Marathi’s wedding ritual is a combination of pujas and oath. Some wedding traditions are similar to some South Indian wedding traditions such as Saptapadhi and conceivated; In fact, there are some uniqueness in several Maharashtrian wedding ceremonies too. Look:
Ganpati Puja, Devdevak and Gurihar Puja
Like many other favorable Maharashtrian opportunities, the wedding day began with the worship of God Ganesha. Puja ganpati is done for a bright future from the couple. Keity Family was then invited to the wedding mandap by Devdevak. In the Gurihar Puja, the bride dressed in her wedding clothes, worshiping Dewi Parvati for a prosperous life. Mother’s bride uncle gave her rice, she then offered Dewi.
Punyavachan & Seemanpuja
The parents of the bride take it to the place of the wedding and ask everyone to bless their daughter in Punyavachan. In Seemanpuja, on the arrival of groom, the mother of the bride receives it with Aarti and Sweets. She washed the feet of the boyfriend and applied to Tilak on her forehead.
Antarpat
The groom enters the Mandap and sits on a designated wedding spot. The Antarpat or a curtain is hanged in front of the groom restricting his vision of the bride who’d be sitting opposite to him.
Sankalp
The bride then enters the Mandap and the priest chants Mangalashtakas or sacred vows accompanied by musicians. On an auspicious moment, the Antarpat is removed and the couple exchange jaymala. That’s when everyone showers them with Akshata or whole rice.
Kanyadaan
The father of the bride gives away his daughter to the bridegroom with blessings. The groom promises to love and respect his wife forever.
Lajahoma
For the final Marathi marriage rituals to commence, a sacred fire is ignited and the bride offers grains to the fire chanting three mantras repeated by the groom. The fourth mantra, however, is uttered silently only by the bride. After that, the bride’s parents worship the couple as avatars of Vishnu and Laxmi and the couple then tie a turmeric thread on each other’s hands. As a final touch, the groom ties the Mangalsutra around the bride’s neck and puts vermillion on her forehead.
Saptapadhi
Saying out loud the seven wedding vows, the couple together encircles the holy fire seven times while performing the Marathi marriage ritual of Saptapadi.
Karmasamapti
The couple did Laxmi Pujan and worshiped until the fire came out. Groom then gives the bride a new name. Finally, the brother of the bride teases the bride’s ears to remind him of his marriage tasks and the pair brings everyone’s blessings in the end.
