Hey! This is the second part of my time in India, you can find part 1 here
So where did we leave off in the story? Ah, I believe we had just finished the Sangeet, where the two families celebrated with dancing and gifts. After countless prayers, ceremonies, and rituals, it was finally, finally time to get married.
But first, we must be dressed for the occasion. It was time for Esther and I to wear the sarees that Shreya had bought for us. This was my first time wearing traditional Indian garb and boy, was it tough to figure out.
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| Our beautiful sarees hanging on the rack |
The saree as you can see, comes in three parts. The top, a hidden petticoat and the giant 6 foot long scarf. The two of us were able to put on the top and the petticoat with no issues, but wrapping the scarf was another problem. Apparently, it was considered inappropriate to run around with just the top and the petticoat and since we were alone in our room, we hastily wrapped the scarf around us and dashed off to find someone to help. I swear if someone saw us, the probably thought we had just stolen the sarees from a saree shop since it was so horribly wrapped.
Thankfully, one of Shreya's many aunties helped us and here's the final product.
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| ta-da! |
Once we were done with our outfits, we hung around with Shreya and the others in case they needed help. I was bored so I started photographing some of her jewelry.
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| Gorgeous |
Finally, it was time for the groom and his family to arrive. And what an entrance he made. There was a big dance party, a marching band to announce his appearance and he arrived on a horse and carriage! At this point though, I have to say, I 'm a little disappointed that he was not on an elephant given all the pomp and circumstance I had witnessed up to this point. But I guess we'll have to save that sight for the next wedding in India I suppose.
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| still super fancy though |
All of Shreya's family was ready to welcome them with flowers.
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| Kind of feels like the Oscars |
The actual wedding ceremony itself was something very different. The priest read an entire book of prayers after which the bride and groom walked over the sacred fire four times. I believe each rotation was supposed to symbolize a promise/vow? I guess this is the Hindu version of vows??
Finally they were married! Of course we had to take a group pic with the happy couple.
The last ceremony that day was the long, sad send off, where the bride officially goes away. I have to admit that I did shed many tears since it was such a touching moment. I think Shreya's family probably had a good laugh though since I technically lived the closest to her and will have the most opportunity to see her, so really, I should not be the one crying.
Stay tuned for the next leg of my journey in Delhi where I leave the comfort and safety of Shreya's family and begin to explore the ancient sights of India.
Have a great week guys!
What an interesting glance into a new culture and event!
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that some things typical of "western" weddings may be considered as unusual and ornate as some of these customs. However, I think the elephant would have been a but much. And, I hear that elephants used in such ways are often mistreated, so it's probably better they JUST had a horse-drawn golden carriage.
I didn't know that the saree was so complicated to put on, nor did I know it was so inappropriate to run around in the top and the petticoat. I'm curious what the process of putting that on looks like, but it's probably not an appropriate picture ;)
Oh I have heard that elephants are often mistreated, which is pretty unfortunate. I actually did see quite a few of them on my trip as working animals! As for the sari photo, unfortunately, I was pre-occupied while they were wrapping the sari so I didn't get to take a picture. The scarf is actually six yards long, NOT six feet.
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