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Indian weddings are celebrated with great pomp and vigor. There are numerous kinds of weddings in India and Sikh weddings are one of them. For Sikhs, marriage is not only a physical and legal union but also a fusion or the holy union of two souls. Followed by the Sikh community, the ceremonies of Sikh weddings are similar to Hindu marriages. Under Sikh matrimony or Anand Karaj as known among Sikhs, more preference is given to arranged marriages over love marriages. The parents of a Sikh boy or a Sikh girl look for a suitable match in their community and as soon as it is found, they fix the wedding and begin preparations. The pre wedding and wedding rituals in Sikh matrimony are: Pre wedding ceremonies include Kurmai (engagement), Chunni (wedding veil), Vatna and Mehendi. And on the day of the wedding, after the Chura ceremony, the Sikh bride and the Sikh groom are married in the gurudwara. PRE WEDDING RITUALS Engagement or Kurmai Ceremony: The engagement ceremony marks the beginning of the wedding of the soon to be bride and groom. Kurmai, also known as mangni in Hindus is generally a family affair with only close friends and family relatives present. It is either performed at the gurudwara or the groom’s house. Ardas, Kirtan and even langar sometimes are conducted with exchange of gifts like sweets, clothes and jewelry between the two families. Wedding Veil or Chunni Ceremony: After the engagement, groom’s family visits the bride’s house for chunni ceremony. The mother and aunts of the groom present a phulkari dupatta with traditional embroidery to the bride. During the ceremony, groom’s mother applies henna or mehndi on the palms of the bride. Gana Ceremony: Under gana ceremony, an auspicious red colored thread is tied on the left and right wrists of the bride and groom respectively. The gana worn by the bride hangs auspicious items like pearls, iron key chain, cowrie shells, etc. Maiya Ceremony: The custom of Maiya confines the bride and groom to their homes for few days before marriage. This ritual does not allow either of them to leave the house or to wear bright and colorful clothes. Vatna Ceremony: Vatna is conducted with both the bride and the groom in their houses by their relatives. The female relatives apply ubatan made of turmeric, sandal, cream and rosewater on the bride and the bridegroom’s body. Jaggo Ceremony: This ceremony is performed in the late hours of night before the wedding by maternal relatives of the bride. They adorn gaffar, a copper vessel with atta made diyas lighted with mustard oil wicks. The ladies carry this vessel to the relatives and are welcomed with sweets. All of them sing and dance their traditional dance, giddha. Mehndi Ceremony: Mehendi and Sangeet ceremonies are generally carried out together after the Jaggo ceremony. Henna or mehendi is applied on the hands and feet of the bride between lots of celebration and feasting. The aunts, cousins and friends of the bride also apply mehndi on their hands singing and dancing throughout the ceremony. THE WEDDING DAY: Gharoli Ceremony: On the morning of the wedding day, the groom’s sister-in-law along with other female relatives fill the decorated gharoli, earthen pitcher with water from the gurdwara. The groom is supposed to take bath from this water. Chooda Ceremony: The bride’s maternal uncle makes her wear a set of 21 red and white bangles that have been cleansed in buttermilk. Kaleeren are also tied to her wrist by the female relatives. Ghodi Chadna: Sehra is tied to the bridegroom’s head by his sisters while garlands of currency notes adorn his neck. He mounts a decorated horse (ghodi) and leave for the wedding venue. Lawan Phere: The bride and the groom circle the Guru Granth Sahib four times with lavans or hymns recited by the priest. Flowers are showered on the couple and a grand feast takes place. POST WEDDING RITUAL Doli Ceremony: The bride dons new clothes and throws back grains of rice while parting from her family. Unlike Hindu marriages, Sikh weddings take place in the noon. Sikh marriages are family oriented and full of merrymaking like all marriages in India. Author Bio Deepika Bansal writes on behalf of Jeevansathi.com, which is India’s fastest growing matrimonial website, provides online Indian matrimonial classified services. Jeevansathi.com enables users to create a Sikh matrimony profile on the website and allow prospective grooms and brides to contact each other. Users can search for profiles through advanced search options on the website. Users can avail free registration and make initial contact with each other through services available on Jeevansathi.com via Chat, SMS, and e-mail.
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