Gujarati Marriage
A Gujarati wedding begins with the pokavu or arrival of the groom, who is greeted by his future mother-in-law at the entrance, who performs the aarati. She tries to grab his nose to remind him that he has finally come rubbing his nose at their doorstep to ask for their daughter’s hand in marriage. Next, Madhuparka ceremony is performed, where the groom’s feet is washed and he is fed honey and milk. Meanwhile, the bride’s sister’s steals the groom’s shoes, which is returned to the groom on acceptance of money.
The bride is then carried to the mandap by her maternal uncle in a ceremony known as kanyadaan. The curtains that separate the bride and groom, are lowered and the couple exchange garlands. Next, in the varmala ceremony, the elders of the house place an auspicious cord around the couple’s necks to protect them from evil. During the mangalphera, the couple circle the fire four times instead of the customary seven. The four circles symbolize the four basic human goals of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha.
Another interesting ritual of the Gujarati wedding is the sowbhagyavati bhava, in which married women from the bride’s family whisper blessings into the ears of the bride. The day concludes with prayers to God seeking blessing for the couple.
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