Garhwal Wedding Traditions

Garhwal is a region which is bestowed with magnificent beauty. It has great culture. The customs, rites and other rituals are practiced by the people of Uttaranchal which are essentially based on Hindu religion. These customs are deep rooted and are strictly observed by people of all castes. Customs and traditions are basically influenced by their belief in spirits and superstitions, innumerable Hindu gods and goddesses. Uttaranchalis follow distinct rituals for all the auspicious and sad moments of life from child birth to marriage.

Every moment of life has to undergo one ritual or the other. Brahmins and Rajputs will willingly accept a girl of the lower caste as their daughter in law.But they are still reluctant to accept the boy of lower class. Even there is reluctance on the marriage between the same castes. However, some rituals have undergone a change with the new era.

With the present trend in the country and changed outlook, widow marriage is also accepted. Usually, marriages are pre arranged. Before deciding the alliance, "Purohit" matches the horoscopes of the boy and girl and see their compatibility. Status of the family and the caste are the main pre requisites for negotiating any marriage.

A small ceremony is held at the house of prospective bride and tikka is exchanged. This is followed by another ritual called engagement ceremony where necklace is presented to the girl. An auspicious muhurat is searched for the wedding. There are various pre wedding or post wedding ceremonies which are performed.

On the wedding day, bridegroom dresses in his traditional attire. The procession of friends, relatives and family members headed by the groom proceed toward the house of the bride.A white flag which is called Nishan is held ahead of the procession. It is followed by the people playing shehnai, drums and flutes. It is followed by the white Palaki in which groom sat.

At the end of the procession, a man holds a flag which is red and it represents bride. The feast is arranged at the bride's house and regional specialties are served to the guests. The "Nath" ceremony is performed where nose ring is presented to the girl. An auspicious moment is found for this ceremony. The next day, a haven is performed and pheras took place. The pheras are performed by taking rounds around the vedi which is specially constructed for the occasion. Various matras are enchanted by the priest to seek the blessing of the gods. Simple refreshment is given to the groom?s party and gifts and cash are given to the couple and tikkas are performed.

After this ceremony, the whole atmosphere becomes emotional when bride is just to leaves for her new house. Songs are sung by the womenfolk to mark the occasion of departure. By that time, various rituals have already been performed at the groom?s house. The procession now holds red flag ahead with doli of bride behind it. When bride reaches her new home, she is welcomed by the family members and relatives. Puja is performed and blessings are given to the new bride. New bride is given jewels and gifts by the groom's family.