Hindu weddings

Your guide to the Hindu wedding ceremony and traditions

Traditionally, the Hindu wedding ceremony does not involve service sheets. However, if the couple have invited non-Hindu guests, it is usual to have brief translations of the service itself and what it signifies.
Guests can wear what they wish, though it is best to avoid black. Men dress in suits or traditional dress. Female guests wear suits, dresses or saris. It is no longer necessary for the women to cover their heads, though elderly and orthodox Hindus still tend to do so.
The bride traditionally wears a fine, white sari with red and gold embroidery, traditionally given her by her maternal uncles. During the celebrations, she will put on a red sari, a gift from the groom’s family. The white sari represents purity, the red sari fertility. The bride wears ornaments in her hair, her arms are covered with bracelets and she wears a gold band around her waist and anklets of gold on her feet.
The groom wears a lounge suit or traditional Indian dress, which consists of a Nehru jacket and traditional trousers in white or ivory.

The day before the wedding, the bride has the palms of her hands and her feet painted with elaborate henna designs. This event is like a hen party, though without alcohol. The bride’s family and friends have their hands and feet painted too, though the focus is on celebration, rather than decoration.
A canopy of flowers is put up at the venue for the wedding.
The priest who will officiate at the service conducts the Ghari Puja on the eve of the wedding, in both bride and groom’s homes. This is a ritual of prayers to welcome in the new life together, to get rid of evil and to confer prosperity on the couple.

It is considered unlucky for the groom to see the bride on the wedding day. He arrives at the wedding venue in a cavalcade of cars, where a number of rituals are performed. When the groom gets out of his car, the bride’s mother and family welcome him. The bride’s mother places a small round red dot on his forehead and gives him a garland of flowers, to signify her approval of the wedding. In a traditional game, the bride’s female relatives and friends try to snatch the garland from his neck and to steal his shoes. They then demand a ‘ransom’ for their release.
The bride’s mother then accompanies him to the Mancap or canopy where the ceremony is conducted. His sisters follow behind him shaking a metal pot covered by a white handkerchief containing rice and coins to ward off evil spirits.
Before entering the venue, the groom steps on a small terracotta bowl, to signify his virility and strength. While he waits for the bride to arrive, his feet are washed by her mother and father.
The bride is accompanied to the wedding venue by her maternal uncles. She is either carried by them or walks between them. She enters to music of her own choice.

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