What Are The Top Rituals of A Brahmin Wedding?

In India, marriage plays an important role in determining our life. How we spend the rest of our life would be decided by the selection of our life partners. In the past decades, the guardians usually decided on their child's marriage, but the scenario has changed completely in recent years, people not only select their life partners on their own but the medium of choosing the life partners has also entirely altered. Indian weddings are bright, colourful, and full of grandeur and multiple rituals. Since India is a country that is full of different cultures and communities. Each community include their particular rituals when it comes to the matter of the wedding. Brahmins are one among them. With a combination of radiant colours, gorgeous decoration, elegant dresses, strict rituals and delectable dishes, a Brahmin wedding is a pleasure to the eyes.

Being the top cast in our social structure, brahmins are considered to be the best cast in a Hindu social arrangement. Brahmin wedding is best known for their devotion to rituals. Following the rituals in their purest form is the speciality of any brahmin wedding. The way Brahmins follow every ritual in their marriage, add a magnificent touch to the entire affair.

These rituals have an intense religious significance in the entire wedding and are a celebration of the rich lineage and age-old practice of the Brahmin community. Though each region includes specific rituals, the overall spirit of the wedding remains similar.

Whether you get your partner on a Brahmin matrimonial, through friends or on matchmaking websites, some general rituals would remain the same in almost every Brahmin wedding. In the next segment of this article, we would discuss the most common and important rituals of a Brahmin wedding.

Vratham
The very first ritual of a Brahmin wedding is none other than the Vratham. It is believed that the rituals of a Brahmin wedding start when the bride's family welcome the groom's family or baraat. This welcoming of the groom's family is attended by the Vratham ceremony.

In this ceremony, both the families of the bride and groom fasten a blessed thread around the couple's wrist to keep them safe from any negative energy. This thread should be tied around till the completion of the wedding ceremony. This step is significant as it signifies the blessings of both families to start a new journey in life.

Jaanavasam
The next step in Brahmin matrimony is Jaanavasam. This step is specially designed for the groom. In this step, a simple puja is conducted In a nearby temple. In ancient days, the groom used to return from this puja on an elephant's back. But for many reasons, most people use cars to return from this ceremony. This step is significant as it is recognised as a good start to the entire wedding.

Nichayathartham
After taking the blessings of the Almighty, now it's time for engagement. In western weddings, engagement is a different ceremony that holds immense importance. In Indian heritage and culture, the Brahmin community also include the rituals of ring exchange as a sign of mutual understanding. This ring exchange ceremony is called Nichayathartham. In this event, Lord Ganesha is praised along with the exchange of rings.

Kasi Yatra
After a successful ring ceremony, the next step is Kasi Yatra. As the name implies, this step is a fun-filled one. In this step, the groom needs to pretend that he would go to Kashi for becoming a Saint to leave materialistic pleasure. The Brahmin bride father needs to stop him and pull him back into the mandap.

He then describes the significance of marriage to the groom and makes him ready to enter the Grihashtha phase of his life. After making the groom realise the importance of marriage, the bride's father places the hand of his daughter on the groom's hand. This Kasi Yatra step is extremely significant due to the different four stages of a Brahmin's life.

Maalai Matruthal
Maalai Matruthal is a very pleasant and eye-soothing ritual of a Brahmin wedding. In this ritual, both the bride and groom exchange garlands which symbolise the acceptance of each other. It’s a cheerful ritual wherein both the groom and bride are lifted upon the shoulders of their male family members and there is a contest to watch who can put the garland first. In this ritual, both the families of a bride and groom enjoy a lot of different playful activities.

Oonjal
After the exchange of garlands, now the next ritual of a Brahmin marriage is Oonjal which means swing. As the name implies, in this ritual both the bride and groom seat on a wooden swing and are fed a mixture of banana, milk and sugar. This ritual comes from the reference to Radha and Krishna's togetherness and their love.

To prevent any sort of bad spirit, women place rice balls in all four directions of the couple. This ritual is extremely cheerful and joyous as the other family members sing different songs and perform activities in this ritual. This ritual shows the beauty and togetherness of a relationship in a wedding ceremony.

Kanyadhaanam & Sapthapathi
After Oonjal, the next step of a Brahmin wedding is Kanyadhaanam in which the bride's father takes her daughter on his lap and places her hand his daughter on the Brahmin groom's hand. This ritual is extremely significant since it portrays the bond between a father and a daughter.

The groom then ties a madisar around the bride's neck which depict that he takes the further responsibilities of his wife. Then both the bride and groom roam around the fire followed by the holy chants of a pandit. The fire is supposed to be the Agnidev who is believed to be the witness of the entire wedding. With this step, the wedding gets completed.

Nalangu
After the completion of marriage, both the families of a bride and groom meet each other to make an intense bond between them. This ritual is known as Nalangu. In this ritual both the families meet each other, take food together and exchange gifts with each other to make a bond between them. This ritual is extremely important since Indian culture priorities the bond between every one of the bride's family and the groom's family.

Gruhapravesam
After conducting every ritual successfully, the bride enters the house of a groom along with the blessings of older relatives and gets their blessings to start a new life. This ritual is known as Gruhapravesam. Entering a new house is significant as a bride is going to start a new life in a house that she is less aware of. With this step, the bride gets the blessings of the older relatives and starts a new journey.

So these are the major steps of a Brahmin wedding which include specific significance. After years, the memories of a Brahmin matrimonial ceremony of these rituals get remained for their significance. A wedding is all about sweet memories which only can be gotten through multiple rituals at the wedding. Without rituals, a wedding can seem faded and unexciting. Rituals show the different cultures and the heritage of multiple communities which make them worthy to follow.