Chris And Simi's Weddings, Part 3: The Hindu Ceremony

                        
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Chris And Simi's Weddings, Part 3: The Hindu Ceremony

...Continued from yesterday:

     The Hindu wedding ceremony took place in the Bellevue Hotel,

...in the hotel's Grand Ballroom, which had been beautifully set up for the occasion.

    
  Jim and Theresa, parents of the groom

     Outside the hall there was a shrine to Ganesha, the god of beginnings.

    There were also ice-filled buckets holding cold drinks for the guests, of which we were greatly appreciative, having just danced our way through downtown Philadelphia (see yesterday's post).

      The ceremony began with the entrance of the groom accompanied by Jayendra and Kashmira, parents of the bride.

    They removed their shoes then ascended to the stage, where the priest officiated the beautiful hour-long ceremony,

...which consisted of blessings, prayers, counsels and rituals,

...including hiding the groom,

...for the entrance of the bride,

...and the moment the cloth is lowered,

...so that the bride and groom can now see each other for the first time, as was the case in traditional arranged marriages where the couple had not met before.

    Simi and Chris also placed garlands around each others' necks,

...and were looped together,

...then tied together, by family members.

    The couple prayed together,

...lit the sacred fire, and circled four times around,

...symbolizing the journey of life,

...and took seven steps together, each step symbolizing a promise made to each other,

...of the seven steps of married life:

   Chris and Simi then took turns feeding each other sweets,

...symbolizing the nourishment of their relationship.

     Simi received a blessing from six married women in the audience,

...then the couple was showered with rice and blessings by the priest and their families,

...and were pronounced husband and wife.

     As is the tradition at an Indian wedding, one of the young female relatives of the bride stole the groom's shoes,

...which he was required to bargain for to buy back.

     The little shoe thief then shared her loot with her siblings.

     After the wedding the guests headed to the 19th floor to the venue hall known as the Rose Garden for the luncheon,

...a sumptuous buffet.

...topped off by yummy desserts.

      After the luncheon the guests would have a few hours to relax before the Christian ceremony that evening.
        

       Nothing like the joy of two  weddings in one day to put love in the air.