Rajasthani Marriage Rituals
India is popularly known as the land of cultures, the only place where you find unity in diversity. The country has 28 states with a number of languages and customs practiced in each region. The availability of variety in almost everything from food to clothes, religion to language, has helped in making the lives of the people more lively and interesting.
Among all the states, Rajasthan is a place which is popular for the prevalence of its colors and food. Rajasthani dance is also famous all over the world with the different and
Vibrant lifestyle these people have. Rajasthan is also famous for its forts, havellis, palaces which are the major source to attract a large number of tourists. The colors and the majesty of Rajasthani culture can be witnessed in a Rajasthani marriage.
The marriages of Rajasthan are directly proportional to the colorful, strong and vibrant nature of its natives. The wedding food of Rajasthan constitutes of mouth watering dishes like Gattee ki sabzi, Dall Bati Churma, Papad ki sabzi, missi roti, daal makhani, shahi kadi chawal, shahi paneer, moong ka halwa, motichoor ke ladoo and saunth ke ladoo. The Rajasthani bride and groom are dressed in their traditional manner with the bride wearing dark color mostly in red ghaghra- choli and the groom wearing kurta- pyjama of any color with a dupatta complementing the color of the grooms dress.
Following is a brief description of the common ceremonies practiced in Rajasthani matrimony:
Pre- marriage rituals:
Engagement: Engagement is the ceremony, which marks the beginning of the courtship period of the couple. In this the Rajasthani bride and groom exchanges rings between each other, accepting the bond formed for a life- time. The ceremony takes place in front of all the relatives and friends to seek their blessing followed by feast and celebrations.
Ganpati Sthapana: Blessing from the god of intelligence, Ganesh ji is taken by bringing his idol home and getting that placed the temple inside the house. The ceremony takes place at the house of both the parties i.e. bride and the groom.
Pithi Dastoor: In this ceremony, turmeric paste is applied on the hands and the feet of the bride and the groom. The ceremonies take place in their respective places, after which the Rajasthani bride and groom are not suppose to move out of their houses, till their matrimony ceremonies are complete.
Mehfils: This basically corresponds to the gathering of the Rajasthani bride and the grooms families in either of their houses, where they celebrate their bonding with taking part in the famous Ghoomar, Dance of Rajasthan. All the family members dance together, which is followed by a lavishing dinner.
Jnaeva Ceremony: In this ritual, the groom is made to wear a pious thread in the Havan or the pooja in front of the sacred fire, signifying that either the groom will enter the married life or will take renunciation from the materialistic world.
Palla Dastoor: The father of the groom visits the brides house with the wedding dress and jewelry for the bride.
Toran or Toranchar: On the day of the Rajasthani matrimony, the entrance of the brides house is decorated with colorful flowers and straws, which are hit by the groom to prevent his, would- be bride from the evils eye. This ceremony is called Toranchar.
Wedding Ceremonies:
Granthi Bandhan: The brides father gives away the responsibility of her daughter to the groom, called kanyadan, after the application of turmeric paste on the brides hand.
Paani Grahan: This is the ceremony, where the groom takes the responsibility of the bride by taking her hand into his, signifying the acceptance of the relation.
Phera Ceremony: The Rajasthani bride and groom take the seven circles around the sacred fire symbolizing their oath for being together for the next seven lives.
Satapadi: This is the ritual where both Rajasthani groom and bride takes seven steps towards the direction of the Sun God, signifying each others support in all walks of life, whether its good or bad, happiness or sorrow. From here onwards, they are declared husband and wives.
Bidai: After the completion of all the marriage ceremonies, bride moves towards the house of her husband leaving her maternal home to lead a new and happy married life.
Few useful links:
http://www.jeevansathi.com/
http://www.jeevansathi.com/matrimonials/rajasthani-matrimonial/
Unique Ideas For Making Special Wedding Ceremony
In every family, wedding ceremony is handled by family relative member and friend who have better experience. Following wedding tradition is not a bad thing; however, it’s always better to add a personal touch to one’s wedding ceremony. Here are some wedding ceremony ideas that you can incorporate into your wedding and make it a memorable one for you and your guests.
Perfect Wedding venues
Wedding venue is the main part so that you decide how will you wedding planning. You can have your wedding in a garden, on the beach, in a forest, resort, and hilltop or even in your own backyard. It’s all up to you and your budget. You will also have to consider the convenience of your guests. The best part about adopting destination marriage ceremony ideas is that Mother Nature provides most of the ambiance and you don’t have to struggle with wedding ceremony decoration ideas. Slight decorations and lights simply make the wedding site look amazing!
Write Your Own marriage Vows
Church is the place where you can find ready-to-use wedding vows format. However, exchanging self-written vows is also a great idea. It makes the whole vow exchanging ceremony more significant and beautiful. Since you and your spouse have written the wedding ceremony script, you understand and mean every word you say on the marriage day. You can also have your own ring ceremony wordings. However, check with your pastor or priest for permission to incorporate the same, because some may raise objections.
Promise cards to Guests
Have promises from the Bible written down on handmade cards. There are scores of beautiful encouraging Bible verses and promises of God in the Bible. Have two or four people standing at the doorway of the church with trays containing these promise cards. God’s Word has power and you never know who may get touched with those words. It’s a great way to give confidence and exhort your guests. Instead of promise cards, you can also make bookmarks and write the promises on them.
Honoring Your Mother and Mother-in-Law
For making special you can put two roses or flowers in the bridal bouquet. When you reach the aisle give the flower to your father and ask him to give the rose to your mother. Or else when you reach the pew where your mother is seated, give her the rose yourself. Then after the marriage ceremony take out the other loose rose and give it to your mother-in-law before walking down the aisle. It’s a warm gesture of honoring the two most vital women in your life.
You can also plan modern wedding ceremony music ideas, like have somebody sing special numbers before the wedding to keep guests entertained. Remember that with these unique and different wedding ceremony ideas, you are not doing away with the traditional marriage ceremony outline. Instead, you are adding a special touch to the handed-down wedding ceremony format, to make the wedding all the more extraordinary and memorable!
Cinderella, You Shall Go To The Ball! – A Treasure Hunt
Dear Birthday Princess,
Happy Birthday!
Welcome to my treasure hunt. I have written a special treasure hunt especially for you, which I hope all your friends will thoroughly enjoy too!
You must first wear my rags and carry my cat, then follow my clues wearing a party hat. Divide all your friends into three even groups and choose a colour for each from my coloured loops. Follow your own colour at all times and think very carefully about all my rhymes. If you follow my clues and complete every task, you will be led to the end wearing a blindfold or mask. If you all make a wish and try your best, Im sure you will soon find my treasure chest!
Clue 1: Firstly, you must stand on the coloured circle that matches your loop, and then carry on forward with the rest of your group. Check for your colour on every tree, until you find twenty scattered pieces that can turn into me. When youve completed the task you can read the next clue, and take me a step nearer to finding my shoe.
Clue 2: Find a park bench and then check all around; you must find the right coloured bag without making a sound. Tip out all the letters and show them to me and think very carefully what the answer could be. Make up the name of my cruel family members and lets hope that everyone remembers!
Clue 3: I love talking to my cat, as she always listens to me. Can you find her favourite food over by the next tree? These are shaped like an animal and delicious to eat, but if they were real she would certainly find them a treat!
Clue 4: A large ball is taking place very soon in the palace and everyone is busy deciding what to wear. I cannot go, as I have sweeping to do; it just seems so very unfair. To represent the ball, thirty coloured balls I have hidden, but you have only ten minutes before therere forbidden.
Clue 5: Something amazing has happened, as you probably know; a fairy godmother has appeared who says I can go. I need a pumpkin and some white mice to whisk me to the ball, and then I can dance until midnight when my fairy will call. If you each look to your right youll find twenty coloured beads, which are part of my dress and will soon turn to seeds.
Clue 6: I enjoyed it too much when I arrived at the ball, that I forgot what the time was until the clock chimed in the hall. I ran down the stairs in a terrible hurry, then tripped and lost my glass slipper with no time to worry. Turn the shells over and place them where I can see, and then using the letters name the man who rescues me.
Clue 7: Now all the groups must come together and look at the shoes scattered on the floor; quickly find one that fits before the clock gets to four! This will eliminate all of you except one, as your treasure waits when the others have gone.
Clue 8: You must now wear a blindfold or mask, as youve completed your final task; listen very carefully and do as I ask. Turn around three times and walk ten steps in front, but take extra care near the end of your hunt. Feel for a box amidst squeals of laughter, and then take off your blindfold so that I can live happily ever after!
I hope you all had lots of fun on my treasure hunt. Thank you for joining me and I hope we will meet again soon.
Cinderella
Answers to clues
Clue 1: A jigsaw of Cinderella to piece together.
Clue 2: The Ugly Sisters.
Clue 3: White chocolate mice.
Clue 4: Find your groups set of coloured balls in ten minutes.
Clue 5: Find your groups set of coloured beads as quickly as possible.
Clue 6: Prince Charming.
Clue 7: Set the clock for four minutes and wait for someone to find a shoe that fits perfectly.
Clue 8: Find the box and open it to find the hidden treasure all the other party members will be waiting there.
Things you will need for the hunt
An old dress or skirt cut to resemble Cinderellas rags for the birthday princess to wear over her party dress during the treasure hunt.
Toy cat.
A set of three different coloured party hats.
Coloured loops – buy cheap plastic bracelets for each guest to wear; choose three different colours to distinguish the three teams.
Three coloured circles or hoops for the starting point.
Coloured tags for tagging trees.
Three jigsaws of Cinderella These can be made by printing off three, printable pictures of Cinderella off the internet, colouring each one a different colour and then sticking them onto cardboard. Then using a standing knife or penknife cut each one into jigsaw pieces ready for scattering in your chosen area.
Letters for word clues these can again be made on the computer, colour coded, cut out, and stuck onto cardboard.
Some coloured bags – to hold letters and chocolate mice.
Some white chocolate mice.
Coloured balls.
Coloured beads.
Shells use a different coloured marker pen to mark the letters inside each teams shells.
Some shoes.
A blindfold or mask for the end of the hunt.
Treasure chest.
Treasure can be anything at all, but it would be a good idea to keep it on the theme of Cinderella.
Tips for the hunt
You can save money on items for your hunt by borrowing some of the equipment needed from friends and relatives.
Check the park or area you are going to use for the treasure hunt carefully before the hunt this will allow you to plan everything well and check for any hazardous areas.
Consider having the hunt earlier in the morning or later in the day, in case the park is very busy.
Avoid hiding clues in or around flowerbeds, just in case they get ruined.
Make sure each group has an adult with them at all times, for safety and assistance with clues.
Each group can be run closely together or spread out during the hunt, but make sure everyone comes together for the shoe hunt!
Best Indo Western Dresses For Women
Indo western dresses for women is a popular trend in the fashion world of 21st century. With rapid globalization, more and more Indian women are coming forward to compete with the men in job circuit. It leads to increased exposure of Indian women to the western world, and in turn, changes their clothing style. Modern Indian women are fully conscious of their beauty and elegance. Indo western dresses for women is the ultimate solution to the style of all fashion-conscious modern Indian women. They are neither too Indian oriented nor too westernized. Irrespective of any specific leanings towards any culture or tradition, they suit ideally to the taste of every Indian woman. Blended with rich variety of prints and colors and high quality fabrics, Indo western dresses for women have already created a special niche for fashion lovers through out the world.
Indian women have come forward from their conventional attires like sarees and salwar-kameez and have braced for the westernized style of garments. Ethnic touch with western look is now the buzzword for Indo western dresses style of fashion. They offer wide range of Women dresses both for traditional Indian women and for westernized attitude. For a large number of non-resident Indian women who are staying in UK or USA for decades, these trendy apparels with Indian touch offer one kind of nostalgic feelings. Thus, women of Indian heritage prefer such garments to other dress materials. Such Indo western dresses cover all segments of clothing for Indian women like regular or casual dresses, skirts, womens tops, trousers, etc.
Indo western dresses for women offer a perfect synchronization of two worlds to the fashion lovers. This trendy fashion blends different westernized fashion style like waistlines, low-cut, necklines, deep necks, short sleeves, etc. in Indian dress format. Moreover, this style has no fixed size and shape and can be tried by all. For example, different womens tops are the latest craze of the younger women. Sleeveless tops with deep necks and long slits are very trendy and favorites to the younger generations. Another trendy fashion is also wearing a piece of fashionable top with new pair of jeans. Womens tops have taken the world by storm; it truly reflects the femininity of Indian women. Women skirts have also undergone a sea change by new set of Indo western skirts. They are perfectly suitable for party meeting or for social gathering.
Previously, traditional Indian women used to wear sarees and blouses with full sleeves. Indo western dresses for women has also brought revolutionary concept in this area. Blouses with puffed sleeves, deep necks with low back or halter-neck are very popular with designed saree outfit. Regular length of blouses has been reduced to a great extent. This nouveau style of women dresses transforms the attire of Indian women more glamorous and beautiful. Traditional Indian bridal dress has become fashionable too. In the traditional wedding dress of Lehengas, halter-tops are now widely used which have taken a place in Indian womens wardrobe. Either in traditional salwar kameez dupatta and saree blouses attires or in seductive looking westernized dresses of tunic, western skirts or western tops, this brand of Indo western dresses for women is unique in its presentation with sophistication and glamour.
In Indo western dresses for women of fashion, one can find her favorite designs and varied shade of fabrics. Embroidered kurtis or short kurtas, cotton silk tunics, printed tops, latest printed womens tops are to be named a few. Ethnic embroideries of vast Indian regions are well reflected in Indo western outfits like Phulkari embroidery of Punjab, Patola style of Gujrat, Chikankari work of Lucknow or Santiniketani print of Bengal. Such ethnic designing apparels have wider appeal amongst the fashion lovers. Another exquisite feature of Indo western dresses is its different motifs. Various motifs of leaf, flower, animals and Gods are designed on apparels, which make them stylish yet rich with tradition. Sleek long skirts with a stylish kurta, floral cotton shirts or peacock prints on salwar suits present a dashing western look with amazing popularity.
High comfort levels of wearing is the other hallmark of such trendy indo western apparels. Wholesale Women Dresses are available in various stores across the globe and through online shopping one can get also such Indi Dresses. Here one can find stunning designs, catchy fabrics and wide range of colors in different women dresses sections like Indo western skirts, women tops and other ladies apparels. Truly, the fusion brand of Indo western dresses for women has placed India at an amazing height in the world of fashion.
[Top]Importance Of Mehndi In Indian Culture
Mehndi holds a lot of cultural significance in Indian traditions. Be it weddings, Karva Chauth or other occasions, mehndi plays an important role in all the ceremonies and festivals of India. In todays era of modernization, the new styles and designs of mehndi are coming up, adding glamour and fun to it.
Weddings being the most important day in ones life, mehndi has become an ornament for the soon to be brides. There is, in fact, one whole ceremony dedicated to its celebration popularly known as Mehndi Ceremony or Mehndi Ki Raat. Besides this, the phrase Haath Peele Karna as often heard from elders of the family is a rasam of mehndi directly synonymous to marriage. This significance maybe attributed to symbolic meaning of mehndi i.e. fertility.
Mehndi Ceremony is among the pre wedding rituals in Indian weddings performed a day prior to the marriage. Just as Haldi ceremony symbolizes cleanliness, mehndi signifies beautification. Mehndi-Ki-Raat is usually a private affair with close relatives, friends and family members, celebrated amidst lot of dancing and feasting. This ritual is often combined with Sangeet ceremony and so is primarily a womens function. The atmosphere is imbued with dholak beats and singing of traditional songs while mehndi is applied on brides hands and legs by mehndi experts. The brides mehndi interweaves the name of her would be husband and he is expected to find his name in the pattern. The female relatives of the family also apply mehndi on their palms to take part in the celebrations. This ceremony is performed by families of both the Indian bride and the Indian groom.
Even the color of mehndi is given high importance in Indian culture as the darkness of the color signifies the degree of husbands and mother-in-laws love. It depicts love and affection between the couple as it is believed that the longer it retains, the more auspicious it is. The bride is traditionally not allowed to work in her husbands home until her mehndis color fades away completely.
Mehndi is applied on all the important occasions, festivals and vrats(fasts) in Hindu culture. It is important in festivals such as Karwa Chauth, Rakhi, Diwali etc. It is also considered as a shagun mostly denoted by the pattern of large dot in the centre of the hand with four smaller dots at the sides.
In order to make this conventional trend of henna application more exciting, fashionable and fun filled, there is a vast variety of mehndi designs available today. Arabic Mehndi, Rajasthani Mehndi, Crystal Mehndi, Tattoo Mehndi, etc along with the traditional Indian Mehndi are among the most popular styles of mehndi currently. Mehndi designs majorly consist of floral patterns, religious symbols, etc. while adding beauty and uniqueness to each design applied.
Henna or Mehndi is also known worldwide for its medicinal properties. It was, in fact, used as a cosmetic in earlier times due to its therapeutic features. Mehndi is widely adopted around the world as a conditioner and dye for hair by both men and women. It is a natural dye that renders a beautiful color on hair and creates a lustrous look. Also, mehndi is popular for its cooling effects, thus, used in hot climates in India and other countries. It can also help in lowering body temperature and soothe headaches, fevers, burning feet and even hysteria or a violent temper. It can increase the luster of nails, is effective in muscular rigidity and even in Jaundice.
Henna is in vogue these days with much experimentation happening on ways of its application. It is now prominently used, especially in the West, to make tattoos on different parts of the body. Tattoos are made on arms, wrists, around the navel, the shoulder or the back. Henna is now being used for body art as well.
Few useful links:
http://www.jeevansathi.com/