Indian wedding #2, wedding festivities

Indian pre-wedding festivities for an old college friend of The Fella's began on Friday afternoon in Southern Maryland with a customary ladies' mehndi, a celebration involving temporary skin decoration using henna (i.e. basically an opportunity for the ladies to come together to gossip). The result on the bride was an intricate design of scrolling flowers covering her lower arms, hands, and feet.

{ bride's mehndi }

Then came the sangeet on Friday night, a pre-wedding dinner for all the guests. There was an Indian buffet, where I ate lots of warm, fluffy naan and a variety of vegetarian dishes. Close friends and family performed special dances in honor of the bride and groom against a decorative backdrop of deep fuschias, hot pinks, and purples. I finally had a chance to wear a silk-woven, Indian-style wrap that I bought in Coral Gables at a farmer's market, of all places, in 2005. I never could find anything in my closet to pair with it, but on this trip I was able to piece together a complete ensemble that looked somewhat authentic, borrowing a burnt red choli top from Katie's sari and a blousy white pant, called a salwar, that is actually part of another traditional outfit from Maya. Never mind that I was wearing the top backwards...

{ the glowing bride and groom }

The start of the wedding ceremony began with the groom's arrival on horseback, flanked by his family and friends in a drum and dance processional. The bride's friends and family are waiting at the entrance to receive him, the women in all colors of the rainbow.

{ see more pix of my ceremony sari here }

Then there was the Hindu wedding ceremony, filled with more traditions and rituals than I could count. The rituals are based on the hymns contained in the Vedas, sacred philosophical verses that have remained unchanged for five thousand years, some rather extraordinary; the lighting of an actual fire under the mandap canopy (symbolizes the physical body starting a quest for spiritual life and sustaining the fire), tying the bride and groom together (represents the nuptial bond), and circling the sacred fire together seven times (represents that the couple will partner together in all aspects of life). It was unlike any other wedding ceremony I've witnessed.

The bride and groom exited into dazzling, brilliant sunshine. But wait, it's not over until the bride is carried away in a gold chamber, as a symbol of her leaving her family and entering a new one.

And a little Indian glitz and glamour and celebration to end the night, Bollywood style...

{ found my way into the bridal chambers }