The various shades of Hindu religion, customs and beleifs can be observed in a Hindu Marriagealso called Vivah in Hindi and Panigrahana in Sanskrit. According to Hinduism marriage between two souls is a very sacred affair that stretches beyond one life time and may continue up to at least seven lives. It is 13th of the 16 ceremonies in a person's life. It is a sacrament and as such is solemnised in accordance with the VEDAS, the holy scriptures of the Hindu religion. The ceremony is traditionally conducted in Sanskrit, the language in which most holy Hindu ceremonies are conducted. Most of the weddings rituals are based on their regional traditions but the common tie among the weddings of all the religions is the fun and excitement part. It involves a large gathering of friends and relatives. The Hindus attach a lot of importance to weddings and the ceremonies are very colourful and extend for several days. Some of the commonly observed rituals of aHindu marriageinludes :

• Ganesh Puja :The Puja is done before the marriage ceremony to take the blessings of the God Ganesha.
• Tilak :Tilak is put on the forehead using Kumkum, a red turmeric powder. It is considered as a mark of auspiciousness. The male members of the bride's family, like her father, brother and uncles place a tilak on the forehead of the groom.
• Mehendi Ceremony :An occasion when the bride's hands are decorated with Mehendi also called as Heena. Mehendi is also applied on the hands of other female members of the family in various designs on this auspicious day.
• Sangeet Sandhya :The sangeet sandhya is an evening of musical entertainment. The groom's family puts on a show for the groom and bride where the relatives and friends of the bride and the groom at their respective places play music, sings and dance and makes the occassion a festive event. Included as part of this event is an introduction of all the family members for the bride.
• Baraat :The procession of the groom with his family members, relatives and friends to the marriage venue.
• Jai Mala :The bride and groom exchange garlands accepting each other as life partner.
• Vivah :The ritual connotes the actual marriage, for the very meaning of the word Vivah is marriage. The priest ties the end of the groom's dhoti or the kurta; whichever he is wearing, with that of the bride's saree or chunni; whichever she is wearing. The knot signifies as the sacred wedlock. The groom and the bride then walk around the holy fire seven times, making seven promises to be fulfilled in the married life, after which they are considered to be 'married' to each other. This ritual is also called as Phere, the main wedding ceremony.
• Kanyadaan :This ritual is performed by the father or elder brother of the bride in presence of a large gathering that is invited to witness the wedding.
  The father of bride pours out a libation of sacred water symbolizing the giving away of the daughter to the bride groom. The groom recites Vedic hymns to Kama, the God of love, for pure love and blessings.
  As a condition for offering his daughter for marriage, the father of the bride requests a promise from the groom for assisting the bride in realizing the three ends : Dharma, Artha, and Kama. The groom makes the promise by repeating three times that he will not fail the bride in realizing Dharma, Artha and Kama.
• Vidaai :This is considered to be the most emotional ritual, when the bride leaves her parents home and makes her way to her husband's home. Family members, relatives and friends, who also shower her with blessings and gifts, give her a tearful farewell. The male members of the bride's family bid farewell to the groom by applying the traditional Tilak also called as Vermilion on his forehead and shower him with gifts. Then the couple leaves in a decorated car.

Pre Wedding Rituals :

A Hindu Marriage is an unique and colourful ceremony consisting of several steps which differs in different religions. A Hindu Wedding is usually arranged by bride's family. A generalized wedding consists of :

Tilak Ceremony

This ritual is also known as Rokaa Ceremony or Tilak Ceremony. Tilak ceremony is performed in most of the family according to the family tradition and culture. The ceremony is held in different styles according to different culture and caste. It is a celebration of verbal agreement between two family for the marriage of bride and groom in question. During this ceremony the male members of the bride's family, like her father, brother and uncles put a tilak using Kumkum, on the forehead of the groom. After all the rituals the bride's father offers gifts to the groom and his family members. The gifts include clothes, sweets and fruits and other items for the groom and his family members. Following the ceremony, the groom's father sends gifts of sugar, coconut, rice, clothes, jewelry and henna to the bride. Friends and relatives from the groom's family carry those gifts for the bride and her family members.

Mehendi Ceremony

The Mehendi Ceremony is an important ritual and usually takes place one or two days before the actual wedding. The mehendi is the traditional Hindu colour of auspiciousness, joy and celebration. But more than that it is the bridal herb par excellence. It evokes a world of beauty, leisure and sensuous womanhood. It exudes tenderness, softness and a mystery as mysterious as the heart of a woman. The reddish brown color of Mehendi - which stands for the prosperity that a bride is expected to bring to her new family - is considered most auspicious for all wedding-related ceremonies.

As red and saffron are the colours of celebration in the Hindu tradition, mehendi has come to occupy its rightful place in the sixteen processes of beauty techniques known as solah shringars.

The mehndi ceremony in Hindu weddings is known as the Mehndi Raat. On this day first vatna a scented powder consisting of barley flour, turmeric and mustard oil is applied on the body of the bride and the groom which is followed by a ritual bath. Then the hands and feets of the girls are decorated with Mehendi. According to custom she must not step out of the house for the next few days until her marriage. The bride's cousins sometimes apply a dot of mehndi on the palm of the groom. The patterns used for Hindu weddings are some of the most beautifully executed patterns anywhere. The female relatives and friends of the bride also apply Mehendi and dance and sing to make the event very colourful. The event gives a festive touch to the celebration.

It is said that the deeper and faster the colour of the mehendi, the greater will be the husband's love for the young bride!

Ladies Sangeet

Also called as Sangeet Sandhya is an evening of musical entertainment. The groom's family puts on a show for the groom and bride where the relatives and friends of the bride and the groom at their respective places play music, sing and dance, play musical games like antakshary etc and make the occassion a memorable one for all. Included as part of this event is an introduction of all the family members for the bride.

The Wedding Ceremony

The actual wedding ceremony also called as Vivah consist of following traditional steps :

Baraat :The groom, accompanied by his family & friends, goes to the Bride's place in a procession. He sits on a decorated horse. The bride's parents and other senior members of the family welcome the groom, his parents & relatives and introduce each other. The introduction is known as milni. The procession may consists of 100 to thousands of people, both men and women. Earlier married women were not permitted to go with the procession, but now a days close women relatives go and even dance in the procession. In Hindu Culture red is considered to be an auspicious colour so the bride usually wears a red saree or a lehanga.

Garlands Exchange(Jai Mala) :The bride & groom exchange garlands of fresh flowers acknowledge their life long bondage in front of all the people. Then the relatives and the friends of both the bride and the groom shower their blessings to them. The bride & groom are then escorted to the mandap (alter) by their parents while the guests are served with snacks and food.

Hathleva : During this ceremony which is a part of the wedding ceremony, some henna is put in the right hands of the couple and are tied with a cloth. The couple pray to the Gods to bless their marriage. The Hathleva signifies an eternal bond that will join the couple forever. The Hathleva also signifies that although they are separate individuals, from now onwards they are one in mind and spirit.

The Wedding Ceremony (Vivah) :During the wedding ceremony the bride and bridegroom are seated in front of a holy fire in a beautifully decorated place called as Mandap. The sacred fire in the Mandap symbolizes not only the illumination of the mind, knowledge and happiness but is also a clean and pure witness to the ceremony as it progresses. A priest conducts a wedding and recites various religious sayings.

Phere :The priest explains to the couple their responsibilities and duties in their married life towards each other. Hindu religion believes that fire is a sustainer of life. The couple walks around the fire four times (in some customs seven times) exchanging vows of their duties.

Kanyadaan :This is also a part of the wedding ceremony in which the bride's parents entrust their daughter in the safe hands of the groom. The priest explains the bride and the groom their duties towards each other as life partners. Hindu religion believes that fire is a sustainer of life. The couple walks around the fire seven times praying and exchanging vows of duty, love, fidelity, and respect. These vows are traditionally spoken in Sanskrit, and are one of the most ancient aspects of the Hindu marriage ceremony. The first four rounds stand for the four basic human goals : in dharma (duty, religion), artha (wealth) and kama (deeds), the groom will lead the bride and in moksha (salvation) he will follow her. The vows validate the marriage; no ceremony is complete without them. Once the ceremony is over, the family and friends congratulates the newly married couple. The priest invokes the memory and blessings of forefathers of the bride and the groom for this auspicious occasion.

Post-wedding Rituals :

Vidaai

This is considered to be the most emotional ritual, when the bride leaves her parent's home (the wedding venue) and makes her way to her husband's home. Family members, relatives and friends, who also shower her with blessings and gifts, give her a tearful farewell. The male members of the bride's family bid farewell to the groom by applying the traditional Tilak also called as Vermilion on his forehead and shower him with gifts. Then the couple leaves in a decorated car.

Griha Pravesh

This is another ritual performed for the auspiciousness of newly married couple and the rest of the family. The groom's mother welcomes her daughter-in-law as she enters her new home for the first time after the wedding. At the entrance, she puts her right foot onto a tray of vermilion powder mixed in water or milk, symbolizing the arrival of good fortune and purity. With both her feet now covered in the red powder paste, she kicks over a vessel filled with rice and coins to denote the arrival of fertility and wealth in her marital home. During this ritual some traditional activities are done as according to the family traditions.

Mooh Dikhai

The family now indulges in a series of games and post-wedding rituals, amidst much laughter to make the new member feel comfortable. One such ritual is the Mooh dikhai. Literally translated, Mooh Dikhai means 'Show Your Face', but this is a ritual, which helps to introduce the newly wed to members of her husband's family! Each member of the groom's family comes in turn to make an acquaintance with the new bride.

Reception

A get together party to welcome and intruduce the new bride to all other relatives, neighbours and friends. Usually, the groom's family holds a reception to introduce the bride to all family members, relatives and friends etc. This usually takes place following the wedding or day after the wedding.