Nimisha Patel
EALC
Bill Lindsey
13 April 2012
Hindu Wedding
The concept and definition of a marriage may change with time, but its value remains unchanged. A wedding is a ceremony to celebrate the wedlock of a bride and groom. For most of the people wedding is the most important day of their life, the day they unite with their soul mate and vow to be with them for the rest of their lives. The celebration of a wedding may vary between different countries, religions, culture and social classes, but the joy and festivity associated with the ceremony invariably remain in the same. Marriage is a great social event in our society. It is a means of establishing new bonds between two individuals and families. A Hindu Wedding is not simply an exchange of vows and rings. It includes a number of religious rites before and during the nuptials, which are performed in the presence of family deities. These represent the importance of the bond between a husband and wife. A Hindu marriage or Vivaha is incomplete without the blessings of a spiritual or divine element.
Marriage in Hinduism is a sacred relationship. It is both an obligatory duty (dharma) and a samskara (sacrament). For a Hindu women marriage marks the end of her life as a maiden. She has to leave her parent's home to begin a new life in her husband's house. After marriage her relationship with her parents remain formal and minimal. Marriage therefore becomes a matter of anxiety and stress for many women, till they become familiar with their new surroundings and the new people in their lives. The early stages of marriage is a make or break situation in case of many. It is also the period during which the bride either becomes popular in her new home or unpopular, depending upon her behavior and her relationships with each member of her husband's family
The preparation for a marriage begins soon after the negotiations for an alliance between the two families are finalized. The house is cleaned and the provisions...