A Cultural Guide to Bihari Weddings Rituals and Traditions

Have you ever attended a Bihari wedding?? If yes then you already know how colourful , vibrant and intresting a Bihari wedding is , and if not then experience it atleast once is your lifetime . And I'm damn sure that you'll not be disappointed. 

So Bihari Weddings includes most strangest and antique wedding rituals that is not only fascinating but also contains profound meaning behind it .  Some of the Bihari wedding includes whole month while some lasts for 5-6 days depending on different social groups and practises . So basically a Bihari Hindu wedding rituals consists of three stages - 

1.Pre wedding rituals 

2.Wedding rituals 

3.Post wedding rituals 

And the most crucial part of a Bihari wedding is none other than the "Gaalis" or the abusive words which is obviously given by both groom and bride families to each other during wedding rituals . And trust me this is the most funny and enjoyable part of the whole wedding. 

So the pre wedding rituals includes - 

1. Satyanarayan Katha - So the Satya Narayan katha is organised by the Bride's family , where close friends, relatives along with groom's families takes part. And it mark the beginning of the wedding rituals. The priest narrates the katha and perform the whole pooja. 

2. Cheka Ceremony - This is also called engagement in modern times but the actual traditional Bihari thing is to call this as Cheka . This is also performed mostly at the Bride's place , where the Bride's brother perform a ritual with the groom and then it is said to be that the groom is reserved ( chekana)  and now he can't marry anyone else . At some places the same rituales is also performed with the Bride's to mark her as reserved. And then the ring exchange ceremony takes place . The shagun is also exchanged in this ritual 

3. Haldi Kutai - In this ritual all the married women of the groom's side make paste of turmeric which is then sent to the Bride's house for applying before wedding day . 

4. Tilak ceremony - The tilak ceremony is basically performed at the groom's side . The Bride's family visits the groom's family and gave them special wedding gifts and shaguns . Basically the Bride's brother performs a ritual and then puts a tilak at the forehead of the groom's and then gives him the shagun . A proper Feast is also organised for the Relatives , Friends and Families. 

5.Mandappachadan- This is one of the important rituals as the mandap is prepared with bamboo and decorated with banana and Mango leaves in which the whole marriage ceremony takes place. 

6. Haldi - In this ritual both bride and groom is applied a thick paste made of Turmeric by singing folk songs or geets . The Bride's applies the paste sent by Groom and the Groom applies paste sent by Bride's side.Proper feast is prepared and given on this day too but the feast includes Rice and Dal most importantly.

7. Mitti kodana - This ritual is also performed at both groom and Bride's house where All the married women along with the bride and groom go to a place and dig the ground . 

8. Dhritdhaari - This ritual is performed at both Bride's and groom's side. The main aim of this ritual is to worship ,thank and take blessings from the ancestors and all the elders of the house . This ritual is performed by worshipping the ancestors and giving money or clothes as a shagun or thanking gifts to all the elders of the house by touching their feet popularly called as "Paonpooji" . 

9. Imli Ghutai - This ritual is performed by the maternal uncle or mama of the Bride to keep the evil eye away from her . In this ritual the Mama gives a beetal nut to the bride which she keep unde her teeth and then gives it to her mother to eat . 

10. Nahawan - The Bride and the groom is given a bath by the women's of the house. And then both of them goes to get ready for the wedding. 

* Then comes the Wedding Rituals - 

1. Parichhavan - This is performed before the barat leaves for the wedding on the wedding day . In this the mother performs pooja aarti and applies tilak on the forehead of groom and gives him wishes for happily married life.

2. Baraat Prasthan - After that the groom leaves for the wedding with the whole baraat to bring his bride . The barat follows the way to the venue by dancing, singing and enjoying . After reaching their the barat is warmly welcomed by the Bride's family and the bride and groom father's hug each other also called as "Samdhi Milaan".

3. Jaimalaand Galsedi - In this ritual the bride and the groom exchange the garlands at the wedding stage . After that a photo session of the bride and groom is done with the friends , relatives and family . 

4. Kanganbandhan and kanyadaan - Here comes the most important rituals of the wedding . A holy thread containing rice , mango leaves , cotton etc is tied on the hand of the bride and the groom . After that the toe nails of the bride and groom is cut by the barber and also thier feet is coloured by Alta.

     After that the kanyadaan is done in which the Bride's parents give the Bride's hands to the groom's hands and it symbolises that now the bride is given to the groom and now he has to fulfill all his responsibilities.

5.Bhaisaur Nirakahan - This ritual is performed by the Elder brother of the groom . He performs a ritual with the bride and then give all the shagun things to her which includes clothes , jewelleries etc .

6.Sindurdaan - This is the most important rituals of the whole wedding . After the completion of this ritual , the Bride and the groom officially becomes one . In Bihar generally two types of sindur is used for marriage which depends on the area and culture of the family . One is of light pink colour and another one is of orange colour which is known as "Bhakhra Sindur" . The Bride's face is covered while applying sindur .

Post Wedding Rituals - 

1. Kohbar ghar and Salami - After the wedding is done the newly wedded couple is taken to the kohbar ghar where a small pooja is done and they both take blessings of the God . After that the Groom is given cash , gifts etc by the Bride's family which is called as Salami . 

2. Bidai - After completion of these rituals the bidai comes in which the bride have to say good bye to hers family and have to move to the groom's house with him . 

3. Swagat - Once the bride reaches the groom's house , the women's of the groom's side welcomes the bride by applying sindur . And then they both are directed to come inside the house by keeping their legs in a "Dagra". Dagra is a tray or basket made up of Bamboo .

4. Muh Dikhai - Muh dikhai is performed where the friends and families come to see the Bride's face and give her money or gifts .

Chauthariya - This is also a ritual performed at the groom's house where they basically thanks God and take blessings from them .

5. Chulha chuna - The last ritual is when the bride touches the stove at the groom's house for the first time and make any sweet dish. Firstly she worshipes the Stove and then make a dish and firstly offer it to the God as a Prasad and then gave it to the other members of the house . 

So basically a Bihari Hindu wedding is a very lengthy , traditional but beautiful practise that will surely leave a markable imprint on the hearts of the people , specially those who are watching it for the first time .This wedding clearly shows the rich culture of the Bihari and how people of Bihar had clearly still kept it beautifully.