Kerala Matrimony Rituals for Various Hindu Communities

The weddings in Kerala are a family function with family members and friends attending and blessings the couple. The state of Kerala has many Hindu caste and communities. The rituals and customs in these communities have some certain variations, though most of them are the same. The Kerala Matrimony for the Hindu religious communities begins with the procedure of matchmaking. There are many wedding day rituals in the Hindu functions for the state of Kerala. The Kerala Matrimony Pre- Wedding Rituals for the Hindu Communities: The first and foremost ritual in the Hindu communities is matching of horoscopes. This ritual is called the Muhurtham, where elders of the family come together for matching the horoscopes of the girl and the boy. The girl and boy’s family bring the horoscopes and the priest helps in matching them. The parents and other elders of the family check the compatibility of the couple. This is an important ritual in the Hindu communities of the state. Once the horoscopes are matched, the families with the help of priest select a date for the wedding. Another important pre-wedding ritual is the Nischayam Ceremony. In this ceremony, the families meet and announce to guests and relatives about the match between the boy and the girl. The prospective groom and bride, however, do not attend this ceremony. Feast in the bride’s house is also one of the important rituals before the wedding day. This feast is generally held just the day before the actual matrimonial function. The feast prepared in the bride’s house is cooked in traditional way. The delicacies served in the feast are all specialties from Kerala. In this feast, the bride is made to face in the eastern direction and have her meal. She is served a traditional vegetarian meal. Other family members also eat with her. The Kerala Matrimony Wedding Rituals for the Hindu Communities: The day of the matrimony is a busy day, both for the family members as well as the bride and groom. The wedding day ceremony begins with Madhuparkam Ceremony. The Hindu bride from Kerala wears Mundu, which is a two-piece sari. She also wears gold jewelry matching her costume and fresh white flowers adorn her hair. The groom wears traditional clothes as well like the dhoti and angavastram. The ritual begins with the bride’s father welcoming the groom by washing his feet. The groom in return gives him a beige or off-white sari for the bride. The bride is expected to wear this sari for the matrimonial function. The chief rituals take place in front of the holy fire or yagna. It is known as the Veli ceremony in local language. The groom and the bride encircle the veli or the holy fire three times. On completion of three rounds, the groom ties a yellow thread around her bride. this yellow thread is known as ‘taali’. The Kaanyadaan ceremony follows this ritual, where the bride’s father gives away her hand to the groom. The groom promises the bride’s father that he will take the responsibility of the girl at all times. The Kerala Matrimony Post-Wedding Rituals for the Hindu Communities: Different Hindu communities have variations in the post wedding ceremonies. The rituals also vary from family to family. Common among all the families are the Grihpravesh ceremony and the Kudivep ceremony. Entry of the bride in the groom’s household in the Grihpravesh ceremony. A feast follows at end of the wedding ceremonies. Generally, the Hindu families of Kerala serve vegetarian food.