Hindu Weddings

Some of the Hindu wedding traditions age back to hundreds and thousands of years. A culture that is so rich, there are many unique and interesting aspects to a Hindu wedding. A key fact is that not all Hindu weddings are similar. There are different regions, cultures, languages within the Hindu faith and every wedding is very different from the other. In this post, we will cover the Telugu wedding traditions.

Telugu Weddings

Indians who speak Telugu mostly hail from the South Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. There is a considerable Telugu population in the Indians states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Orissa. South Indian weddings are in a way a little bit similar to each other. Weddings often happen over the span of a few days.

• Mangala Snanam is a part of the bride and groom prepping ceremony or bridal shower. This ceremony can take place more than once. In ritual, the bride and groom are smeared with turmeric in their respective homes then given a holy bath with turmeric water to cleanse their body and mind before the sacred ritual of becoming one (the wedding). ‘Mangala Snanam means holy bath (‘Mangala’ means holy, ‘Snanam’ means bath). After the bath, the bride and the groom dress up in their first set of wedding clothes.

• Next, Gowri puja (Prayer to Goddess Gowri) is done by the bride at her house while the Ganesh puja is done by the groom at the venue. The bride offers her prayers to the goddess Gauri as she is the symbol of fertility and motherhood and prays for a similar ideal relationship that the goddess has with her husband, Lord Shiva. Before the bride enters the Mandapam (Altar) the groom performs the Ganesh Puja. Most of Hindu auspicious occasions begin with a Ganesh Pooja since Lord Ganesha is believed to remove any obstacles in the way. Even when people embark on a trip or start a new job, they pray to Lord Ganesha to bless them with an obstacle free journey ahead. Hence Ganesh puja is the first ritual that happens at the venue or Mandapam.

• The bride usually has a bridesmaid called “Thodu Pellikoothuru” and the groom has “Thodu Pellikoduku”. They sit besides the bride and groom during the ceremony and are usually small kids like nephews and nieces.

• The bride’s entry happens in a very interesting way. The bride is seated in a straw basket and carried to the Mandapam by her maternal uncle/s. In these modern days, some brides skip to be carried in a basket and prefer walking to the Mandapam. A curtain is placed in the middle of the Mandapam separating the bride and groom.

• Next is Kanyadanam. It means “giving away of the bride (“Kanya” meaning young lady & “danam” meaning giving away/ donation). This is the ceremony where the bride’s family officially gives her hand to the groom. The bride’s parents wash the groom’s feet considering the groom as the manifestation of Lord Vishnu who has come to marry their daughter who is considered as goddess Lakshmi.

• The priests chant sacred mantras and the musicians perform the “sannai mellam” (the music of clarinet) the bride’s parents place their daughter’s hand in the groom’s hand and give away their daughter.

• Next, the groom is asked to hold the bride’s hand which is called “panigrahanam” and promise the bride’s parents that he will remain her companion in thick and thin. The following Mantra is uttered thrice by the groom.

  DHARMECHA, ARTHECHA, KAMECHA, THAYA AHAM EVAM NAATI CHARAMI! which means “Righteously, financially, by desire, spiritually, I will not walk away from her!!”

• Then the main event, Jeelakara Bellam begins. ‘Jeelakara’ means Cumin and ‘Bellam’ means Jaggery in Telugu. The ritual starts by giving a paste of cumin and jaggery on the hands of the couple. Exactly at the Sumuhrutham (the auspicious time that is determined by matching the astrology of the bride and groom, this is the “wedding time” that is written in the wedding invitations and elsewhere), the couple place this paste on each other’s heads, moving their hands above the curtain. This is the point at which the couple is now officially man and wife and the curtain separating them is then removed. A big misconception is that the bride and groom become man and wife when the groom ties “Mangalasutram” (Holy and auspicious thread) around the bride’s neck but it is the Jeelakarra Bellam ceremony that decides that.

• After the Jeelakara-Bellam ritual, the bride and groom leave to their respective rooms and change into ‘madhuparakam’. These Madhuparakam are basically white clothes with either a red, yellow or green border. The white color indicates purity or loyalty and the red/yellow/green indicates strength – the essential traits of any marriage. After changing into their new clothes, the bride and groom return to the Mandapam for the next set of rituals.

• The next ritual is  Mangalsutram or thaali, the sacred yellow thread smeared with turmeric and attached with 2 separate gold pendants called ‘sutralu‘ or two is tied by the groom around the bride’s neck in 3 knots amidst the fast beat of ‘sannai mellam’ (clarinet music).

  The three knots refer to the groom’s promise to accept the bride as his wife by 3 means – Manasa (thoughts), Vacha (speech), and karmana (actions). The ritual signifies the complete union of the couple: physically, mentally and spiritually.

• Now the fun begins. This is the most awaited part of the whole wedding by not just the couple but friends and family. In this ritual, the bride and groom pour ‘Talambralu’ (rice mixed with turmeric) on each other’s head like a shower.

  The first 3 times, the couple shower ‘Talambralu’ on each other properly, after that it becomes a competition on who pours more. After this ceremony, the bride and groom exchange garlands.

• Sthalipakam & Nalla Pusalu Ritual. In this ritual, the bride’s maternal uncle adorns the second toe of the bride with a silver toe ring. This is followed by the groom adorning the bride with a necklace of gold and black beads called ‘Nalla pusalu’ in Telugu. Nalla pusalu is meant to free the bride from the effects of the evil eye.

  The mangalsutram, silver toe ring and the nalla pusalu Identify married women in India just like the wedding ring in Western countries. So they are worn every day by married women in India.

• The next ritual is Saptapadi. ‘Sapta’ means seven and ‘padi’ means steps which means seven steps. The seven steps represent seven vows of marriage.

  • to nourish each other.

  • to grow together in strength.

  • to preserve our wealth.

  • to share our joys and sorrows.

  • to care for our joys and sorrows.

  • to care for our children and parents.

  • to remain friends lifelong.

• After Talambralu and Dandalu, Brahma mudi (Knot of Lord Brahma) is conducted in which a set of betel nut, dried dates, turmeric twig, betel leaf, and some currency coins are tied to the loose ends of bride’s saree and to the groom’s Kanduva (Shawl). Then these 2 knots (bride’s and groom’s ) are tied together which is called Brahma Mudi which indicates that both the bride and groom should maintain good relations with either of the families.

• Another fun ritual in Telugu weddings is “Ring in the pot” ceremony. In this ritual, 2 rings are dropped (one gold and one silver) inside a water pot. The bride and groom put their right arm into it to see who picks the gold ring first. It is the best of 3 series, whoever finds the gold ring twice is the winner and said to have the upper hand in the marriage.

• Next is viewing of Arundhati Nakshatram (Arundhati Star) In this ritual, the couple is taken out of the Mandapam by the priest to spot the Arundhati and Vasistha nakshatram (star) in the sky. The groom points out the stars to his bride. Arundhati and Vasistha represent an ideal couple hence they are shown the couple as an example.

• The final ceremony in a Telugu wedding is called Appaginthalu where the brides family officially handover the bride to the grooms family. After this ritual, the bride leaves the Mandapam with the groom to his home. A very emotional part of the ceremony when the bride and her parents bid farewell to each other, often with teary eyes.

Some Do’s and Don’ts at a Telugu Wedding

• Do not wear white, black or red to the wedding.

• Alcohol will not be served at the wedding ceremony, although the reception later might have alcohol.

• Do not take alcohol as gifts to a Telugu wedding.

• It is not necessary to wear ethnic Indian clothes (They like it if you do though) and bright colors are good. Just don’t dress like you are going to a teen party. Many of these weddings sometimes happen in Hindu temples too and they have strict dress codes like no sleeveless dresses, jeans or tee shirts.

• Indian weddings take time. They are not like a Christian ceremony where it is over and done with in 30 mins. I am talking about 3 to 4 hours. So be patient but it’s fun and you don’t have to be sitting silently through out the ceremony too. Walk around, chat with people and have a good time while the bride and groom are wading through different rituals. The rituals are quite interesting though and you will find them fascinating.

  If you have ever been to a Telugu wedding, please share with us your experience in the comments section. How was it? Where was it? Was it fun? All the details!

Keep checking our blog for other interesting Indian wedding rituals and ceremonies, from Punjabi weddings to Bengali weddings.