind opposition of the girl’s family to her wishes (as in the cases of krishna’s wife Rukmini and sister subhadra, who married Arjuna)
• Asura, in which a girl and her family receive gifts, boons or wealth from the prospective husband to convince them of his good intentions; the most famous example in Puranic history is shantanu, who married Satyavati by pledging exclusive succession rights to Satyavati’s sons
• Pisacha, in which a girl is seduced into a sexual relationship by flattery, emotional pressure, mental manipulation, intoxication (with wine etc.), or approached while she is sleeping and more vulnerable. The purpose of the pisacha marriage is mere satisfaction of sensual pleasure but still the women involved and the children conceived in such relationship are considered perfectly respectable by society.