|
About Kannada Wedding
Kannada Weddings are a relatively simple but joyful
affair. It may be noted that there are different
communities in Karnataka and there are some differences
in the wedding rituals followed by each of them. Given
here is a general description of a typical wedding in
Karnataka.
Pre-Wedding Rituals:
Some very interesting pre-wedding customs are followed
in Kannada wedding. Please read on to know more about
them.
Nischay Tamulam or Fixing of the Alliance: Once the
parents of the prospective bride and the groom agree to
the match, the alliance is formalized with a plate of
betel leaves and supari. The parents of the boy go to
the bride's home and give her a sari, blouse piece,
coconut and fruits. The girl's parents give the boy a
dhoti, coconut and fruits. A priest chants mantras. He
also matches the horoscopes of the boy and the girl to
fix the date and time of the wedding.
Nandi: This ceremony is performed a few days prior to he
wedding to ensure that the marriage takes place without
any hitches/problems. There is a puja with coconut,
aarti and a kalash (copper pot). The first invitation
card is offered to God.
Havan: On the day of the marriage, a havan is performed
in the respective houses of the bride and the groom.
Wedding Attire: In a typical Kannada marriage ceremony,
the bride wears Navari sari and green glass bangles
along with traditional gold jewelry. The bridegroom
wears a dhoti, angavastram and a pheta, a turban. In his
right hand he holds a stick which has been sanctified in
a holy place.
Departure of the Groom's Party: After bowing to the
elders, gods, goddesses in the house and taking their
blessings, the groom with his wedding party proceeds
towards the wedding venue.
Welcoming of the Barat: When the groom and his party
reach the wedding venue, the sumangalis or married women
from the girl's side perform an arti. Then these
sumangalis lead the bridegroom inside the marriage hall.
Kaashi Yatre: This is a playful ritual with the groom
pretending to get angry as nobody is searching for a
bride for him and threatens to go to Kashi on a
pilgrimage. He carries a walking stick, an umbrella, a
fan, a coconut, a small packet of rice and dal, and a
dhoti. This is when his maternal uncle convinces him and
puts forth him the girl that he has chosen for him or
would offer his daughter's hand for marriage.
Wedding Rituals:
Given here is a short description of the significant
rituals of the Kannada wedding.
Mandap Puja: On the day of marriage the first ritual
that is performed is the Mandap Puja. This is to make
the mandap or the hall in which the marriage is to take
place, appropriate for an event as sacred as a marriage.
The bride's father brings the groom to the mandap and is
worshipped in a ceremony called the Var Puja. The
bride's parents honour him by washing his feet and offer
him a silk dhoti and pitambar, which are to be worn by
him.
Jaimala or the Garlanding Ceremony: In the Kannada
wedding, the bride is escorted to the mandap by her
uncles. An interesting custom followed is that no one is
supposed to see the bride's face. Her sister shields her
face with a fan of peacock feathers. The bride and groom
stand on the either side of a white cloth, which
separates them. For the recitation of the marriage
mantras (Mangalashtam), the bride and the groom take
standing positions. The cloth is removed, and the bride
and groom garland each other amidst the chanting of
mantras.
Dhare Herdu or the Giving Away of the Bride: In Dhare
Herdu, the bride's father gives away the bride to the
groom. He takes the groom's hand and places it on the
bride's hand. The moment when the bride is "handed" over
to the groom, her father ceremonially pours water into
the groom's hands (called dhara), signifying that she is
now his. Corn/rice is then put into the havan five
times, before the 7 pheras or the saptapadi begins.
Saptapadi: The groom's angavastram and the bride's
pallav is tied with a nuptial knot. The bride follows
the groom's footsteps seven times around the holy fire (saptapadi).
Five married women tie the mangalsutra or the holy
thread while the bridegroom holds it around the neck of
the bride. The couple then bows before the elders, and
visits the temple for blessings.
Post-Wedding Rituals:
Post - wedding rituals of a traditional Kannada Wedding
are quite simple and include the following:
Vidaai: Vidai ceremony marks the tearful farewell of the
bride from her paternal home for her husband's house.
The parents of the bride gift her an umbrella, vessels,
cot etc. to help her set up her new home. In Kannada
wedding, the bride is accompanied by her brother who
stays at the groom's house for the night and returns
home the next day.
Graha Pravesh: Welcome of the bride into her new home is
called Graha Pravesh. The bride kicks a kalash full of
rice with her right foot kept at the threshold of the
house. This is followed by the name change ceremony.
Here the groom decides a name for his bride he inscribes
with a ring on a plate containing rice. On the second
day the bride's family comes to take the newly wedded
bride and the groom to their house. The couple stays at
the bride's place for a few days. Later, the groom's
family goes over to his in-laws place to fetch the bride
and the groom.
|
