Weekend in Hyderbaad

So we may have the best luck in the world. I have always wanted to go to an Indian wedding. They have always seemed to be so exciting and large and happy and just so different from what the traditional american wedding is. Somehow I finally got the opportunity. We were invited to the wedding of SriLachsmi to Pradeep. It was a once in a lifetime experience. I got to wear a beautiful borrowed sari and sit front row to all the excitement. Everyone that was a part of the wedding was so excited that foreigners were there. They went above and beyond being welcoming. They insisted that we were front row for all the ceremonies and explained what was going on each step of the way. I cannot remember everything that happened or explain to you all the ceremonies and symbolism here but will have to do so with you all at a later time with my pictures to help remind me.

However, I would like to tell you about some of the things I learned about Indian families and culture at this event. Everything is very formal and informal at the same time. Each ceremony is carefully planned and follows the same order as it has for probably hundreds of years yet people mill about during the entire things and will walk between the bride and groom and chat with them throughout the whole thing. I know I have talked to you all about arranged marriages but I do not think I mentioned what exactly marriages here mean. Here when a woman marries she essentially then 'belongs' to the groom and his family. As soon as the ceremony is over she moves into his house and will rarely stay with her own family again (unless, i was told, the groom and his family are more modern and progressive). I cannot imagine what this must be like. You are entering into a marriage with someone that you have met once or twice and suddenly you not only have to live with his but with his whole family (a whole house of strangers). I would be terrified. Yet the bride seemed extremely excited and happy. For many brides, getting married often means moving cities and, in the case of the wedding I attended, countries. I was able to spend significant time with the bride and her friends and see how sad it made them to leave each other a know that they would no longer see eachother on a daily basis. This must be so incredibly hard for women since your only relationships growing up are with your family and your female friends (men and women are not traditionally allowed to be friends).

On a brighter note everything about to wedding was joyful and fun. They wear so many bright colors and a wedding is the time to show off how much gold you have and how many beautiful sarees you own. Most of the wedding party (the bride and families) changed clothes probably 5 times in the day. It is also a huge family event. According to tradition you must invite everysingle person you know to the wedding. If you do not invite them to a wedding it means that you no longer want them in your life. Likewise, if you are invited to a wedding and do not go it is a huge slap in the face and basically means you don't watn to be a part of their lives either. So the Indian wedding is a HUGE religious celebration full of tradition, fun, family and lots and lots of FOOD.

I cannot wait to show all of you my pictures and tell you about everything I learned about the ceremonies and Hindu religion.