Hindu Wedding Planner in Los Angeles & San Francisco
Hinduism is a religion that consists of mostly Indians, who have a deep cultural background and strong traditions. For this reason, Hindu weddings have so many cultural aspects from India and Indian family traditions that flow through every ceremony. Additionally, Hindus from different parts of India incorporate different cultural aspects according tot heir religious sect, the dialect they speak, their specific family traditions, and the state their family is from in India. The main thing that is constant for any type of Hindu wedding ceremony is that this is not only the marriage of two individuals into a relationship, but it’s the marriage of two families starting their lives together on a new journey.
Sanskara
Both Hindu and Indian cultures celebrate marriage as a holy sacrament, or Sanskara. This is an ancient Sanskrit word which explains why two individuals are enabled to begin their lives together on a new path. This Sanskara requires marriage to uphold three major values of happiness, growth, and harmony. These values and the principle of Sanakara must be understood by both individuals who choose to take part in the marriage.
Mangni
An engagement ceremony is held months prior to the wedding in the presence of close friends and family. The couple is blessed and the bride is gifted with new jewelry and clothing by her future in-laws.
Var Agaman
The groom is welcomed as he arrives at the doorstep with his family and friends where he is warmly greeted by bride’s family and friends. The bride’s mother welcomes the groom along with his family and friends. The groom is then escorted to the Lagna Mandap, which is the wedding altar where the marriage ceremony will take place.
Ganesha Puja
At the mandap, the ceremony begins with a prayer to worship Lord Ganesha, who is a symbol of peace, truth, friendship, brotherhood, and happiness. The priest chants a prayer to Lord Ganesha requesting the removal of all obstacles that may arise during the wedding ceremony and in the couple’s future married life.
Mangalastak
A traditional eight-verse prayer is recited requesting that all the planets, gods, and goddesses bless the bride and groom with a happy and healthy married life.
Kanya Agaman
This awaited moment is the arrival of the bride, who is led to the mandap by her eldest maternal uncle. An veil or decorated cloth is held in front of the groom prior to the bride’s arrival. While the priest recites the verses to bless the couple, the veil is removed to symbolize the commencement of their lives as unified souls.
Jaya Mala
The bride and groom proclaim their love and acceptance of each other by placing a garland of fresh flowers around one another’s necks. This signifies the unification of their souls and a gesture of acceptance of one another as well as a pledge to respect one another as partners.
Madhupak
The bride’s father offers the groom yogurt and honey as an expression of welcome and respect.
Kanyadan and Hast Melap
The father of the bride takes the bride’s hand and places it in the groom’s hand, requesting him to accept her as an equal partner. The concept behind Kanyadan is that the bride is a form of the goddess Laxmi and the groom is Lord Narayana. The parents are facilitating their union in matrimony. The bride’s parents summon the presence of God and give her hand in marriage to her eager groom. A loop of cotton thread that is wound 34 times, signifying human virtues, is placed around the shoulders of the bride and groom, signifying their union. The thread has no knots to symbolize that there shall be no breaks in their union. The bride and groom then join their right hands and in their palms, the priest places a beral leaf and rice grains. He then places the bride’s hand over the groom’s, and keeps a red cloth over their joined hands. The priest will then state that this union has the approval of their families, friends, and the community and the couple enters this union with full knowledge of their responsibilities to one another.
Havan
The couple invokes Agni, the god of Fire, to witness their commitment to each other by lighting a fire. Crushed sandalwood, herbs, sugar rice and oil are offered to the ceremonial fire.
Gath Bandhan
The scarves placed around the bride and groom are tied together symbolizing their eternal bond and the tying of their numptual knot. This symbolizes their pledge before God to love each other and remain faithful.
Rajaham
The bride places both her hands into the groom’s and her brother then places rice into her hands. Together the bride and groom offer the rice as a sacrifice into the fire.
Mangalphera
The couple makes four Mangalpheras as they walk around the fire in a clockwise direction representing four goals in life:
- Dharma – The realization of life’s purpose together
- Artha – Earning an honest living together
- Kama – Passionate energy for each other
- Moksha – Liberation of the soul from rebirth
Saptapadi
By taking seven sacred steps, the bride and groom commit to the following vows:
- To respect and honor each other
- To share each other’s joys and sorrows
- To trust and be loyal to one another
- To cultivate appreciation for knowledge, values, sacrifice and service
- To reconfirm their vow of purity, love family duties, and spiritual growth
- To follow the principles of Dharma (righteousness)
- To nurture an eternal bond of friendship and love
Kansar Bhojan
The bride’s mother brings sweets for the newlyweds to commemorate their first meal together. The bride feeds the groom four mouthfuls of sweets to symbolize that she is his wife and it will be her duty to feed him and their family. The groom does the same for her, signifying that he is her husband and it will be his duty to provide for her and their family.
Akhand Saubhagyavati
Female relatives of both the bride and groom whisper blessings of a protected marriage into the bride’s ear one at a time.
Mangal Sutra and Sindoor
The groom places a mangal sutra around the bride’s neck to show his eternal love for her, he then places the sindoor along the parting of the bride’s hair. These are both symbols of a married woman. At this time, the couple will exchange wedding rings as a symbol of their love for each other.
Jalastnchana
The parents of the bride and groom bless the wedded couple by dipping a rose in water and sprinking it over the couple. The couple then touches the feet of their parents as a sign of respect.
Vidai
This is a touching and emotional farewell to the bride from her family. At the end of the ceremony, the bride throws a fistful of rice so that the house of her childhood remains prosperous and happy. Now, she will leave for her new home with her husband. The priest places a coconut in front of the vehicle the newly wed couple will be departing in. When the vehicle breaks he coconut by driving over it, this symbolizes the removal of obstacles (shell) to expose the delicate sweetness of the heart (soft interior of the coconut) and the couple is free to enter their new marriage.
